Review - Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research

As this report was being prepared, the Victorian Registration and Qualification Authority had
included on its website at www.vrqa.vic.gov.au/vet/cancel.htm a list of providers that have been
cancelled or that are currently suspended (both in the AQTF and the CRICOS categories) and a form
of consumer advice.
A dilemma associated with the AQTF 2007 is that it has a strong continuous improvement and
outcomes focus, but a decision at audit needs to be made of compliance (that is, compliant or not
compliant) against each element. This is especially so for a number of elements that do not sit well
with the outcomes approach of Standard 1.3 (training and assessment materials, trainers/assessors,
facilities and equipment), Standard 1.4 (trainer/assessors meet the requirements of the NQC) and
Standard 1.5 (assessment). This dilemma reflects the tension between a quality management system
based on continuous improvement but established within a regulatory framework. At the end of the
day, the regulating bodies need to know the level of compliance of the provider and apply appropriate
actions in relation to the provider, outlined in the AQTF 2007 National guideline for managing noncompliance
and relation to each authority’s relevant legislation.
Transnational application
Transnational education is driven by both demand factors (for example, students seeking an
international education experience and international qualifications) and supply factors (such as the
search for new markets by providers) and is becoming increasingly complex. The move towards
borderless education has received significant attention in Australia and internationally, including the
OECD. The OECD has researched the ‘multiplicity of activities and their implications for the quality
and integrity of education as programs and providers move beyond the intellectual, cultural,
legislative and economic umbrellas of their home country. 54
In Australia, it is accepted that the ATQF 2007 applies to offshore registration, accreditation, and
training and assessment services related to any qualification that is under the AQF, regardless of
whether it is conducted onshore or offshore. The legislative base for this assumption is unclear and the
standards do not explicitly state this. However, there are no territorial boundaries stated within the
standards and the AQTF 2007 applies to all training and assessment of qualifications under the remit
of the AQF.
The processes employed by regulatory bodies across Australian states and territories differ in regards
to monitoring this form of training and assessment provision. For example, the Department of Further
Education, Employment, Science and Technology in South Australia requires registered training
organisations to provide information each year on their operations for the previous 12 months to help
plan and schedule audits. Regardless of the information gained, the logistics of offshore audits has a
financial burden for the authorities and are not undertaken as a matter of course.
Other nations have addressed the complex issue of cross border or transnational education in a range
of ways. For some, cross border education is not explicitly addressed in formal documents, where as
for others specific guidelines apply.
For New Zealand, the gazetted criteria for course approval and accreditation 55 and the New Zealand
Register of Quality Assured Qualifications Policy 56 apply in this situation. The first document has
been developed to assist organisations designing courses that require course approval and
accreditation by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority. The second document outlines the
parameters of NQF qualifications including the registration criteria for qualifications on the register.
54 Cooper L, Bateman A Moran L & Eccles C, 2005, p.iv.
55 NZQA, 2003, at www.nzqa.govt.nz
56 NZQA, 2007, at www.kiwiquals.govt.nz/publications/docs/theregister-booklet.pdf
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