Target 6
By 2031, increase the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years who have completed a tertiary qualification (Certificate III and above) to 70%.
Nationally in 2021, 47.0% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years had completed non‑school qualifications of Certificate III or above (figure CtG6.1).
This is an increase from 42.3% in 2016 (the baseline year).
Nationally, based on progress from the baseline, the target shows improvement but is not on track to be met. However, this assessment should be used with caution as it is based on a limited number of data points. Please refer to the How to interpret the data page for more information.
The state and territory assessments below reflect progress from the baseline (improvement, worsening or no change). There are no state and territory targets. The Australia assessment reflects progress from the baseline towards the national target.
| NSW | Vic | Qld | WA | SA | Tas | ACT | NT | Aust | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment of progress 2016 to 2021 |  | | | | | | | |  |
improvement 
no change 
worsening not applicable as required data not available. 
good improvement and target on track to be met (Aust only). improvement but target not on track to be met (Aust only).
Note: These assessments of progress should be used with caution as they are based on a limited number of data points.
Historical and ongoing target context
For tens of thousands of years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have sustained and developed intricate systems of learning and education, deeply rooted in cultural wisdom and oral tradition, and refined through experience and observation across generations (Burridge and Chodkiewicz 2012). This approach to learning continued throughout the life course and gave Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people the necessary skills to contribute to their communities and embedded a sense of purpose (Hughes and More 1997; Price and Rogers 2019).
While reaching one’s full potential can look different for each person, further education can play a crucial role in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people's socio‑economic outcomes. Higher levels of education, whether in higher education and/or vocational education, are linked with a range of social benefits, including improved health and wellbeing, access to housing, employment and earning opportunities (AIHW 2023; Biddle and Cameron 2012; DoE 2012; Hart et al. 2017).
Colonisation and subsequent policies of dispossession and discrimination continue to affect education outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Their experiences with systemic racism, the forced removal of children from families, and resulting entrenched inequalities have shaped their engagement with the formal education system (Bodkin-Andrews and Carlson 2016). In families where parents have had a positive experience in education, children are more likely to attend and complete high school (Biddle and Cameron 2012). High school learning environments that are culturally responsive, provide student-focused supports, and uphold high expectations, can empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to thrive and continue on to further education, enabling them reach their full potential (AIHW and AIFS 2011; Perso and Hayward 2020).
Cultural education, which is an ongoing process of connecting with family, community and culture can support cultural identity and wellbeing (Murrup-Stewart et al. 2021). A strong sense of cultural identity can protect against many of the stressors that limit students from reaching their full potential in the education system (Kelly 2009). Other factors that enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to reach their full potential through further education include:
- Academic preparation and support programs, which are culturally responsive and recognise students’ strengths, can help ensure students are confident in their academic skills (DiGregorio et al. 2000). Mentoring and tutoring programs further support students transitioning through university and completing their studies (Benton et al. 2021; Fredericks et al. 2022).
- Supporting community and a sense of belonging through the provision of culturally safe communal spaces on campuses, where students can connect with each other and with staff (Fredericks et al. 2022). This may help address social and cultural isolation for students, which is often caused by dislocation from kinship networks (Perry and Holt 2018).
- Addressing racism and systemic discrimination in the classroom and improving Indigenous perspectives in the curriculum. Cultural awareness training for staff and students, coupled with the inclusion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives within the curriculum, can support student success (Fredericks et al. 2022).
References
AIHW and AIFS (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and Australian Institute of Family Studies) 2011, Closing the school completion gap for Indigenous students, https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/83074cc6-7dc9-40fb-9505-7b49c07e68e3/ctgc-rs06.pdf?v=20230605180934&inline=true (accessed 14 August 2024).
—— (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) 2023, Education of First Nations people, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-welfare/indigenous-education-and-skills (accessed 12 August 2024).
Benton, M, Hearn, S and Marmolejo-Ramos, F 2021, ‘Indigenous students’ experience and engagement with support at university: a mixed-method study’, The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education, vol. 50, no. 2, pp. 256–264.
Biddle, N and Cameron, T 2012, ‘Potential factors influencing Indigenous education participation and achievement’, National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), pp. 1–40.
Bodkin-Andrews, G and Carlson, B 2016, ‘The legacy of racism and Indigenous Australian identity within education’, Routledge, Race Ethnicity and Education, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 784–807.
Burridge, N and Chodkiewicz, A 2012, ‘An Historical Overview of Aboriginal Education Policies in the Australian Context’, in Burridge, N, Whalan, F and Vaughan, K (eds), Indigenous Education: A Learning Journey for Teachers, Schools and Communities, Sense Publishers, Rotterdam, pp. 11–21, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-888-9_2 (accessed 18 April 2024).
DiGregorio, KD, Farrington, S and Page, S 2000, ‘Listening to our Students: Understanding the factors that affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students’ academic success’, Higher Education Research & Development, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 297–309.
DoE (Australian Government Department of Education) 2012, Review of Higher Education Access and Outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, Text, https://www.education.gov.au/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-higher-education/review-higher-education-access-and-outcomes-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-people (accessed 18 April 2024).
Fredericks, B, Barney, K, Bunda, T, Hausia, K, Martin, A, Elston, J, Bernardino, B and Griffiths, D 2022, ‘Building the evidence to improve completion rates for Indigenous students’, NCSEHE project final report., pp. 24–55.
Hart, MB, Moore, MJ and Laverty, M 2017, ‘Improving Indigenous health through education’, Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 207, no. 1, pp. 11–12.
Hughes, P and More, A 1997, ‘Aboriginal Ways of Learning and Learning Styles’, presented at the Aboriginal ways of learning and learning styles, Brisbane.
Kelly, K 2009, Living on the edge: social and emotional wellbeing and risk and protective factors for serious psychological distress among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health, Casuarina, N.T.
Murrup-Stewart, C, Whyman, T, Jobson, L and Adams, K 2021, ‘“Connection to Culture Is Like a Massive Lifeline”: Yarning With Aboriginal Young People About Culture and Social and Emotional Wellbeing’, SAGE Publications Inc, Qualitative Health Research, vol. 31, no. 10, pp. 1833–1846.
Perry, L and Holt, L 2018, ‘Searching for the Songlines of Aboriginal education and culture within Australian higher education’, The Australian Educational Researcher, vol. 45, no. 3, pp. 343–361.
Perso, T and Hayward, C 2020, Teaching Indigenous Students: Cultural awareness and classroom strategies for improving learning outcomes, Routledge, London.
Price, K and Rogers, J 2019, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education, Cambridge University Press.
Disaggregations
Data tables appear under figures
By sex
Nationally in 2021, a higher proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander females aged 25–34 years had obtained a non-school qualification at Certificate III or above (50.6%) compared to males (43.3%) (figure CtG6.2). The proportions increased by about eight percentage points for females and two percentage points for males since the 2016 baseline year.
By remoteness area
Nationally in 2021, the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years who have obtained a non-school qualification at Certificate III or above was highest in major cities (56.6%) (figure CtG6.3). The proportions declined as remoteness increased, down to 17.4% for people living in very remote areas. The proportions have increased in all remoteness areas since the 2016 baseline year, other than for people living in very remote areas (where the proportion declined from 17.5% in 2016 to 17.4% in 2021).
By Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (IRSD) quintile
Nationally in 2021, the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years who have obtained a non-school qualification at Certificate III or above was highest in the least disadvantaged socio‑economic areas of Australia (69.4%) (figure CtG6.4). The proportions declined in more disadvantaged areas, down to 34.4% for people living in the most disadvantaged socio‑economic areas of Australia. The proportions have increased in all socio‑economic areas since the 2016 baseline year.
By disability status
Nationally in 2021, a lower proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years with a need for assistance with core activities had obtained a non-school qualification at Certificate III or above (28.5%) compared to persons who do not have a need for assistance (49.8%) (figure CtG6.5). The proportions increased by about six percentage points for both groups since the 2016 baseline year.
By highest qualification achieved
Nationally in 2021, the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years who had completed a tertiary qualification (Certificate III or above) was mainly driven by people who had completed a Certificate III or IV qualification (29.5%, an increase of around 2% since the 2016 baseline); compared to 7.4% of people who had completed an Advanced Diploma and Diploma (an increase of around 1% since the 2016 baseline); and 7.8% of people who had completed Bachelor degree (an increase of around 1% since the 2016 baseline). A little over 1% had completed a Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate and 1.3% had completed a Postgraduate degree (figure CtG6.6).
Target data specifications
Outcome: | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students reach their full potential through further education pathways. |
|---|---|
Target: | By 2031, increase the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years who have completed a tertiary qualification (Certificate level III and above) to 70%. |
Indicator: | The proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years who have completed qualifications at Certificate level III or above. |
Measure: | The measure is defined as: Numerator – number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–34 years old who have completed non‑school qualifications at Certificate level III or above based on the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF). Denominator – total number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the population aged 25–34 years old. and is presented as a percentage. |
Target established: | National Agreement on Closing the Gap July 2020 |
Latest dashboard update: | 15 June 2023 |
Indicator type: | Target |
Interpretation of change: | A high or increasing proportion is desirable. |
Data source: | Name: ABS Census of Population and Housing Frequency: Five‑yearly Documentation (links): www.abs.gov.au/census |
Data provider: | Provider name: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Provider area: Census |
Baseline year: | 2016 |
Latest reporting period | 2021 |
Target year: | 2031 |
Disaggregations: | State and territory and Australia, by Indigenous status. State and territory and Australia, by Indigenous status, by sex. State and territory and Australia, by Indigenous status, by remoteness areas. State and territory and Australia, by Indigenous status, by Index of Relative Socio‑economic Disadvantage (IRSD) quintile. State and territory and Australia, by Indigenous status, by disability status. State and territory and Australia, by Indigenous status, by highest qualification achieved. |
Computation: | Numerator divided by Denominator multiplied by 100. Counting rules The data is for all Australian residents enumerated in the Census that reported having a usual residence in Australia. Geographical variables are based on a person's place of usual residence (on Census night). Includes (numerator)
Includes (numerator and denominator)
Excludes (both numerator and denominator)
Disaggregations: Sex refers to a person’s biological characteristics. The 2021 Census allowed all respondents to select from three response options for the sex question: male, female and non‑binary sex. Where a respondent has provided a male or female response and a non‑binary sex response, the male or female response was used to determine a binary sex variable. Otherwise, sex was derived by a statistical process using random allocation). Remoteness area is classified according to the ABS Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) using SA1 as the building block. For people with incomplete/invalid or missing address information, the ABS imputes the place of usual residence. The non-response rate at the SA1 level was 4.4% in 2021. Remoteness area disaggregations exclude ‘Migratory – Offshore – Shipping’ and ‘No usual address’. Please see the How to interpret the data page for more information. Socio‑economic status of the locality is classified according to the ABS Socio‑Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA): Index of Relative Socio‑economic Disadvantage (IRSD), using SA1 as the building block. For people with incomplete/invalid or missing address information, the ABS will impute the place of usual residence. The data is reported by IRSD quintile, which is determined at the Australian level and excludes persons with unknown or unavailable SEIFA score. Some individual geographic areas were excluded from SEIFA for various reasons, such as low population or high non‑response to certain Census questions. Please see the How to interpret the data page for more information. Disability is classified according to core activity need for assistance. The data is only available for people with a profound or severe core activity limitation. Disability data sourced from the Census is based on four questions to identify need for assistance and may not be fully comparable with data from other sources. See www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4431.0.55.002 for more information. (Data for people whose ‘need for assistance with core activities’ was not stated is provided for context.) Highest qualification achieved describes the level of a person’s highest completed non‑school qualification and is categorised according to the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF). Extraction Census Table Builder (Basic) – Employment, Income and Education: INGP X AGEP X HEAP (QALLP X HSCP prior to 2016) X Main ASGS (UR) [Disaggregations: X SEX, X REMOTE (UR), X IRSD, X ASSNP, X HEAP]. |
Data quality considerations: | All data values have been randomly adjusted using perturbation to avoid the release of confidential data. Proportions/rates calculated for small populations should be used with caution. |
Supporting indicators
Driver
- Higher education commencement, attrition, and completion rates
University component | Time series, cohort analyses - 4, 6 and 9 years
- Higher education application, offers and acceptance rates
By gender, SES and ATAR levels
- Certificate level III and above VET commencements, attrition and completion rates
Contextual information
- Field of Education for higher education and VET
- Higher education students’ views on outcomes, behaviours and satisfaction
- Destinations and satisfaction of higher education graduates
- VET graduate outcomes and satisfaction levels
- Progress towards parity
Material for download
- Students reach their full potential through further education pathways data tables (XLSX - 211 Kb)
- Students reach their full potential through further education pathways dataset (CSV - 583 Kb)
To assist with interpretation of the data provided (Excel data tables and CSV dataset) please refer to the target data specification (above) and the indicator data specifications (provided in each supporting indicator page – linked above).