What now? What next? Insights into Australia's tertiary education sector

In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Chris Tully, Learning Skills Coordinator at Melbourne Polytechnic to she her insights on effective LND support as well as some really interesting observations on how to engage students in an AI-era of learning.

During the interview Chris references:

• the OECD's PIAAC (Adult Skills) survey: https://www.oecd.org/en/about/programmes/piaac.html
• the OECD's PISA survey of 15 year old students: https://www.oecd.org/en/about/programmes/pisa.html and the latest Australian results are at: https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/pisa-2025-results-volume-i-country-notes_2d4ff9ea-en/australia_20d725d6-en.html
• the Victorian government's Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Support program: https://www.vic.gov.au/literacy-numeracy-digital-support

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire outlines the changes the government has made to international education since the release of the Migration Strategy in November 2023, as well as the newly announced changes and the recent statement from the Opposition leader.

Links mentioned in the episode include:

• Visa prioritisation status: https://www.education.gov.au/managed-system-international-education/resources/visa-prioritisation-status
• Minister Burke's Press Club speech: https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/TonyBurke/Pages/speech-national-press-club-17092026.aspx
• Department of Home Affairs summary of recent changes: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/changes-to-student-visa-application-rules-500-590
• Claire's analysis of the impact of restrictions on students bringing family with them to Australia: https://clairefield.com.au/international-education-changes/
• Coalition statement: https://www.liberal.org.au/2026/10/06/liberals-and-nationals-australia-first-migration-plan-cut-the-numbers-raise-the-standards
• Intergenerational report 2026: https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-09/p2026-797917-fs.pdf
• Migration Strategy: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-strategy
• Baird Review: https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20100325061710/http:/aei.gov.au/AEI/GovernmentActivities/InternationalStudentsTaskforce/ReviewESOSAct.htm

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire explores the sector's response to the Universities Accord (Opening the Doors of Opportunity) Bill 2026.

Claire examines the key evidence given by representatives from across the sector who appeared before the Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee on Monday 24 August 2026.

The Senate Committee is due to hand down its final report on the legislation on 3 September 2026 - it will be available on the Senate website: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Education_and_Employment/OpeningDoors

The Senate website is also where you can find the submissions made to the inquiry and the transcript of evidence given during the hearing. 

If you prefer to watch, rather than read, the evidence given to the hearing you can watch it on the parliamentary You Tube streaming portal: https://www.youtube.com/live/AFe_dX9W8Bk?si=2jYu2JB3FufrSP7I

The research by the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success (ACSES) showing the use of an ATAR "as a predictor of university success is questionable for low SES and [First in Family] background students facing disadvantage, and is not as crucial as other factors” is available at: https://www.acses.edu.au/atar-scores-a-weak-predictor-of-individual-student-performance/

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode Claire is joined by the CEO of Powering Skills Organisation, Anthea Middleton, to discuss skills for the energy sector and the changes happening within it. As Claire notes in her introduction to this episode - energy is the second major transition (alongside AI/technology) the Australian economy is going through and she welcomes more voices on the podcast to discuss the skills transition that's happening in energy (get in touch if you have initiatives to share).

During the interview Anthea also mentions a new report from PSO: the Electrician Workforce Capacity Study - you can find it on their website: https://poweringskills.com.au/publications/electrician-workforce-study/

Claire also mentions in her introductory comments the analysis she's been doing of enrolment trends in the VET sector (government-funded students and their courses and the fee-for-service activity). If you missed her recent webinar and your organisation is a subscriber to Claire's updates on the sector you can access the recording for free, if you're not (yet) a subscriber then there's a small fee to access the webinar recording.

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire spoke with Natalie Turmine, CEO of Service and Creative Skills Australia (SaCSA) and Emma King OAM, CEO of HumanAbility, who head up the Jobs and Skills Councils responsible for:

• Arts, Personal Services, Retail, Tourism and Hospitality (SaCSA), and
• Aged and Disability, Children’s Education and Care, Health, Human Services, Sport and Recreation (HumanAbility)

In their discussion Emma and Natalie referred to the following:

• The Australian government's announcement about expanding the Commonwealth Prac Payment: https://www.pm.gov.au/media/government-expands-paid-prac-strengthen-medicare
• The amazing wonder of Uluṟu: https://northernterritory.com/gb/en/uluru-and-surrounds/destinations/uluru
• Qualifications reform (this isn't the visual Claire referred to during the interview but helps explain how the reforms will work): https://youtu.be/untAGEvOvXk
• HumanAbility's work on 'Earn While You Learn': https://humanability.com.au/research---workforce/research-projects/earn-while-you-learn-research-project.aspx
• SaCSA's new data dashboard: https://sacsa.org.au/data-dashboard
• SaCSA's Creative Workforce Scoping Study: https://sacsa.org.au/projects/creative-workforce-scoping-study
• Holmesglen's Home and Community Care Centre of Excellence: https://www.holmesglen.edu.au/about-us/news/Holmesglen-leads-new-Centre-of-Excellence-for-home-care
• Chisholm Institute's Digital, AI and Technology Centre of Excellence: https://www.chisholm.edu.au/news-and-events/news/news/new-digital-centre-of-excellence
• IKEA's decision to retrain and redeploy 8,500 staff displaced by AI/automation: https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2026/ikea-turned-8500-call-agents-into-design-consultants/

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Prof. Michelle Trudgett, DVC Indigenous Leadership, Western Sydney University.

Here are the links mentioned in the interview:

• Know your worth: valuing Indigenous leadership positions in
  Australian higher education https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2026.2670000
• Indigenous Centre of Excellence at Western Sydney University: https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/western-growth/icoe
• Mother and three children embark on shared journey to becoming Indigenous doctors
• IRU (now 2050 Alliance) analysis of the impact of Job-ready Graduates funding: https://iru.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Impacts-of-the-Job-Ready-Graduates-policy-and-options-for-reform-IRU-analysis.pdf
• The GO Foundation: https://www.gofoundation.org.au

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Alex White, the CEO of the Victorian TAFE Association, to discuss a new research report and Alex's broader insights into VET and the public TAFE sector.

The VTA's new TAFE Employment Outcomes report is available on their website: https://vta.vic.edu.au/employment-outcomes-report/

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by the founder and CEO of Voyage, Matthew Donlon, to discuss student perceptions of and questions about studying in Australia, how they are reacting to conflict and global uncertainty and what they want from institutions as AI reshapes the graduate jobs market.

The Voyage website is: https://myvoyage.io/app/thesocialsource

And details of the the recent change made by the UK government to international education are at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/universities-face-ban-on-international-students-over-visa-abuse

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Prof. Phillip Dawson from CRADLE at Deakin University. During the episode you'll hear them mention the following resources:

• The Castlereagh Statement: https://castlereagh.ai/
• Research on academic cheating by Prof. Guy Curtis and colleagues: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40979-026-00215-z (open access)
• Prof. Dawson's LinkedIn post with the AI glasses: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/philldawson_you-designed-an-interactive-oral-assessment-share-7454689736088109056-zZMo/?
• His research with Dr Thomas Corbin & Sue Sharpe on AI wearables and teaching/assessment: https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2026.2661367 (open access)
• TEQSA's GenAI knowledge hub: https://www.teqsa.gov.au/guides-resources/higher-education-good-practice-hub/gen-ai-knowledge-hub
• Prof. Margaret Bearman's research: https://experts.deakin.edu.au/40465-margaret-bearman/publications
• The 'drive an F1 race car with your mind' video https://youtu.be/UC_fQa2cmd0?si=on7i9u1dbUw729oD
• The 'control a drone with your mind' video: https://youtu.be/LSUr-C6JLYA?si=1SLeQpe_SF595OW-

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au

In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Rishen Shekhar to discuss his experiences in the Australian international education sector and where it needs to head to next.

Here are links to some of the articles and reports Rishen discusses:

• Jon Chew 'Implications of rising inexplicable student visa rejections' https://thekoalanews.com/implications-of-rising-inexplicable-student-visa-rejections/IEAA Agent Quality Research Project: https://ieaa.org.au/IEAA/research/Publication/2026/IEAA-Agent-Quality-Research-Project.aspx
• Eric Knight 'Education agent commission ban won't cut course hopping. Here's what will: https://www.themandarin.com.au/308521-education-agent-commission-ban-wont-curb-course-hopping-heres-what-will/
• Minister directs French universities to raise fees for international students: https://monitor.icef.com/2026/04/france-directs-universities-to-charge-higher-tuition-fees-to-non-eu-students-starting-september-2026/
• Keri Ramirez 'Visa Cost Increase: The Quiet Rise of a $735 Million Revenue Stream' https://thekoalanews.com/visa-cost-increase-the-quiet-rise-of-a-735-million-revenue-stream/
• Universities Australia factsheet: https://universitiesaustralia.edu.au/publication/international-education-a-sector-worth-backing/

Contact Claire:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn: Claire Field
• Follow me on Bluesky: @clairefield.bsky.social 
• Check out the news pages on my website: clairefield.com.au
• Email me at: [email protected] 

The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconciliation and Indigenous engagement. To find out more go to www.johnbriggs.net.au