The vocational education and training (VET) sector has always placed significant emphasis on student outcomes, but the revised Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) take a more comprehensive, student-centred approach than ever before. In Quality Area 2: VET Student Support, the new standards introduce key changes that reshape how RTOs provide critical support services to ensure student success. Here’s a look at the main differences between the current standards and the new framework for VET student support.
Structure and Organisation: A Holistic and Structured Approach
The revised standards introduce a more organised and comprehensive approach to Quality Area 2. Unlike the 2015 standards, which were less specific, the updated version consolidates student support into five distinct focus areas:
- Information
- Training Support
- Diversity and Inclusion
- Wellbeing
- Feedback, Complaints, and Appeals
This new structure provides clearer guidance on how RTOs can address the diverse needs of students, ensuring a more inclusive and supportive environment for learning.
Explicit Outcome Statement
The revised standards include an explicit outcome statement for Quality Area 2. This statement underscores the importance of fair treatment, proper information, and proactive support for students throughout their VET journey. It reflects a stronger focus on ensuring students are well-informed, supported, and protected, marking a significant shift from the previous framework.
Key Focus Areas and Content Requirements
Information: Enhancing Transparency and Pre-Enrollment Support
- Enhanced Transparency (Standard 2.1): The revised standards demand greater transparency in the information provided to students. RTOs are required to offer clear, accurate, and timely information to help students make informed decisions, especially when changes occur that may affect their learning or qualifications.
- Pre-enrollment Advice (Standard 2.2): A new requirement, pre-enrollment advice, ensures that students receive guidance about the suitability of the training product prior to enrollment. This ensures that students enter courses fully aware of the qualifications’ relevance to their goals, eliminating confusion and improving retention rates.
Training Support: Accessibility and Inclusion
- Accessibility of Support (Standard 2.3): RTOs must ensure that students have reasonable access to support services, including trainers, assessors, and other staff. This focus on accessibility guarantees that students are never left without the guidance they need to complete their training successfully.
- Reasonable Adjustments (Standard 2.4): The revised standards bring a more explicit focus on reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities. This ensures that the learning environment is inclusive and accessible for all students, helping RTOs cater to diverse needs in a more structured and responsive way.
Diversity and Inclusion: Promoting Equity
- Promoting Diversity (Standard 2.5): In a major shift from the 2015 standards, the revised version introduces a focus on promoting and supporting diversity among students. This inclusion mandate means that RTOs must take active steps to support underrepresented groups and foster a learning environment that celebrates cultural, linguistic, and individual diversity.
Wellbeing: New Emphasis on Student Wellbeing
- Student Wellbeing (Standard 2.6): One of the most significant additions to the revised standards is the focus on student wellbeing. RTOs must now identify and support the well-being needs of their students, recognising that factors beyond the classroom can impact learning. This proactive approach ensures students receive holistic support, addressing emotional, mental, and physical well-being.
Feedback, Complaints, and Appeals: Strengthening Continuous Improvement
- Continuous Improvement (Standard 2.7): The revised standards place a stronger emphasis on linking student feedback and complaints to continuous improvement processes. RTOs must ensure that feedback mechanisms are robust and lead to meaningful changes in practice, improving the overall student experience.
- Appeal Processes (Standard 2.8): The need for effective appeal processes is more explicitly addressed in the new standards, including appeals against decisions made by third parties. This ensures that students have clear and fair pathways to resolve issues, promoting transparency and accountability.
Key Differences: What Sets the Revised Standards Apart
A Holistic Approach
The revised standards introduce a more holistic approach to student support, addressing areas like diversity, inclusion, and wellbeing, which were less prominent in the 2015 standards. This evolution recognises that students' success is influenced by a range of factors beyond academic instruction, and it ensures that RTOs provide comprehensive support.
Cultural Safety
The new standards highlight the importance of creating a culturally safe environment, particularly for First Nations peoples. RTOs must now ensure that their support services are sensitive to the cultural backgrounds of students, fostering an environment where all students feel respected and included.
Proactive Support
Rather than simply responding to student issues as they arise, the revised standards require RTOs to take a more proactive approach. This includes identifying student needs early on and providing the necessary support before challenges become barriers to learning.
Clarity and Specificity
The new standards provide much greater clarity on what constitutes adequate student support. For example, the focus on pre-enrollment advice and reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities provides clear expectations for RTOs, making it easier to understand and implement these requirements.
Continuous Improvement Focus
A stronger link between feedback, complaints, and continuous improvement processes ensures that RTOs can use student input to drive meaningful improvements. This proactive feedback loop aligns with the broader goal of ensuring quality in VET delivery.
Third-Party Considerations
The revised standards specifically address issues related to third-party decisions affecting students, such as decisions made by employers or other training providers. This ensures that students' rights are protected even when third parties are involved in their training or assessment.
A More Student-Centered Approach to VET Support
The changes in Quality Area 2 reflect a significant shift towards a more student-centered, supportive, and inclusive approach to VET delivery. By placing greater emphasis on transparency, proactive support, cultural sensitivity, and student wellbeing, the revised standards ensure that RTOs are better equipped to meet the diverse needs of their student cohort.
These updates align with broader trends in education that prioritise holistic, inclusive learning environments where students are supported not just in their academic pursuits but also in their overall well-being. For RTOs, this represents both an opportunity and a challenge: to not only comply with these new standards but to embrace a more comprehensive vision of student support that empowers learners and improves outcomes across the board.
