Course and qualification completions improve again

Tertiary Education performance indicators published today show that Massey University students are achieving at the high level of other New Zealand universities in rates of course and qualification completions.

The indicators are one measure of a tertiary organisation's performance – but there are many others that are arguably much more relevant to students. In Massey's case, these include the excellence of its teachers – 16 of whom have won national tertiary teaching awards in the past 11 years, the quality of its research, and its consistently high student satisfaction ratings.

The indicators are published annually by the Tertiary Education Commission, which has acknowledged that Massey is in a unique position as New Zealand’s largest provider of distance learning. Of all the students who study by distance at New Zealand universities, 64 per cent are enrolled at Massey. Part-time students make up more than half of Massey's total domestic enrolments.

Massey provides a distinctive and exceptional educational experience for its students and one of the key distinctions is the flexibility offered by its distance-learning programme, University Vice-Chancellor Steve Maharey says.

“Distance learning is one of Massey's defining features," Mr Maharey says. "It enables a wide range of students to successfully complete qualifications, which is one of three key expectations the Government has of all universities.

"It provides opportunities to mature students and others who might not otherwise be able to contemplate university studies due to work or family commitments. "Some of our students take longer to complete their degrees as they are distance learners who are also engaged in paid work. When we compare the performance indicators of full-time students only, Massey’s completion rates are on a par with other New Zealand universities."

He says Massey is continually working on ways to increase pass rates, and as a consequence higher qualification completion rates have improved for each of the years the commission has published the indicators.

“Massey's strategy to increase course completion and qualification completion rates involves seeking to increase the ratio of internal and full-time students to distance and part-time students, and to increase the numbers of papers taken by part-time students to increase their likelihood of completing qualifications.

"It also involves strategies to assist distance students to juggle their study workloads and other commitments, to ensure they have a realistic understanding of what they are taking on. The Bridging the Distance project, completed in 2010, has been recognised internationally for its innovative approach to providing that support.”

The percentage of Massey domestic students who study part-time has reduced over the past six years from 61 per cent to 56 per cent. Changes to the makeup of the student population cannot occur rapidly without impacting negatively on the types of students who benefit from the flexibility of distance learning and part-time study.

The commission's performance measure relating to qualification completion rates needs to be viewed in light of the fact that when enrolments increase the completions percentage drops. The commission has said it plans to adjust the measure in future to reflect the fact that most degrees take a minimum of three years (and longer for part-time students) to complete.

The Tertiary Education Commission's educational performance indicators for all tertiary education organisations, including Massey University, are available on its website: http://www.tec.govt.nz/

For more information about what makes Massey New Zealand's defining university: Why Massey?