{"id":69119,"date":"2023-07-27T00:15:15","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T04:15:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/world.edu\/?p=69119"},"modified":"2023-07-27T00:15:24","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T04:15:24","slug":"what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/","title":{"rendered":"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

One of Education Minister Jason Clare\u2019s top priorities for the\u00a0Universities Accord<\/a>\u00a0is encouraging more Australians to go to university. As he\u00a0notes<\/a>, \u201cmore jobs are going to require a university qualification in the years ahead\u201d.<\/p>\n

Alongside this call is the recognition we need to improve access for people from equity cohorts – including Indigenous Australians, those from low socioeconomic and regional and rural backgrounds and people with a disability.<\/p>\n

As the accord\u2019s\u00a0interim report notes<\/a>, we need a higher education system that no longer prevents \u201ctalented people from attaining life-changing qualifications\u201d.<\/p>\n

One way to do this is through enabling programs.<\/p>\n

What are enabling programs?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Enabling programs are run by universities and taught by academics and are also known as \u201cfoundation\u201d or \u201cbridging\u201d programs. They are non-award courses (meaning they don\u2019t lead to a degree or other qualification) and aim to prepare students for undergraduate study.<\/p>\n

They are not part of secondary school and can run for anywhere between about four weeks to two years. Most students study for about six months.<\/p>\n

Many are available both on campus and online, with the option of full-time or part-time study.<\/p>\n

The accord interim report calls for funding stability for the university sector for 2024 and 2025. It also says university funding for these years should be \u201cdirected towards a range of assistance, such as increased support for students in enabling courses\u201d.<\/p>\n

What do they teach?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The programs are designed to build a range of skills and knowledge students need to succeed in further study.<\/p>\n

Courses cover a\u00a0wide range topics<\/a>, from generalised study skills to preparation for a specific degree.<\/p>\n

Enabling programs can teach academic writing, library research, foundational mathematics, study skills and discipline-specific knowledge.<\/p>\n

For example, if a student is interested in gaining entry to a nursing degree, they will need academic communication skills, mathematics, anatomy and digital skills. A future psychology student could benefit from skills and knowledge in social science and statistics.<\/p>\n

Who are they for?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Enabling programs are for anyone who needs further preparation before starting university. Commonly, this includes students who left school early, did not get a university entrance rank or did not do as well as they hoped in Year 12.<\/p>\n

When applying to university, students can preference enabling programs as a viable \u201cplan B\u201d if they don\u2019t receive an undergraduate offer.<\/p>\n

Enrolments in enabling programs\u00a0have grown <\/a>from 6,490 students in 2001 to 32,579 in 2020. A large proportion of students come from disadvantaged backgrounds.<\/p>\n

For example,\u00a032% of students<\/a>\u00a0in enabling programs are from low socioeconomic backgrounds, which is double the proportion of undergraduate students.<\/p>\n

Of the 48 enabling programs in Australia, 15 are explicitly for Indigenous students, who represent approximately\u00a06% of all enabling program enrolments<\/a>. This is more than double comparative undergraduate enrolments.<\/p>\n

More\u00a0than a third<\/a>\u00a0of enabling course students are from regional and remote areas.<\/p>\n

How can you access one?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Universities have enabling programs on their websites and in their program guides for future students.<\/p>\n

They are supported by federal funding so they can be offered free to students.<\/p>\n

Depending on the program, you can apply directly to the university or through state-based tertiary admissions centres, at the time when you nominate your university preferences.<\/p>\n

Why are they so important?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Australian studies\u00a0show<\/a>\u00a0students who complete enabling programs\u00a0do just as well in undergraduate study<\/a>\u00a0as students who enter via traditional pathways, such as directly from high school.<\/p>\n

Enabling programs are effective because they are\u00a0designed to meet the needs of students<\/a>\u00a0who want a university qualification but have experienced educational disadvantage. They focus not only on academic skills but also on\u00a0building confidence<\/a>\u00a0to study.<\/p>\n

How can we improve them?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

In the final Universities Accord report due in December, enabling educators want to see\u00a0several changes<\/a>\u00a0to the way the system works, to make sure anyone who needs this help to go to university can access it.<\/p>\n

This means fee-free places need to be demand-driven, with flexible funding to match fluctuations in student enrolments and allowing universities to increase enabling places as demand grows.<\/p>\n

In addition to existing payments such as Austudy and ABSTUDY, there should be further financial support for disadvantaged students doing these courses. Students from low socioeconomic backgrounds are over-represented in enabling programs, and struggle find adequate study time while\u00a0balancing family and financial commitments<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We would also like to see enabling qualifications\u00a0included<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0Australian Qualifications Framework<\/a>, which regulates education and training qualifications.<\/p>\n

This would ensure formal recognition of a student\u2019s achievement and then give them flexibility about which university they enrol in, because it would be recognised Australia-wide.<\/p>\n

Author Bios:<\/strong> Sarah Kate Hattam is a Senior Lecturer at Education Futures University of South Australia, Charmaine Davis is a Lecturer in Academic Communication and Humanities at the University of Southern Queensland and Tanya Weiler is a Senior Lecturer at the University of South Australia<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of Education Minister Jason Clare\u2019s top priorities for the\u00a0Universities Accord\u00a0is encouraging more Australians to go to university. As he\u00a0notes, \u201cmore jobs are going to require a university qualification in the years ahead\u201d. Alongside this call is the recognition we need to improve access for people from equity cohorts – including Indigenous Australians, those from […]\n… learn more→<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[434536],"coauthors":[11733],"class_list":["post-69119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-higher-education","tag-enabling-programs"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni? - World leading higher education information and services<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni? - World leading higher education information and services\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of Education Minister Jason Clare\u2019s top priorities for the\u00a0Universities Accord\u00a0is encouraging more Australians to go to university. As he\u00a0notes, \u201cmore jobs are going to require a university qualification in the years ahead\u201d. Alongside this call is the recognition we need to improve access for people from equity cohorts – including Indigenous Australians, those from […]\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"World leading higher education information and services\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-07-27T04:15:15+00:00\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-07-27T04:15:24+00:00\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/enabling-programs.jpeg\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kevin\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kevin\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kevin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee\"},\"headline\":\"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni?\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-27T04:15:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-27T04:15:24+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":817,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/enabling-programs.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"enabling programs\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Higher Education\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/\",\"name\":\"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni? - World leading higher education information and services\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/enabling-programs.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-27T04:15:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-27T04:15:24+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/enabling-programs.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/enabling-programs.jpeg\",\"width\":680,\"height\":383},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/\",\"name\":\"World leading higher education information and services\",\"description\":\"Global Higher Education Jobs, University jobs, Lecturer & tenure jobs.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee\",\"name\":\"Kevin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g8ba4c352a279c450aa9435d770c1ebf4\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kevin\"},\"description\":\"Kevin is founder of the world.edu project. The past 28 years have been involved in publishing to the education sector in print and the internet. Kevin has a degree in Education and has a many years experience in developing companies and projects.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/author\\\/kevin\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni? - World leading higher education information and services","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni? - World leading higher education information and services","og_description":"One of Education Minister Jason Clare\u2019s top priorities for the\u00a0Universities Accord\u00a0is encouraging more Australians to go to university. As he\u00a0notes, \u201cmore jobs are going to require a university qualification in the years ahead\u201d. Alongside this call is the recognition we need to improve access for people from equity cohorts – including Indigenous Australians, those from […]","og_url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/","og_site_name":"World leading higher education information and services","article_published_time":"2023-07-27T04:15:15+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-07-27T04:15:24+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/enabling-programs.jpeg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Kevin","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kevin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/"},"author":{"name":"Kevin","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#\/schema\/person\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee"},"headline":"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni?","datePublished":"2023-07-27T04:15:15+00:00","dateModified":"2023-07-27T04:15:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/"},"wordCount":817,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/enabling-programs.jpeg","keywords":["enabling programs"],"articleSection":["Higher Education"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/","url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/","name":"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni? - World leading higher education information and services","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/enabling-programs.jpeg","datePublished":"2023-07-27T04:15:15+00:00","dateModified":"2023-07-27T04:15:24+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#\/schema\/person\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/enabling-programs.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/enabling-programs.jpeg","width":680,"height":383},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/what-are-enabling-programs-how-do-they-help-australians-get-to-uni\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/world.edu\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"What are enabling programs? How do they help Australians get to uni?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#website","url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/","name":"World leading higher education information and services","description":"Global Higher Education Jobs, University jobs, Lecturer & tenure jobs.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/world.edu\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#\/schema\/person\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee","name":"Kevin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g8ba4c352a279c450aa9435d770c1ebf4","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kevin"},"description":"Kevin is founder of the world.edu project. The past 28 years have been involved in publishing to the education sector in print and the internet. Kevin has a degree in Education and has a many years experience in developing companies and projects.","sameAs":["https:\/\/world.edu"],"url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/author\/kevin\/"}]}},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69119"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69119\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":69121,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69119\/revisions\/69121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69119"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=69119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}