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In May 2002, the government released the Tertiary Education Strategy 2002/07 (TES). The TES sets the direction for the tertiary education sector and is pivotal to the implementation of the tertiary education system reforms. This new approach will ensure the development of a more strategic and coherent tertiary education system, which is better aligned to New Zealand’s needs as a nation and that meets tests of excellence, relevance and access.

A key priority has been to develop a means of monitoring the progress being made by the tertiary education sector towards the outcomes defined in the TES. The information provided through monitoring will be valuable in:

• providing better information for tertiary education organisations (TEOs), so they can shape their own goals and objectives in dialogue with their stakeholders

• providing better information for the stakeholders who are involved in this strategic dialogue, so that they can better understand the connections between tertiary education and their own social and economic goals

• ensuring, as a result, that the tertiary education system is better aligned with the goals and aspirations articulated in the TES and better placed to contribute to the social and economic development of the country

• providing an evidence-base to help government agencies develop policies to further achieve the outcomes defined in the TES.

This baseline report provides a view of what we now know of the sector as it was at the start of the tertiary education reforms and the TES. It will be followed by a series of annual monitoring reports informing Ministers, the tertiary education sector, education agencies, and key stakeholders of progress being made.

This report is very much an initial report – focusing on what we know from available information. The report sets out the areas that will be monitored over the next few years as new information becomes available. An area of particular interest, in this regard, will be how well the sector is engaging with key stakeholders to ensure that the education and research it is delivering are relevant to their needs and contributing to New Zealand’s economic and social development.

This baseline report provides a picture of a tertiary education sector, at the point where the reforms began to be implemented, with both strengths and weaknesses. It reinforces the challenges and priorities articulated in the TES.

The report shows a sector that had attained greater financial stability, which will provide a sound base for further strengthening capability and quality within the system.

The period to 2002 was characterised by growth in participation in tertiary education, particularly in older age groups and for Māori. This provides an opportunity to have greater focus on issues of quality and relevance of education and the contribution of tertiary education to social and economic development, while further improving equality of access. For Pasifika students the need to focus on improving completion of study is highlighted by the data in this report. For Māoristudents, progression from entry level qualifications to other qualifications will be an important area for attention.

The challenge that New Zealand faces in meeting the demands of the knowledge society and economy is clearly evident in this report. Along with other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, we face the challenge of improving the foundation competencies of much of the adult population, while also further developing our specialist expertise.

The significant role of research within the tertiary education sector is confirmed by the evidence in this report, in particular, the contribution it makes to new knowledge creation and discovery.

Over the next few months, important new information will be available on the performance of the tertiary education system. This information will include TEO charters and profiles, quality evaluations for the Performance Based Research Fund (PBRF) and work being undertaken by the Ministry of Education and the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) on completion, retention and progression. This information will further elaborate on the information in this report.

In some areas, the new information may change our understanding of the performance of the tertiary education system. In the meantime, I believe it is important that the information contained in this report is made available to TEOs, stakeholders and government agencies now, so that it can inform planning and development.

I commend this report to you and encourage you to consider the issues raised as we all engage with the continued development of the tertiary education system.

Steve Maharey
Associate Minister of Education (Tertiary Education)

Home Page | Foreword by the Secretary for Education →

• Table of Contents

• The Baseline Picture

• Cross Strategy Indicators

• Raise foundation skills

• Skills for our knowledge society

• Strengthen research and knowledge creation

• Te rautaki mātauranga Māori

• Pacific people’s development and success

• Capability and quality

• Technical and Data Definitions