TAFE Directors Australia CEO, Craig Robertson, has accused the federal government of acting like a “pay-day lender” when it comes to the loan fee it imposes on TAFE students. Robertson notes that university students do not have to pay a loan fee, and that the government treats vocational education and training as a “second-class sector”. Jon Black, the head of TAFE New South Wales, says it is no wonder that TAFE enrolments are down when students are expected to pay loan fees. From The AFR:
TAFE students are being slugged with a 20 per cent “tax” on their classes and vocational education directors say it’s one of the factors leading a dramatic slide in enrolments.
