This report examines initial vocational education and training (VET) teacher training. It focuses specifically on teachers in institutional settings, particularly public and private VET registered training organisations (RTOs). The present project set out to investigate generic VET teaching qualifications, ranging from a certificate IV to an advanced diploma delivered by VET and associate and bachelor degrees, to graduate diplomas delivered by higher education. It is part of a significant body of current work concerned with VET workforce and teaching issues and also draws on that work.

Specifically, our study aimed to:

identify the key teaching qualifications currently available for initial VET teachers being delivered across Australia and document their key attributes

use available data from 2006 to 2008 on initial teacher training courses to identify trends in enrolment numbers, numbers continuing and completing, the characteristics of learners accessing these courses and the level of qualifications already held before commencing their teaching award. Information on the outcomes for the VET-level courses was also examined. by means of the Student Outcomes Survey (SOS).

Information about the individual courses offered in both VET and higher education was based on offerings in 2010.