Post-compulsory Education

Primary and secondary education in New Zealand are compulsory for all between the ages of 5 and 16 years.

Introduction

New Zealand’s tertiary education system encompasses all post-secondary school education. The system includes a range of public and private independent, self-governing tertiary education organisations that award tertiary education qualifications. Each type of tertiary education organisation makes a distinctive contribution to the tertiary education system, as set out in the Education Act 1989. The Act recognises the strengths and differences of each organisation across the whole system.

The tertiary education system reflects Te Tiriti o Waitangi / the Treaty of Waitangi as a founding constitutional document of New Zealand. The Treaty is an agreement between the Crown and Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. Course and qualification content, as well as institutions, reflect and address the spirit of partnership embodied in the Treaty.

Degree-level qualifications may be granted by universities, institutes of technology and polytechnics (ITPs), wānanga (Māori centres of tertiary learning) and some private training establishments (PTEs).

Register of Quality-Assured Qualifications

The New Zealand Register of Quality Assured Qualifications, Te Āhurutanga (the Register), is a comprehensive list of all quality-assured qualifications in New Zealand. The qualifications on the Register can be viewed and compared at the KiwiQuals website.

The Register has 10 levels. Levels are based on complexity: level 1 is the least complex and level 10 the most.

Credits

A total of 120 credits is considered an annual full-time study load for a student. 120 credits is equivalent to 60 ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System).

Quality Assurance

There are three organisations that quality-assure and approve qualifications in New Zealand: the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors’ Committee (NZVCC), the Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics Quality (ITPQ) and the New Zealand Qualifications Authority
(NZQA). All three organisations use the same criteria for approval to ensure that a course is based on clear and consistent aims, content, outcomes and assessment practices, which meet the necessary criteria and requirements.

NZVCC’s Committee on University Academic Programmes approves all university qualifications. ITPQ, under delegated authority from NZQA, approves qualifications at level 7 and below for ITPs. NZQA approves all qualifications delivered by wānanga, PTEs and Other Tertiary Education Providers (OTEPs), and also all degrees above level 7 delivered
by ITPs.

Information on New Zealand’s quality assurance processes can be found on the KiwiQuals website.

Government Agencies

The Ministry of Education is the government department responsible for developing the broad policy framework for tertiary education.

The Tertiary Education Commission is a Crown agency responsible for leading the government’s relationship with the tertiary education sector, and for managing the government’s investment in the tertiary education system.

The New Zealand Qualifications Authority quality-assures many tertiary qualifications (as outlined above) and education providers, evaluates overseas qualifications and administers the New Zealand Register of Quality Assured Qualifications. NZQA fulfils the role of National Education Information Centre under the Lisbon Recognition Convention (1997).