Tuesday, May 09, 2006
A big tick for Massey business from the TEC chair
A Massey business qualification has been given the big tick by the chair of the Tertiary Education Commission, Russell
Marshall.
He says in terms of what the government is trying to get universities to do, business education at Massey “already meets
the criteria for relevance and usefulness to a career”. He says he also has no doubts that Massey well meets the
requirement of quality.
In a speech to Business graduands in Palmerston North today, the former Minister of Education and Foreign Affairs also
saluted the University for its leadership over the past 80 years “particularly, but not only, in agriculture and in
distance education”.
Mr Marshall outlined the government’s future approach to tertiary education, including funding that will still reflect
enrolments but with other key indicators such as course completions.
“Quality and relevance have to become the central focus of the system,” he said. “When the Minister refers to quality he
is talking about international benchmarks but also of education that delivers to employers graduates whose skills are
current and who are well-prepared for the workforce.
“By relevance, he is talking about a tertiary education system better in tune with the major drivers of productivity and
change in the economy.”
Mr Marshall said the system would also favour institutions that engage with their stakeholders and thereby gather
information about the skills and competencies that are most needed and that will be valued in the workplace.
He assured the business graduands that degrees and diplomas they were receiving were both credible and valuable.
ENDS