Industrial automation, cybersecurity among newly-funded microcredentials

Forty-eight courses designed to upskill and reskill workers through a mix of online and face-to-face learning have been funded, with $10.7 million awarded to education providers under the second round of the federal Microcredentials Pilot for Higher Education.

According to a statement from education minister Jason Clare on Thursday, “over 2,500 students” will receive training through the new funding, which will be split among 25 higher education providers.

The funding will help “expand university and industry collaboration and improve the higher education sector’s ability to respond to industry needs” and “upskill in areas where we need them most”.

According to Clare: “This investment means more Australians can get the skills in areas we need, such as teaching, nursing, and engineering.”

Courses funded include

• Professional Certificate of Competency in Industrial Automation and Professional Certificate of Competency in Industrial Production Process and Management (both through the Chisholm Institute);
• Certificate in Strategic Decarbonisation Management (Monash College)
• Emerging Technologies (Deakin University);
• Professional Certificate in Data Analytics and Business Intelligence (Flinders University); and
• Industrial Cyber Security (University of Tasmania.)

A full list of providers and courses can be viewed here.

The microcredentials pilot runs from 2023-24 to 2025-26 and has been budgeted at $18.5 million: $2 million to design new microcredentials and $16.5 million to support delivery of courses to as many as 4,000 students.

Picture: Jason Clare (credit department of education)