Polytech education sector in financial difficulty

NEW ZEALAND – Polytechnic mergers are not being ruled out as the sector tries to find a way to survive mounting financial pressures.

Education Minister Chris Hipkins met with institute chief executives in Auckland this week to discuss the problem, which is expected to lead to most of the 16 institutes of technology and polytechnics making deficits within five years.

Hipkins said the institutes were struggling with falling enrolments and it was clear the polytechnic system must change.

“We’ve got a number of polytechs who are already in financial strife – so there is a mood for change,” he said.

“We’re not going into this with a set agenda, but clearly the status quo is not an option.”

Hipkins this week announced a $33 million bailout for the West Coast’s Tai Poutini Polytechnic, which he said was no longer viable in its current form and might need to merge with another institution.

He did not rule out the possibility of other mergers.

“Having 16 autonomous institutions clearly is resulting in huge overhead costs that perhaps isn’t the most efficient and effective way of organising things, so I’m taking a fairly open approach to that discussion,” Hipkins said.

“It might be that mergers are involved or it might be that an entirely different way of operating might be decided for the future.”

Manukau Institute of Technology chief executive, Gus Gilmore, said the institutes could work together more closely.

However, he said funding was definitely a problem: “$20 million injected back into this sector right now would make a big difference.”

National Party tertiary education spokesperson Paul Goldsmith said he doubted the government would be able to find much funding to help polytechnics because it had already committed more than $2 billion.

He said the government’s plans to limit foreign students’ access to work visas was also hurting the sector because it was damaging their enrolments.

- RNZ