TAFE Diploma Graduates: Personal Capital Investments and Returns

TAFE currently uses the NCVER Student Outcomes Survey (SOS) to determine outcomes related to TAFE diploma programs. The SOS measures TAFE outcomes in terms of three major categories: skills development, employment and further study. This study introduces the notion of personal capital as distinct from human capital. It argues that, while valuable, the SOS data has an intrinsically human capital orientation and by its quantitative nature is not able to explore the personal capital investments and returns of TAFE diploma graduates. Consequently, while TAFE has some understanding of graduate outcomes, it does not have a fuller understanding of the range of outcomes achieved by TAFE diploma graduates. Moreover, it is beyond the TAFE system to have an understanding of the intrinsic reasons and motivations that bring an individual to decide to enrol in a TAFE diploma program.