A successful pilot program from the Department of Education is to be expanded to more schools to improve higher education and career outcomes for students.
Announcing the expansion, Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education, Geoff Lee said the pilot Educational Pathways Program (EPP) introduced students to different post-school study and employment options and was to be expanded from 24 schools to up to 139 public schools across NSW from next year.
“The Program has been extremely successful since it was introduced in 2020, with the number of students enrolling in school-based apprenticeships and traineeships tripling across the schools participating in the pilot,” Mr Lee said.
“Encouraging the next generation to consider an apprenticeship or traineeship through this Program will help to reduce future skills shortages and create a highly employable workforce,” he said.
“Through this Program, a growing number of Year 10, 11 and 12 students are earning and starting their career in industry while learning new skills in the classroom.”
Mr Lee said the EPP aimed to show school students the different directions they could take in their careers so they could make informed, confident decisions.
Minister for Education and Early Childhood Learning, Sarah Mitchell said some benefits of the Program to date included greater Year 12 retention; increased completion of school-based apprenticeships and traineeships; and increased participation in post-school education.
Ms Mitchell said access to the Department’s EPP in 2022 would be available to secondary public schools in the Illawarra, New England and North West regions; Newcastle; Lake Macquarie; Hunter Valley; Central Coast; Southern Highlands; Shoalhaven; and the western Sydney suburbs of Parramatta and Blacktown.
