THE VET SECTOR AND MASSAGE – VET MEANS JOB READY

In our recent article on Massage Education – VET or University, we looked at what level of higher education was most appropriate for massage. We discussed how, in our view, the level of education required in massage is very appropriately set at the Vocational Education and Training (VET) level – at a minimum. This week we look more closely at the VET sector and the benefits it provides.

Requirements of massage education

Students of massage in the VET industry must meet very specific, technical and comprehensive competencies in order to be awarded the relevant qualification. If they do not meet the competencies, they do not achieve the qualification. Hence the standard is real and maintained. All Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) are subject to a strict auditing and monitoring process by the National VET Regulator, Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA). The level of compliance required of RTOs is very strict, and rightly so, as they are responsible for providing education to their students who will end up as the workforce of Australia of tomorrow.

VET education means job readiness

VET education is absolutely focused on job-readiness. VET is deliberately focused on the knowledge and skills required to perform the job at hand. It is practical, real and experience based. Graduates are expected to be ready for industry upon completion so that they have learned and have practised how to perform their job and walk into the industry ready to work in it in real life. This is of enormous benefit and the hallmark of the Australian VET system, which sets it apart from other educational options (which also have equal value in their own right).

The value of VET to the Australian workforce and economy

It is also of enormous value to the Australian workforce as a whole, to employers who get job-ready graduates, and to the Australian economy through the benefits well prepared workers bring.

Accessible health-care

VET courses on health-care modalities such as massage offer another benefit as well, and that is accessibility.

Having health-care that is accessible to all Australians is something that our team strongly endorses and supports. We consider that part of this is ensuring that valuable and proven complementary medicine therapies such as massage, remain accessible to people on a very broad ranging basis. This brings many benefits to the Australian public.

Accessibility means two things – accessibility for people wanting to study, at a price that is reasonable and achievable for them, and accessibility that is then passed onto the general public, for whom therapies such as massage continue to be a viable and important support.

Our Team focuses on the quality of education and prepares students to be true leaders in their industry, just as we are leaders in the education we provide and the standards this sets for the industry as a whole.