Review of the impact on the higher education sector of the TEQSA Act

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The Department of Education and Training has commissioned Deloitte Access Economics consultants to review the impact of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 on the higher education sector.

Section 203 of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 requires the Minister must, before 1 January 2016, cause a review to be started of the impact on the higher education sector of the TEQSA Act.

The review provides an opportunity to reflect on the lessons that can be learned from the first five years of the TEQSA Act’s operation. While it will be primarily backward looking in identifying what has changed for the sector under the TEQSA Act, recommendations that may flow from the review will help to ensure that Australia’s higher education regulatory framework operates effectively and efficiently into the future.

The Minister for Education and Training approved Terms of Reference for the review on 12 December 2015 and endorsed the Higher Education Standards Panel providing oversight for the review, prior to the appointment of the reviewing consultants..

Interested stakeholders can make further enquiries at HigherEd@dese.gov.au

Terms of Reference

The review will assess the impact on the higher education sector of the TEQSA Act by examining:

  1. what has changed for the sector in moving to a single national regulatory framework from multiple state- and territory-specific arrangements
  2. the extent to which the TEQSA Act has contributed to improved quality in the delivery of higher education
  3. the extent to which the TEQSA Act has contributed to improved regulation
  4. whether there is unnecessary overlap with other legislation, for example, the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000, the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 and the Higher Education Support Act 2003
  5. whether there are amendments to the TEQSA Act or other changes that would enhance the Act’s impact or its administration
  6. whether the required functions of the Higher Education Standards Panel are adequately reflected in the TEQSA Act.