Strategic Plan 2011 -2013 by TAFE NSW Sydney Institute

TAFE NSW Higher Education “Enhancing Opportunities” TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Enhancing Opportunities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Contents Introduction 3 Our Mission

Our Goals

Our Priorities

Our approach and outcomes

Objective 1: Develop and consolidate the Instituteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s academic governance structure

Objective 2: Maximise the options for higher education delivery

Objective 3: Expand the portfolio of higher education courses and delivery sites

Objective 4: Maximise funding opportunities to deliver Higher Education

Objective 5: Extend and enhance workforce capabilities

Objective 6: Increasing the recognition of the TAFE NSW Higher Education brand

Attachment A. Summary of actions and responsibilities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Introduction TAFE NSW has been delivering vocational education and training in NSW for over one hundred years. We have built our reputation on our quality and responsiveness. Our strong links with industry ensure training programs align with economic priorities and our graduates have the skills most needed and valued by employers. We are proud that our graduates are immediately employable and productive in the workplace. As a society we know we need more people with higher level qualifications. Having a higher qualification makes people more employable and gives them more interesting work with better wages. This, in turn, makes the Australian economy more productive and more robust. To this end, Australian Governments have set ambitious targets to increase the proportion of young people with bachelor degree qualifications and increase the proportion of higher education students from low socio-economic backgrounds. TAFE NSW is uniquely positioned to help Australia meet these goals. Through our network of ten TAFE NSW Institutes, we deliver training to over half a million people across 130 college locations each year. As a provider of higher education we can now enhance and expand tertiary pathway opportunities to people from all communities, contributing to Australia’s ambitious higher education participation targets. TAFE NSW Higher Education will build on our reputation for quality and industry responsive training to deliver job ready higher education graduates in areas of niche capability and high employment demand. By maximising partnership opportunities with universities and employers, we will increase study choices for students through joint and articulated delivery arrangements. The TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013 “Enhancing Opportunities” provides a framework to build on our achievements. The Strategic Plan outlines the next phase of development of our higher education programs and the growth of our capability as a quality higher education provider. The Strategic Plan outlines our path towards: • consolidating TAFE NSW Higher Education as an essential/central contributor to the NSW, Australian and international higher education environment; • positioning TAFE NSW Higher Education to face and surpass the challenges set by Governments, industry and community, and • fulfilling, in every way, our mission and goals.

Pam Christie Deputy Director-General TAFE and Community Education

Enhancing Opportunities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Our Mission TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • enhance and expand opportunities for students from all communities to attain higher education qualifications; • encourage the exploration and development of inquiry and applied skills within a vocational and industry based learning environment; and, • strengthen pathways and outcomes for students across the Australian Tertiary Education Sector.

Our Goals TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • deliver student centred higher educational programs promoting intellectual enquiry, critical thinking, creative reasoning and learning with relevance to professional practice; • provide opportunities to individuals, as lifelong learners, to develop intellectually, socially and professionally in order to contribute to the enrichment of business, industry and the community; • provide a learning environment that: ºº is informed by research outcomes and continued dialogue with industry, professional bodies and community; ºº provides higher and applied educational courses and pathways geared to maximise employability, workplace efficiency and professionalism; ºº motivates and engenders enquiry and learning about our society, culture and the international environment, and ºº encourages, facilitates and supports positive, analytical discourse and awareness; • strengthen and continually improve our staff and students’ position in the greater community by creating a collaborative and trusting environment, where individuals are treated with respect and where expectations of our society prevail; and, • promote investigation, critical enquiry and innovation through scholarship, teaching and partnerships with business, industry, education and government.

Our Priorities To increase opportunities for local and international students to access higher education pathways TAFE NSW Higher Education will: 1. develop and consolidate TAFE NSW Higher Education’s academic governance structure; 2. maximise the options for higher education delivery; 3. expand the portfolio of higher education courses and delivery sites; 4. maximise funding opportunities to deliver Higher Education; 5. extend and enhance workforce capabilities; and, 6. increase the recognition of the TAFE NSW Higher Education brand.

Our Approach and Outcomes Objective 1: Develop and consolidate the Institute’s academic governance structure Background: TAFE NSW Higher Education will further develop its academic faculty structure to provide a framework for curriculum development and delivery and to monitor and report on quality assurance processes for higher education teaching and learning across the state. A faculty structure will ensure a consistent approach and quality throughout the participating TAFE NSW Institutes and campuses. A flexible model will be implemented to allow for future expansion of faculties.

Key strategies: • Faculty: Implement a faculty structure. • Faculty staffing: Appoint Deans of Faculty, Teaching and Learning Committees and Course Advisory Committees as required. • Course Advisory Committees: Develop and implement systems to manage Course Advisory Committee responsibilities across the state. • Academic reporting: Develop and implement systems to ensure mandatory academic reports to the TAFE NSW Higher Education Academic Board represent a consistent approach across the delivering campuses. • Teaching and Learning: Develop and implement systems to support curriculum development and quality teaching and learning, informed by research. • Degree nomenclature: Implement a degree naming convention. • International students: Ensure international student business, onshore and offshore is built in to the faculty/management structure. • Monitoring success: Monitor academic infrastructure progress by the Academic Board.

Targets: By 2012 TAFE NSW Higher education will have in place: • an academic structure including a range of faculties each overseen by a Dean of Faculty; • broad faculty based Course Advisory Committees to oversee state wide course development; and, • a Teaching and Learning Committee at each Institute representing each campus delivering higher education courses.

Enhancing Opportunities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Objective 2: Maximise the options for higher education delivery Background: TAFE NSW Higher Education will strive for an optimum mix of delivery models for higher education whilst considering existing and local arrangements in place between TAFE NSW and universities, in order to expand opportunities for all communities. As well as delivering our own higher education qualifications, TAFE NSW Higher Education will maximise opportunities to deliver courses in partnership with universities to enhance pathways and funding opportunities for domestic and international students. Proposals will be clearly reasoned in course business cases with a sound validation of the industry need and proposed level of qualification. Associate or Pathways degrees will be thoroughly investigated as a pathway. Appropriate qualification and course delivery options for international students will also be investigated and implemented. The TAFE NSW Higher Education Executive Group will be responsible for overseeing negotiation, monitoring and evaluation of university partnership arrangements concerning TAFE NSW Higher Education business.

Key strategies: • Partnership and pathways: TAFE NSW Higher Education Executive Group will oversee university partnership and pathway arrangements to capitalise on business intelligence (local and international), minimise conflict of interest regarding local arrangements and to ensure consistency of approach across NSW. These arrangements will include articulation, joint delivery and/or licensing agreements. • TAFE Pathway degree model: Further develop and implement TAFE NSW Pathways Degree model, based on international examples, such as those used in the UK and California, in partnership with universities and industry. • Qualification levels: Investigate and develop a range of qualifications including Bachelor Degrees, Higher Education Diplomas and Associate Degrees to support pathway arrangements. • Business Principles: Develop and employ Business Principles to target delivery sites. • Universities Admissions Centre: Explore opportunities to work with UAC for inclusion and promotion of TAFE NSW Higher Education courses.

Targets: TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • develop business principles and strategies to increase and monitor TAFE NSW Higher Education by 2011; • develop and pilot Pathway degree model by 2012; and, • create three joint delivery pathways (franchising, auspicing or joint delivery) with NSW universities by 2013 suitable for domestic and international students.

Objective 3: Expand the portfolio of higher education courses and delivery sites Background: TAFE NSW Higher Education will take a considered approach to course development and delivery to strategic markets of domestic and international students in line with its mission and goals. To develop a strong, contemporary portfolio, TAFE NSW Higher Education will continue to analyse industry employment projections and the current higher education provision. By targeting disciplines and niche subjects, with which TAFE NSW currently enjoys success and respect in, and by developing appropriate qualifications with determined articulation pathways, TAFE NSW Higher Education will expand its range and delivery locations. Wherever possible, courses will be developed for delivery at more than one campus and subjects will be available for inclusion in more than one qualification, demonstrating TAFE NSW Higher Education’s efficient utilisation of its catalogue across the state.

Key strategies: • Course delivery: Complete development of current proposed courses and commence delivery throughout the state by 2011/12. • Course identification: Develop criteria for identifying required courses targeting: ºº partnerships with Industry and Universities; ºº emerging industry needs and potential demand; ºº regional employment projections; ºº established niche/innovation markets; ºº international students; and ºº those attracting Commonwealth funding. • International strategy: Develop criteria for identifying international student market and demands. • Business Principles: Develop and employ Business Principles to manage and take advantage of internal collaboration, determining where courses should be developed and delivered, i.e. a sole campus or across more than one thus avoiding potential conflict of interest and saturation issues. • State wide delivery: Increase the number of jointly developed courses to be delivered at more than one campus. • OTEN: Capitalise on OTEN delivery capability to increase online delivery of niche courses onshore and offshore. • Product management: Develop policy to manage course and subject repository and best exploit the subject catalogue.

Targets: TAFE NSW Higher education will: • develop strategy to target disciplines and qualifications for identified customer segments/groups; • implement higher education business principles and planning by 2011; and, • commence delivery of, up to, six new higher education programs by 2012 and commission up to, a further six by 2013; of which up to three each year will be designed also to meet international student demand.

Enhancing Opportunities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Objective 4: Maximise funding opportunities to deliver Higher Education Background: TAFE NSW Higher Education will pursue Commonwealth opportunities to ensure equity and maximise participation in TAFE NSW Higher Education programs from all communities. Arrangements with universities such as auspicing/franchising and joint delivery will also be pursued to access HECs places and build higher education capability in NSW TAFEs. Strategies to access other funding sources, such as the Structural Adjustment Fund, the Higher Education Participation and Partnership Program and Commonwealth Grant Scheme, in partnership with universities, will also be explored.

Key strategies: • Funding sources: Investigate and identify funding sources, such as HECs, for higher education delivery by TAFE NSW Higher Education in its own right and in partnership with universities. • Advocacy: Maintain advocacy through appropriate forums for broader based funding for TAFE as an alternative public higher education provider. • Existing funding: Continue to take advantage of current available funding regimes, such as FEE-HELP, scholarships and international student revenues. • National Priorities: Identify and promote potential degree programs that align with National Priorities. • Business cases: Include reference to potential funding sources in course proposal business case criteria. • Commercial opportunities: Identify further commercial opportunities in the higher education environment.

Targets: TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • identify potential opportunities/course disciplines to attract Commonwealth funding in the course development stage; • target three joint TAFE NSW Higher Education delivery pathways with NSW universities attracting federal funding arrangements (HECs) by 2013; and, • advocate through appropriate forums for broader based funding for TAFE as an alternative public higher education provider.

Objective 5: Extend and enhance workforce capabilities Background: The growth of higher education delivery by TAFE NSW Higher Education will bring with it challenges and opportunities for the TAFE NSW workforce. Higher education curriculum development protocols, language and culture have been embraced at this early stage. However, the objective is to expand and enhance our staff’s higher education awareness and capabilities. TAFE NSW Higher Education is in a prime position to reach this objective and build on qualifications, skills and practices evident in our current workforce. Many of our staff hold post-graduate qualifications and those who do not but are interested in delivering higher education qualifications will be supported with professional development opportunities to gain appropriate qualifications. Teaching staff will also be given opportunities to partake in scholarly activity to maintain and develop a body of professional knowledge and effective teaching practices. Engagement in higher education language and culture and the skills required to write higher education curriculum will continue to be implemented both formally and informally throughout TAFE NSW Higher Education, targeted at pertinent staff.

Key strategies: • Workforce development strategy: Create and implement a workforce strategy, including approaches to attraction and retention, ensuring a committed and accomplished higher education staff. • Staffing requirements: Monitor higher education staffing numbers and qualification requirements. • Study assistance: Develop protocols to manage study assistance for higher education academic staff, involving input from the Academic Board, Deans and Workforce Planning (or equivalent). • Academic Leadership: Create and implement an academic leadership development strategy, enabling enculturation in NSW Higher Education. • Scholarly activity: Use the Individual Learning and Development Plan to identify personal development and scholarly activity requirements of TAFE NSW Higher Education staff. This will include staff gaining international perspectives of their faculty area, possibly through international exchange opportunities. • Knowledge management: Conduct workshops and strategic development meetings to promote and build the knowledge and skills required to produce and deliver higher education curriculum. • Campus expertise: Cultivate higher education expertise at participating Institutes and campuses.

Targets: TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • conduct an audit and produce and maintain a register of staffing requirements to deliver higher education program and services, to be undertaken by the Dean(s) by 2012; • develop protocols and systems to evaluate and manage funding of higher education staff development, scholarly activity and study assistance by 2012; and, • implement information sessions and workshops, as required, to develop higher education expertise at participating campuses.

Enhancing Opportunities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Objective 6: Increasing the recognition of the TAFE NSW Higher Education brand Background: It is essential that the excellence and differentiation of our quality higher education products are established in NSW, Australia and overseas. Studying a degree at TAFE NSW is different from undertaking university study and this needs to be clearly articulated. TAFE NSW has strong brand recognition and reputation for employment ready graduates and TAFE NSW Higher Education will leverage this. Higher Education programs will be offered as a new product line under the TAFE corporate logo and as part of the state wide promotions activities as well as being promoted locally through the participating Institutes and DET International websites, based on delivery sites. Market research will be undertaken to identify what is required in addition to this initial strategy to ensure the ongoing success of higher education promotion. TAFE Higher Education will require targeted marketing strategies to establish TAFE NSW’s delivery of higher qualifications. TAFE NSW Higher Education will establish: • new brand values for higher education marketing strategies; • what marketing, specific to our higher education business, is required; and • what market segments we will target e.g., the industry sectors or offshore countries to be prioritised.

Key strategies: • 2011: Develop an initial marketing approach for 2011 for the Bachelor of Design (Interior Design) and TAFE NSW Higher Education. • Brand equity: Offer higher education products as a new product line under the new TAFE corporate logo capitalising on brand equity. • Brand values and corporate strategies: Develop long term corporate and Institute marketing strategies and identify and exploit brand value. • State wide promotions: Include TAFE higher education programs as part of the state wide promotions activities, such as promotion through TAFE NSW and Institute websites. • International promotion: DET International and Institutes will promote CRICOS registered higher education programs to priority countries identified in the marketing plan.

Targets: TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • initiate a marketing approach for 2011; and • implement full marketing strategy by 2012 including strategies for industry sectors and international markets.

Key strategies:

• Implement a faculty structure. • Appoint Deans of Faculty, Teaching and Learning Committees and Course Advisory Committees as required. • Develop and implement systems to manage Course Advisory Committee responsibilities across the state. • Develop and implement systems to ensure mandatory academic reports to the TAFE NSW Higher Education Academic Board represent a consistent approach across the delivering campuses. • Develop and implement systems to support curriculum development. • Implement a degree naming conventions. • Ensure international student business management, onshore and offshore is built in to the faculty/management structure. • Monitoring of academic infrastructure progress by the Academic Board.

TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • develop business principles and strategies to increase and monitor TAFE NSW Higher Education by 2011; • develop and pilot Pathway degree model by 2012; and, • create three joint delivery pathways (franchising, auspicing or joint delivery) with NSW universities by 2013 suitable for domestic and international students.

• TAFE NSW Higher Education Executive Group will oversee university partnership and pathway arrangements to capitalise on business intelligence (local and international), minimise conflict of interest regarding local arrangements and to ensure consistency of approach across NSW. These arrangements will include articulation, joint delivery and/or licensing agreements. • Further develop and implement TAFE NSW Pathways Degree model, based on international examples, such as those used in the UK and California, in partnership with universities and industry. • Investigate and develop a range of qualifications including Bachelor Degrees, Higher Education Diplomas and Associate Degrees to support pathway arrangements. • Develop and employ Business Principles to target delivery sites. • Explore opportunities to work with UAC for inclusion and promotion of TAFE NSW Higher Education courses.

Objective 2: Maximise the options of higher education delivery

By 2012 TAFE NSW Higher education will have in place: • an academic structure including a range of faculties each overseen by a Dean of Faculty; • broad faculty based Course Advisory Committees to oversee state wide course development; and, • a Teaching and Learning Committee at each Institute representing each campus delivering higher education courses.

Objective 1: Develop and consolidate the academic governance structure

Targets:

Training and Education Support

TAFE NSW Higher Education Executive Group

Training and Education Support

Institute HE Contacts

Dean(s)

TAFE NSW Higher Education Executive Group

By whom:

Attachment A. Summary of actions and responsibilities

Key strategies:

• Complete development of current proposed courses and commence delivery throughout the state by 2011/12. • Develop criteria for identifying required courses targeting: ºº partnerships with Industry and Universities; ºº emerging industry needs and potential demand; ºº regional employment projections; ºº established niche/innovation markets; ºº international students; and ºº those attracting Commonwealth funding. • Develop criteria for identifying international student market and demands. • Develop and employ Business Principles to manage and take advantage of internal collaboration, determining where courses should be developed and delivered, i.e. a sole campus or across more than one thus avoiding potential conflict of interest and saturation issues. • Increase the number of jointly developed courses to be delivered at more than one campus. • Capitalise on OTEN delivery capability to increase online delivery of niche courses onshore and offshore. • Develop policy to manage course and subject repository and best exploit the subject catalogue.

TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • identify potential opportunities/ course disciplines to attract Commonwealth funding in the course development stage; • target three joint TAFE NSW Higher Education delivery pathways with NSW universities attracting federal funding arrangements (HECs) by 2013; and, • advocate through appropriate forums for broader based funding for TAFE as an alternative public higher education provider.

• Investigate and identify funding sources, such as HECs, for higher education delivery by TAFE NSW Higher Education in its own right and in partnership with universities. • Maintain advocacy through appropriate forums for broader based funding for TAFE as an alternative public higher education provider. • Continue to take advantage of current available funding regimes, such as FEE-HELP, scholarships and international student revenues. • Identify and promote potential degree programs that align with National Priorities. • Include reference to potential funding sources in course proposal business case criteria. • Identify further commercial opportunities in the higher education environment.

Objective 4: Maximise funding opportunities to deliver Higher Education

TAFE NSW Higher education will: • develop strategy to target disciplines and qualifications for identified customer segments/ groups; • implement higher education business principles and planning by 2011; and, • commence delivery of, up to, six new higher education programs by 2012 and commission of, up to, a further six by 2013; of which up to three each year will be designed also to meet international student demand.

Objective 3: Expand the portfolio of higher education courses and delivery sites

Targets:

Delivering Institutes/Course development teams

TAFE NSW Higher Education Executive Group

TAFE Strategy

DET International

HE Secretariat

Training and Education Support

TAFE NSW Higher Education Executive Group

Delivering Institutes/Course development teams

By whom:

Enhancing Opportunities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

Key strategies:

TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • initiate a marketing approach for 2011; and • implement full marketing strategy by 2012 including strategies for international markets.

By whom:

• Develop an initial marketing approach for 2011 for the Bachelor of Design (Interior Design) and TAFE NSW Higher Education. • Offer higher education products as a new product line under the new TAFE corporate logo capitalising on brand equity. • Develop long term corporate and Institute marketing strategies and identify and exploit brand value. • Include TAFE higher education programs as part of the state wide promotions activities, such as promotion through TAFE NSW and Institute websites. • DET International and Institutes will promote CRICOS registered higher education programs to priority countries identified in the marketing plan.

Delivering Institutes

DET International and TAFE National Business

Institute Organisational/ • Create and implement a workforce strategy, including approaches to attraction and Workforce Capability units retention, ensuring a committed and accomplished higher education staff. • Monitor higher education staffing numbers and qualification requirements. Dean(s) • Develop protocols to manage study assistance for higher education academic staff, involving input from the Academic Board, Deans and Workforce Planning (or equivalent). • Create and implement an academic leadership development strategy, enabling cultural change in the Institute. • Use the Individual Learning and Development Plan to identify personal development and scholarly activity requirements of TAFE NSW Higher Education staff. This will include staff gaining international perspectives of their faculty area, possibly through international exchange opportunities. • Conduct workshops and strategic development meetings to promote and build the knowledge and skills required to produce and deliver higher education curriculum. • Cultivate higher education expertise at participating Institutes and campuses.

Objective 6: Increasing the recognition of the TAFE NSW Higher Education brand

TAFE NSW Higher Education will: • conduct an audit and produce and maintain a register of staffing requirements to deliver higher education program and services based on the Business Plan, to be undertaken by the Dean(s) by 2012; • develop protocols and systems to evaluate and manage funding of higher education staff development, scholarly activity and study assistance by 2012; and, • implement information sessions and workshops, as required, to develop higher education expertise at participating campuses.

Objective 5: Extend and enhance workforce capabilities

Targets:

Enhancing Opportunities - TAFE NSW Higher Education Strategic Plan 2011 to 2013

PUBLISHED MAY 2011