To nominate for this award, an organisation must:

• meet the conditions of entry requirements
• be a registered training organisation for which the delivery of vocational education and training is the core business
• deliver nationally recognised training programs to full-fee paying international students onshore and offshore.

Applications are to be made directly to the Australian Training Awards.

Note: To maintain the integrity of the Australian Training Awards, applicants to the 2020 International Training Provider of the Year Award will be subject to quality assurance checks by the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA), or by the applicable regulatory authority in Victoria and Western Australia.  These checks will inform the selection process of applicants and finalists to this award category. 

This information will be considered and used for short listing and judging purposes. Please be aware that your responses to the criteria will be strengthened by the inclusion of measurable and verifiable indicators (including student outcome data, client satisfaction data and external validation data).

The considerations listed under each criterion are provided to clarify what to include when writing against the criteria.

Criterion 1: Leading practice in international and transnational education

How you offer exceptional vocational education and training (VET) to international students, both onshore and offshore? For example, you may consider:

• How you demonstrate excellence and high level performance in teaching and learning, including the delivery of quality training that has been customised for international students and markets
• How you demonstrate innovation in the design of your VET products and services to ensure they are appropriate for international students and markets
• How you provide creative and innovative solutions to the training needs of international students
• The systems you have in place to manage, evaluate and enhance your VET products and services to ensure they are appropriate for international students and markets
• How you engage with ongoing VET policy reforms, including your capacity to implement change as a consequence of reform initiatives
• How you undertake continuous improvement and apply quality controls within your organisation to assure the quality of your VET products and services for international students and markets.

(limit: 800 words)

Criterion 2: Market Focus

How you monitor, engage with and respond to international and transnational education markets? For example, you may consider:

• How you identify and attract new international and transnational market opportunities, and how you address these without impacting the sustainability of your onshore/offshore VET operations
• How your planning processes embrace innovation and change, including your capacity to plan for future changes in international and transnational education markets
• The extent to which you take local labour market needs (both onshore and offshore) into account in your planning activities
• The strategies you have in place to identify important issues which may impact your international student business, and the key partnerships and links you have established to address these.

(limit: 800 words)

Criterion 3: Student and employer focus 

How you monitor, engage with and respond to international students and their employers, both onshore and offshore? For example, you may consider:

• How you identify the needs and expectations of international students
• How you identify the needs and expectations of employers of international students
• The systems you have in place for collecting and analysing data on international student progress, outcomes, completions and satisfaction levels
• How you maximise the educational, social and cultural experience of international students
• How you meet the equity needs of different international client groups
• How you support the employment of international students (both in Australia and overseas) in their field of study following graduation
• How you support Australian students seeking international experiences.

(limit: 800 words)

Criterion 4: Staff focus 

How you build the capacity of your workforce to meet the skill needs of international students, both onshore and offshore? For example, you may consider:

• The strategies and processes you have in place to build staff capability in the delivery of training to international students
• Your capacity and flexibility to meet changing training needs and emerging international markets, including your response times for upskilling staff to meet these needs and markets
• How you support and deploy Australian trainers and assessors to deliver programs offshore
• How you recruit and support international specialists to facilitate programs onshore
• How you recruit and support local specialists to facilitate programs offshore.

(limit: 800 words)

Applications for the International Training Provider of the Year Award are made directly to the Australian Training Awards.