Over 150 ghost colleges axed

The Albanese Labor Government is cracking down on dormant vocational education and training (VET) providers, announcing this week that over 150 ‘ghost colleges’ have been shut down.

The Braithwaite Review 2018 first uncovered serious integrity issues in Australia’s VET sector, which were rampant under the former Liberal and National Government. 

The Nixon Review 2023 and Interim Report into International Education 2023 confirmed that the former Liberal and National Government turned a blind eye, finding that a lack of integrity in the system had grown even further under their watch.

The Albanese Government is continuing to clean up the decade-long mess, shutting down ‘dormant’ registered training providers (RTOs) who have failed to show proof of delivering training for 12 months or more.

The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) is keeping an eye on an additional 140 RTOs who have received a warning notice. They must resume quality training by the end of 2024 or face deregistration. Those who don’t resume satisfactory training will be found out and action will be taken to shut them down. 

Improving integrity in the VET system means students are better placed to study at quality providers while employers can trust qualifications. This saves businesses time and money by improving the hiring process – and ensures students aren’t exploited.

These strong measures came into effect under the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Amendment passed by the Parliament earlier this year; measures first recommended by the Braithwaite Review but ignored by the former Liberal and National Government. 

This builds on the Albanese Government’s broader effort to restore integrity and quality to the VET sector, backing in more than $37 million investment in VET integrity initiatives to support the sustainability, quality and integrity of our international education and training sector.

Quotes attributable to the Minister for Skills and Training, the Hon Andrew Giles MP:

“The Albanese Government is calling time on the rorts and loopholes that have plagued the VET sector for far too long under the former Liberal and National Government. 

“We’ve weeded out and shut down over 150 dormant operators, and 140 more have been given a yellow card.

“Under our Government, there is no place for anyone who seeks to undermine the sector and exploit students.”