I had just become Labour’s Tertiary Education Spokesperson when the Budget estimates for Vote Tertiary Education were before the select committee in June. This is the one occasion when committees get to question Ministers. I have a healthy respect for Steven Joyce’s political nous, but I was keen to find out what lay behind that in terms of policy. What I quickly discovered was that when it came to tertiary education his was the accountant’s view- he knew the cost of everything, and the value of nothing.
Our exchange in the select committee was marked by two things. The first was his clear response to the emerging pressure on tertiary enrolments. He said it was a temporary problem and proudly boasted of the limits to eligibility to student loans that would “dampen demand”. That phrase has stuck with me as being one of the most disturbing things I have heard from a government Minister. In a time of high unemployment for the foreseeable future and a desperate need to find new ways to grow the economy, the key strategy of the Tertiary Education Minister was to work on ways of keeping people out of tertiary education. It just seemed wrong.
The second thing I saw was Steven Joyce get angry. I had never seen that. He had spent a year and a half smiling his way through his introduction to being a Minister. But he got angry with me when I started pushing him on the need to lift the cap on enrolments. We have seen quite a bit of “shouty Steven” as opposed to “smiley Steven” lately in Parliament. He is handling a heavy workload, and with problems in terms of the flip flop on the drink-driving limit, the enrolment limits at universities and the roll out of broadband it is no wonder he is less cherry than he has been.
But in the end Mr Joyce’s mood is irrelevant to the fact that we have people in New Zealand who want to be in tertiary education, who will not be this year and more next year. We are not going to catch up with Australia or anyone else for that matter if we do not harness the potential of all New Zealanders. To me the answer here is for a more active role for the Minister to ensure that potential students are catered for. It might be that not every single person who wants to go to a University should automatically go there. It might be that some time in a Polytechnic or Wananga would be a better place, or that a PTE might provide a good bridging course. Whatever, it requires an active Minister to lead the process.
To satisfy yourself that your job is done as a Minister if the bill for student loans is cut a little is not good enough. Mr Joyce should can and should be playing an active role in connecting students to study and people to opportunities. It is vital to our whole country.
So sad that people are being turned away from universities
As a secondary school student, I find this scary. I’m pretty sure I’ll have no trouble getting into University when I leave secondary school as I’ve gt some, and am working hard for, reasonably convincing credentials. Even so, it scares me that many of my peers.. and even some of my mates, may struggle in their bid to attend their choice of tertiary education- and I’m not saying that lightly. I agree with you, Grant, in that I’m not saying everyone who wants to get into university should get automatic access, but a fair chunk of the guys, and girls, that will want to get in, and can’t, certainly are at an academic level where they should be able to get in without having to be concernced by this Government’s ridiculous cost cutting and education killing agenda.
Joyce needs to get into the world of reality, not his and his government’s world of expenditure cuts and this apparent view that young people are just expense. Well, I have news for Mr. Joyce, educating young people is actually an investment.
‘It might be that not every single person who wants to go to a University should automatically go there. It might be that some time in a Polytechnic or Wananga would be a better place, or that a PTE might provide a good bridging course.’
You have really answered your own question. What some people seem to be unable to accept is that the Government, being the taxpayer representative, has only so much money to spend. While I agreed with qualifications for university entry to be relaxed, perhaps this has now gone too far, and some are attending who shouldn’t be there. Doesn’t anyone want to be a tradesman any more? Plumbers, electricians and others command big pay these days. Do we really need any more lawyers, arts students, environmentalists than we already have? (Tracey excepted.) As a taxpayer, I get sick of all this demand for more ‘entitlements’ from the public purse, everybody expecting the government to provide cash for all things. As parents we paid ourselves for our kids education, tertiary and all.
“But in the end Mr Joyce’s mood is irrelevant to the fact that we have people in New Zealand who want to be in tertiary education, who will not be this year and more next year.”
Yes I’m rarely with any Labour policy but I don’t like this National one at all.
I mean, it’s clearly the trade-off for keeping interest-free student loans, this attempt to balance the books using international student fees which are considerable.
I would have preferred the Nats take the political hit on repealing that, rather than restricting admissions of the children of the very taxpayers who’ve paid for the damn thing in the first place.
Bad call, Steven.
Except educating NZ’ers is one way to lower crime, increase economic productivity, provide the workforce needed for a high value economy. Spend a dollar to make a dollar, yeah? Bearing in mind that this is not disagreeing with your point that education spending does need to be well targetted.
I don’t agree with this at all. I don’t think taking away automatic entry for over 20’s I really don’t agree with. You already have to prove you can work at that level to get into a degree, and I had to enrol at Uni do two papers to prove I could work at that level, cross credit them over (did papers that I could do this) and then apply for the degree I’m now doing.
I don’t see any problem with doing it this way to prove I could work at that level, but taking away the option for over 20’s to enrol takes away this option too.
Personally I would like to see some more of his mates “boring Steven” and “falling over Steven”.
That’s only because I’ve given up hope of ever seeing “opportunities for up-skilling Steven” and “sensible investment Steven”.
@Richard
Tracey once hinted to me her age and I suspect that she may have gotten very cheap or free education?
I have a lot of cousins who are tradesmen on great money
I still think that there are many people who got good grades at school who are being kept out with the enrolement caps
@A Mother – agreed
@David C – LOL
I think automatic entry is age-ist. You have to prove your ability to cope with study at that level. That should be enough. I guess there should be some capping on courses to align with industry requirements e.g. don’t want 5000 law graduates in one year with no jobs for them.
I would love to see widespread industry scholarships for individuals so that they get the right number of graduates, return-of-service provisions, etc.
In order to prove my ability to cope I enrolled and did two papers to prove I could work at that level. Maybe anyone should be allowed to do that regardless of age. I really don’t think I could have coped with College again at the age of 30.
@ James – I’m hearing ya mate. I’m also at secondary school, worked my backside off and so far have got the results that I feel I deserved. At this stage of the year (assuming my results don’t nosedive) I shouldn’t have much of a problem getting into Uni, but I do fear a bit for some of my fiends who might suffer because of the new regulations. It’s a bit annoying that they’re shifting the goal posts halfway through the game though
I’m not sure if it’s been mentioned on RedAlert yet, but here’s the Paula Bennett diet in action – guaranteed results!
Seriously though, is this how we treat mothers desperate to climb out of the welfare hole? Kudos to this woman for resisting the unbalanced odds.
If there’s one good thing to come out of this, it’s brought out the better side of NZ. The same NZ that welcomed Eve van Grafhorst when she was ostracised by her native Australia through no fault of her own.
Crooks!
! No one kept Steven Joyce out of university! 
!
Here in the UK the annual scramble for university places has just taken place with 150,000 applicants missing out, not just on their first choice but on any place at all. A Tory Minister advised them to do voluntary work and reapply next year….and how does the young person live in this year of volunteering??? It is very depressing having Tory governments at home and abroad all following the same agenda.
Yes read that article the other day. Thats is the reason I am going part time. It is plain maddness. It is happening everywhere. Even what Paula Bennett said
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett said she had “every respect” for Sara’s efforts to better herself.
“She’s doing it hard right now,” she said. “I acknowledge that and am determined to ensure that every New Zealander in Sara’s position gets all the help that the system can offer.”
That got my back up. She has taken away the TIA which were for things like travel and childcare.
Yeah, reapply when the new huge amount of wannabies are also trying. My sympathy to you, your one is doing more evil at the moment
Maybe Joyce has finally figured out that some of us aren’t morons and that he can’t smile and make smug remarks without some of us making a lot of noise as he wastes tens of billions of dollars…
Joyce may give young NZers another reason to leave for Australia, access to higher education will be uncapped from 2012… what happened with Key’s promise NZ would catch up to Australia?
“what happened with Key’s promise NZ would catch up to Australia?” – it will
When we all move over there 
Why
That was their plan all along 
Drive us all out and then sell the land to China! 
!
This all comes from a government that once said “For our economy to grow we must ensure NZ have the skills needed for modern jobs” Hmmm??????
“As parents we paid ourselves for our kids education, tertiary and all.”
Thats nice Richard, but many families do not have the ability to send their kids to tertiary education, let alone provide opportunities for their kids at a secondary level.
I paid for my own education – my own family were not in a position to afford to help – it cost me plenty, and it took a jolly long time for me to pay it off. As a result I value it and I do not support the concept of going to uni to ‘find oneself’. But we do need to make sure we support those who will thrive there. It makes economic sense – so long as they do not sod off overseas.
That said, I entered uni around the same time that the fees hiked up – how quickly we forget that once upon a time (most of the baby boomers and late gen x will know and remember ‘the old days’) fees were $125 and the cost to go to uni affordable. Those days do not exist, and when we look at an equitable system – something I do support – then the current system is both unaffordable and certainly not equitable. I don’t have any answers per se, but I do think we need to have a strong focus on education, and we need to address how we make it affordable, equitable and something that underpins our society. We do not value education enough.