4 June 2015 MEDIA STATEMENT
Access to qualifications slashed

The National Government has declared war on the next generation with a plan to axe two- thirds of New Zealand’s qualifications, Labour Tertiary Education spokesperson David Cunliffe says.

In answer to Labour’s written Parliamentary question, Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce has revealed a plan to slash the number of Level 1-6 qualifications from 3,593 to 1,204.

“Steven Joyce’s ‘targeted review of qualifications’ is appropriately named – because the Minister has targeted the aspirations of young New Zealanders,” David Cunliffe says.

“National will attempt to paint this slash and burn exercise as making the qualification system ‘more relevant to some employers and industry’.

“However what this really means is higher student loans as students are forced to take more general studies – rather than highly targeted courses – to meet their professional ambitions.

“Now we know why Budget 2015 banks future ‘savings’ from lower tertiary student numbers. It’s because there’ll be thousands fewer qualifications for students to enrol in.

“Students know the path to their future success is through education, but now National is taking away two-thirds of their options,” David Cunliffe says.

Question: How many qualifications in total are there currently in New Zealand’s qualifications system?

Portfolio: Tertiary Education Skills and Employment Minister: Hon Steven Joyce

Date Lodged:12/05/2015

Answer Text: 5,762 qualifications, consisting of 3,593 at Levels 1-6 and 2,169 at Levels 7-10, were listed on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework as of 1 May 2015, including existing qualifications which have not yet expired or been discontinued following the targeted review of qualifications. The number of qualifications at levels 1-6 is estimated to be 1,204 once the review is complete.
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