Vocational education and training (VET) plays an essential role in promoting the sustainable economic growth and socioeconomic development of Pacific countries.
After eight years of delivering high quality Australian VET qualifications in the Pacific, the Australia-Pacific Technical College (APTC) is recognised not only as a key provider of training but also as a significant contributor to the growth and sustainability of the VET sector in the Pacific.
APTC is an innovative development program funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and managed by TAFE Queensland.
APTC training is delivered across five campus countries – Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Samoa and Solomon Islands and is available to citizens from the 14 Pacific Island Forum (PIF) countries.
Certificate III, IV and some Diploma level courses are offered in aged care, automotive, construction, disability, early childhood education and care, education, electrical, engineering, garment manufacturing, health service, hospitality, painting and decorating, plumbing, tourism wall and floor tiling and youth work.
More than 9,500 Pacific Islanders have graduated with an Australian VET qualification from APTC.
A key measure of the success of APTC is the achievements of its students. APTC graduates across the Pacific are highly sought for their skills and knowledge. The employment rate for APTC graduates is 96 per cent per cent, with a majority employed in the private sector.
The high quality and employability of APTC’s graduates is attributed to the skills, experience and commitment of APTC’s tutors and trainers. APTC’s tutors and trainers are a diverse group coming from Australia and the Pacific, working as a cohesive team across APTC’s five campus.
Australian trainers work in partnership with national trainers to deliver engaging and effective competency based training.
The partnership between local and expatriate trainers is mutually beneficial and helps to develop relationships and enhance the sharing of knowledge, training delivery methods and skills.
Many of APTC’s ex-pat trainers who have now returned to Australia have found that they developed a whole new perspective on VET. They see first- hand the valuable contribution that this type of training and education provides, to students and employers and in the long term, the economic benefit to nations.
APTC Trainer in Community Services, Youth Work and Community Development, Annie Dares, who was based in Vanuatu from 2012 to 2015, said “My high hopes of wanting to join APTC turned out to be fully justified by the experience. I was privileged to work with delightful colleagues who were very supportive professionally and personally.”
Ms Dares describes the level of job satisfaction as a trainer with APTC as “intense”.
“My students had impressive backgrounds and came from countries all over the Pacific and this made the classroom a stimulating learning environment not only for them but for me too.”
Now in Stage 2 of the project, APTC is committed to the long term sustainability of VET by employing Pacific Island citizens as administrators, managers and supervisors and of course trainers.
There is a focus on capability development of APTC’s workforce at all levels and transitioning local tutors to trainer roles by providing ongoing support and professional development. This focus on capacity building within the organisation is being enhanced by the employment of Specialist Vocational Training Advisors (SVTA’s).
The SVTA’s are skilled and experienced Australian VET professionals engaged to support APTC’s regional focused training delivery and to provide mentoring and leadership to local tutors and trainers as they develop their skills, knowledge and confidence to deliver competency based training.
APTC’s Centre for Professional Development supports employees through use of APTC’s Moodle- based learning system, called MyVillage. To date over 150 staff have been introduced to online professional development programs.
In its efforts to contribute to the sustainability and development of VET in the Pacific, APTC provides a unique model of cooperation and collaboration between governments, industry and the education sector.
APTC’s partnerships with national training institutions provides a platform to support and strengthen VET facilities and training provision across the region.
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