Australian Bachelors degrees are commonly only 3 years in duration, unlike the 4 year degrees found in the United States, although some institutions offer 4 year degrees as well. The length of the degree usually depends on the field of study; for example engineering usually takes four years while medicine takes six. Combined degrees are also available and usually add an extra year of study. Australian universities tend to have less of an emphasis on a liberal education than many universities in the US, which is reflected in the shorter length of Australian degrees.

Associate Degrees have recently been introduced. These generally take two years to complete and can be seen as equivalent to the Associate’s Degree in the US and the Foundation Degree in the UK. They are also equivalent to the older Australian qualifications the Diploma and the Advanced Diploma.

Prior to the 1980s health science disciplines were being established by Colleges of Advanced Education, who were forbidden to award “degrees”. Courses were conducted and classified as a “Diploma of Applied Science in (discipline)”. These courses had considerable content requirements, some having over 32 contact hours per week over a three year period. These “diplomas” have been somewhat devalued by the newer naming conventions, as some diploma courses conducted nowadays may only consist of attending 12 training days for a total of less than 72 contact hours. However, many former “diplomates” have either converted or upgraded their DipAppScis to the corresponding Bachelor degree, or have undertaken further post graduate study.

Vocational Education and Training

The major providers of vocational education and training (VET) in Australia are the various state-administered Institutes of Technical and Further Education or TAFE across the country. TAFE institutions generally offer short courses, Certificates I, II, III, and IV, Diplomas, and Advanced Diplomas in a wide range of vocational topics. They also sometimes offer Higher Education courses, especially in Victoria.

In addition to TAFE Institutes there are many Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) which are privately operated. In Victoria alone there are approximately 1100. They include:
commercial training providers,
the training department of manufacturing or service enterprises,
the training function of employer or employee organisations in a particular industry,
Group Training Companies,
community learning centres and neighbourhood houses,
secondary colleges providing VET programs.

In size these RTOs vary from single-person operations delivering training and assessment in a narrow specialisation, to large organisations offering a wide range of programs. Many of them receive government funding to deliver programs to apprentices or trainees, to disadvantaged groups, or in fields which governments see as priority areas.

All TAFE Institutes and private RTOs are required to maintain compliance with a set of national standards called the Australian Quality Training Framework (AQTF), and this compliance is monitored by regular internal and external audits.