Socio-economic outcome area 6

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students reach their full potential through further education pathways

TARGET 6

By 2031, increase the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25-34 years who have completed a tertiary qualification (Certificate III and above) to 70 per cent

Dashboard snapshot: The data below are the most recent at the time of preparing the July 2021 report. Please go to the dashboard to access the current data.

Nationally in 2016, 42.3 per cent of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years had completed non-school qualifications of Certificate III or above (figure CtG6.1).

There are no new data since the baseline year of 2016.

Figure CtG6.1 displays the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and non-Indigenous people (aged 25 to 34 years) who have completed non-school qualifications at Certificate level III or above. The aim under Closing the Gap is to increase the proportion for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from a 2016 baseline value of 42.3 per cent to a target value of 70 per cent by 2031.

Target data specifications

Target 6: Increase the proportion of people who have completed a tertiary qualification

Outcome:

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students reach their full potential through further education pathways.

Target:

By 2031, increase the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25-34 years who have completed a tertiary qualification (Certificate level III and above) to 70 per cent.

Indicator:

The proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25-34 years old who have completed qualifications at Certificate level III or above.

Measure:

The measure is defined as:

Numerator — number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25-34 years old who have completed non-school qualifications at Certificate level III or above based on the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).

Denominator — total number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the population aged 25-34 years old.

and is presented as a percentage.

Target established:

National Agreement on Closing the Gap July 2020

Latest dashboard update:

23 June 2021

Indicator type:

Target

Interpretation of change:

A high or increasing proportion is desirable. An increase from the previous year or the baseline year is an improvement.

Data source:

Name: ABS Census of Population and Housing

Frequency: Five-yearly

Documentation (links): www.abs.gov.au/census

Data provider:

Provider name: Australian Bureau of Statistics

Provider area: Census

Baseline year:

2016

Target year:

2031

Disaggregations:

State and territory and Australia, by Indigenous status

Computation:

Numerator divided by Denominator multiplied by 100

Counting rules

Data are for all Australian residents enumerated in the Census that reported having a usual residence in Australia.

Geographical variables are based on a person's place of usual residence.

Includes (numerator)

  • people who have attained Certificate Level III or IV, Diploma or Advanced Diploma, Bachelor Degree, Graduate Diploma/Certificate or a Postgraduate Degree.

Includes (numerator and denominator)

  • Australian totals include all states and territories (including Other Territories).

Excludes (numerator)

  • people whose certificate level was not further defined

Excludes (both numerator and denominator)

  • people whose non-school qualifications were ‘not stated’ or inadequately described
  • overseas visitors
  • people for whom Indigenous status was not stated.

Extraction

Census Table Builder (Basic) – Employment, Income and Education: INGP X AGEP X HEAP (QALLP X HSCP prior to 2016) X Main ASGS (UR)

Data quality considerations:

Data values have been randomly adjusted using perturbation to avoid the release of confidential data.

Future reporting:

Additional disaggregations required for future reporting:

  • Remoteness areas
  • Socioeconomic status of the locality
  • Disability status
  • Gender
  • Highest qualification achieved (AQF level).

Supporting indicators

Driver

  • Higher education commencement, attrition, and completion rates
    University component | Time series, cohort analyses - 4, 6 and 9 years
  • Higher education application, offers and acceptance rates
    By gender, SES and ATAR levels
  • Cert III and above VET commencements, attrition and completion rates

Contextual information

  • Field of Education for higher education and VET
  • Higher education students’ views on outcomes, behaviours and satisfaction
  • Destinations and satisfaction of higher education graduates
  • VET graduate outcomes and satisfaction levels
  • Progress towards parity

The Productivity Commission acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, waters and community. We pay our respects to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures, Country and Elders past and present.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this website may contain images, voices or names of people who have passed away.