More rigorous standards and expectations are imposed on public sector education providers, in line with those that have been demanded from private sector providers … finally, writes Caroline Boot, the founder of the NZ Procurement Institute.
The NZ Institute of Skills and Technology (aka Te Pukenga) responsible for tertiary education and training, was disestablished from January.
Just two years into its operation, this massive, centralised government agency hit the headlines back in 2022. In its first two years of operation, it had racked up an $80 million deficit in that short time, despite receiving over $2 billion in funding. Serious concerns were raised over its performance and effectiveness on many fronts, undertaken by the Office of the Auditor-General, Treasury, BERL, Tertiary Education Commission and the Ministry of Education.
The Government concluded that the organisation had failed its students, employers and the regions it was supposed to serve. It was dogged by organisational complexity, disruption from multiple sector-wide restructures, and long-running financial instability.
In July last year, the Prime Minister Chris Luxon called for Te Pukenga to be immediately dismantled.
The education playing field needed to be levelled
Private Training Establishments (PTEs) have had to compete against publicly funded education institutions for decades.
In many cases, government-funded institutions receive generous funding for the same qualifications that are offered privately. However, to date, the process for applying for funding has been extremely difficult and time-consuming for PTEs. The process involves exhaustive bureaucratic requirements, huge costs for expensive reviews by government officials, and with little likelihood for success. In most cases, even if applications are successful, there are delays of years between application submission and funding receipt.
The process of becoming a PTE, let alone securing funding to enable fair competition with public education organisations, is not for the faint-hearted.
Despite all these challenges, studies have shown that PTEs have higher levels of student achievement, satisfaction and completion; greater agility and responsiveness to individual student needs and pastoral care challenges, and more rigorous quality assurance processes demanded at subject level, compared with their publicly managed counterparts.
Surveys show that PTEs consistently outperform the Polytechnics and Industry Training Organisations that were combined to form Te Pukenga back in 2020.
What’s changing?
At last, there is light at the end of this anti-competitive tunnel. From now on, the Industry Skills Boards that Te Pukenga has been split into will take responsibility for setting standards for industry qualifications, endorsing programmes and moderating assessments, but they will not provide training
Some, like Connexis, have indicated that they will, in time, undertake a further transition to providing training for industry.
When that happens, the training programmes provided will be subject to the same level of rigour in their quality assurance, greater financial accountability, pastoral care, and sustainability that privately owned PTEs have had to meet for decades.
This is good news
For the nearly 400 PTEs offering thousands of students quality training and assessment to over 800 qualifications across the country this is outstanding news. Many PTEs like Clever Buying have invested heavily into securing specialised industry knowledge and developing training programmes that evidence shows are more suited to today’s students than traditional qualifications.
Without internal bureaucratic burdens, and spurred on by their closeness to industry practice, most PTEs keep their programmes up-to-the-minute with current best practice and are better able to tailor assessment for individual student needs, especially when study is supported by workplace experience.
PTEs are typically passionate about their subject matter. Their assessors are more likely to be active expert practitioners in their industry, not career academics or public sector employees. Unsurprisingly, the richness, relevance and currency of training is enhanced through that connection.
To survive and thrive when competitors have support that’s unavailable to you, PTE owners must typically demonstrate extraordinary drive. And their formula generally works, as the research shows.
Educational options
For anyone undertaking NZQA-accredited study, it’s wise to reflect on what type of provider will serve you best. While it’s tempting to trust – by default – a government organisation over a private sector enterprise, it’s worth looking at the evidence carefully.
The dismantling of Te Pukenga, like all restructuring processes, is bound to result in staffing changes, along with inevitable distractions from important educational functions – like keeping learning content up-to-date and relevant to our fast-changing industry environment and ensuring robust quality standards are upheld for assessment practices.
Let’s hope that the transition for public sector education is smooth and effective. Most importantly, let’s hope this brave initiative means that employers and students finally have a fair and real choice of quality education providers who have equal access to government support and meet consistent, high-quality education standards.
For further information or feedback on this article, contact Caroline: caroline.boot@nzprocurement.com
mob: 021 722 005.
NOTE: Paragraph under heading What’s changing – changed on Feb 4, 2026.