Almost a third of Ballarat’s applied learning graduates are still looking for work six months after they leave school – double the Victorian average, new data shows.
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The state government survey tracks whether students are in tertiary study, training or employment six months after graduating from year 12 or equivalent.
On Track report found 28.3 per cent of students who graduated with only a Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) were still looking for work six months on.
That compares to a 13.8 per cent average statewide, 13.6 per cent in Bendigo and 10.3 per cent in Geelong.
Highlands LLEN executive officer Jannine Bennett said the disparity between Ballarat and the rest of the state was “deserving of a much bigger conversation with education providers”.
The report surveyed 678 graduates from nine secondary schools, all of whom graduated in 2015.
“There’s more kids looking for work than there are employed so it means that there’s a reason for that,” Ms Bennett said.
“Do we have less jobs here in Ballarat? Is VCAL not recognised well enough in the community?
“Another question to ask is are students being prepared for the workforce adequately during their VCAL?”
Another concerning figure was the high level of part-time employment in Ballarat, which sat almost 6 per cent above the state average, Ms Bennett said.
“I’ve talked about under employment in Ballarat for quite some time and I think that is an area that our community needs to focus on. There are so many young people that are in part-time work it’s just crazy.”
But the report also had upsides – almost half of early leavers were apprentices or trainees six months after graduating, Ms Bennett said.
The city’s average is more than 10 per cent higher than the state’s, with 43.9 per cent of early leavers in apprenticeships or traineeships.
“I think that still there is very much a culture in Ballarat of taking on apprentices and I think employers are committed to that system. It’s a really good statistic.”
Just over 95 per cent of Vocational Education Training (VET) graduates were either studying or working, with 42.4 per cent undertaking a bachelors degree.
Only 4 per cent were looking for work.
Overall 69.3 per cent of graduates who completed year 12 or equivalent were in further education or training, compared to 76.8 per cent across the state.
“So many of them are either at uni or are employed so their outcomes are really, really positive because clearly their pathways are terrific,” Ms Bennett said.