This report and factsheets were originally published 31 August 2020.

Summary

Destinations of students who finished or left school in 2018

The NSW Post-School Destinations and Experiences Survey collects information about students’ main destination1 in the year after completing Year 12 or leaving school early. The survey provides information on education pathways, attainments and destinations of young people in NSW and informs policy making related to students’ post-school education, training and employment. In 2019, all students who left school in 2018 before finishing Year 12 (known as early school leavers) were invited to complete the survey about their current situation. Among those who finished Year 12, all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and students who attended Connected Communities schools were invited to complete the survey. A random sample of the other students who completed Year 12 were also invited. A total of 39,336 Year 12 completers and 19,272 early school leavers were invited to take part in the 2019 survey. Responses were received from 18,777 Year 12 completers and 6,135 early school leavers and are analysed in this report2.

Year 12 completers

Two thirds (65.7%) of 2018 Year 12 completers were in some form of education or training in 2019. The main post-school destination for this cohort continued to be a Bachelor degree (48.4%). One-quarter (26.1%) were employed (8.4% full-time and 17.7% part-time), while a smaller proportion were looking for work (5.7%), or not in the labour force, education or training (NILFET*; 2.5%. *Not in the labour force means that a person is not working and not looking for work).

Early school leavers

In 2019, the main post-school destinations among 2018 early school leavers were substantially different from Year 12 completers. More than half (54.1%) were undertaking some form of education or training. The most common post-school destination among this cohort was an apprenticeship (29.1%). A quarter of early school leavers were employed (9.8% full-time and 15.2% part-time), while a smaller proportion were looking for work (15.7%), or NILFET (5.2%).