Federal government yet to commit to funding arrangement for enabling programs in 2020

About 3500 students access programs, such as Open Foundation, each year as a first step to gaining a higher education.

Newcastle was the first university in Australia to offer enabling programs in 1974.

A program typically consists of a six or 12 month program of coursework designed to allow students to undertake tertiary studies.

In addition to having provided a pathway to university for tens of thousands of students, the region has also reaped a significant economic benefit from having a more highly educated and skilled workforce.

The government launched a review in to the allocation of funding for Commonwealth supported places for enabling, sub-bachelor and postgraduate courses earlier this year.

Universities were previously told they would be advised of the outcome well ahead of the 2020 academic year.

But with less than six months before the start of the new year, the federal government is yet to say how the programs will continue to be funded.

Senior Department of Education bureaucrats evaded questions about the programs' future from Central Coast-based Labor senator Deborah O'Neill during a Budget Estimates hearing last week.

"This government has no regard for the value of enabling programs and the difference they make to the lives of thousands of people in regions like the Hunter and Central Coast," Ms O'Neill, who previously taught at the University of Newcastle, said.

"You only have to look at how valuable they were to those who did the Open Foundation program following the closure of BHP."

Among those who benefited from the Open Foundation program is SiDCOR chartered accountants business development manager and supervisor Todd Henderson.

Mr Henderson had been out of school for 10 years when he decided he wanted to pursue a career that would set him up for life.

After completing Open Foundation Mr Henderson enrolled in a Bachelor of Commerce degree, which he graduated from in 2011.

"My life would be completely different without Open Foundation," Mr Henderson, who has worked at SiDCOR for the past six years said on Monday.

"I wanted to do something else and that program gave me the pathway to do it."

Interim Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Liz Burd said the university considered enabling programs to be an important part of its future.

"The University of Newcastle is proud to be recognised as a university of equity and excellence. Since 1974 we have admitted thousands of undergraduate students who have come through our enabling pathways," Professor Burd said.

"This year, a record number of 3480 students were enrolled across our three enabling programs, in full and part-time capacities, face-to-face and online."

"We have forecast places for 2020 based on current funding, but we don't turn motivated students away."

In its response to the government's consultation paper on the Reallocation of Commonwealth supported places for enabling, sub-bachelor and postgraduate courses, the University of Newcastle said about 62 per cent of enabling program students were the first in their family to attend university and 39.6 per cent were from low socioeconomic status backgrounds.

"About 90 per cent of completing students go on to study an undergraduate degree program, including around two or three Indigenous students entering medicine each year through the Yapug enabling program," the submission said.

"Our enabling students also go on to enrol in many other universities and training providers across Australia, contributing to wider national intakes.

"As a result of our leadership, the enabling sector has looked to the University of Newcastle to influence programs and approaches with other providers adapting our approaches to their own contexts."

A spokesperson for the Commonwealth Department of Education said the government was still in the process of finalising its approach to funding allocation for enabling, sub-bachelor and postgraduate places for 2020.

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