The Business Council welcomes the release of Jobs and Skills Australia's tertiary harmonisation report and the key recommendations to improve collaboration between universities and the VET sector, and encourages that work to begin immediately as the roadmap is developed.

Business Council Chief Executive Bran Black said the report is an important step towards breaking down the barriers between university and vocational training, which was a recommendation of the BCA’s Big Five Questions election platform.

“Greater connectivity between university and vocational training is important, as both are critical to skilling our future workforce and ensuring we have the right people in the right jobs,” Mr Black said.

“Having a cohesive approach to post-school education will help students receive the right mix of skills and knowledge to thrive in the workforce, and this approach has to be underpinned by strong partnerships with industry.”

Mr Black highlighted the value of and need for vocational training that is linked closely with industry.

“Vocational training can lead to a highly paid career, and getting more people trained with a trade is absolutely vital to our economy and future workforce needs if we are going to improve our productivity in the long-term.

“The NSW model of Institutes of Applied Technology provides a blueprint to follow, with universities, VET and industry working in partnership to deliver world-class training in areas of critical need.

“We need to view our tertiary sector as the toolkit for lifelong learning, recognising that short, stackable courses will be increasingly essential in a rapidly changing economy, particularly with the opportunities afforded by AI.”

The BCA strongly supports the recommendations around a national credit transfer system, Australian Qualifications reform and a National Skills Taxonomy.