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EXPLANATORY NOTES


INTRODUCTION

1 This publication presents results from the Survey of Education and Training (SET), which was conducted throughout Australia from May to August 2005.

2 The survey collected detailed information on:

• socio-economic characteristics (such as age, sex, birthplace and income);
• employment characteristics (such as labour force status, occupation and industry);
• educational qualifications obtained;
• recent study;
• details of training courses completed (covering aspects such as time spent and employer support); and
• access to education and training.

CAI IMPLEMENTATION

4 Information for this survey was collected using computer assisted interviewing (CAI), whereby responses are recorded directly onto an electronic questionnaire on a notebook computer.

5 Since May 2005, industry, occupation and educational attainment/participation have been coded automatically by a computer matching the survey responses to the relevant index. Where the autocoding (AC) system is unable to allocate a valid code to a record, it is passed on to the computer assisted coding (CAC) system. CAC was used for the 2001 survey. In this system, details supplied are typed into a computer which searches a list to find a match. If no unique match can be made, the coder will be presented with a list of possible matches. The computer also indicates the steps required to make a match.

6 The change of interviewing procedure since the 2001 survey, which was conducted using the 'pen and paper' method, and the introduction of automatic coding, are expected to have a positive effect on the quality of estimates.

SCOPE OF THE SURVEY

7 The SET was a household survey conducted in both urban and rural areas in all states and territories. However, persons living in very remote parts of Australia were excluded. The exclusion of these persons will only have a minor impact on any aggregate estimates that are produced for individual states and territories, with the exception of the Northern Territory where such persons account for around 20% of the population.

8 The survey covered private dwellings only, including houses, flats, home units and any other structures used as private places of residence at the time of the survey. ‘Special’ dwellings such as hotels, motels, hostels, hospitals and short-stay caravan parks were not included.

9 Persons aged 15 years and over who were usual residents of private dwellings were covered by the survey. Usual residents were those who regarded the dwelling as their own or main home. Those aged 70 years and over were not asked all of the content of the survey. More detail on information collected for persons aged 70 years and over is provided in paragraphs 45-48.

10 The following groups were excluded from the survey:

• certain diplomatic personnel of overseas governments, customarily excluded from the Census and estimated resident population figures;
• persons whose usual place of residence was outside Australia;
• members of non-Australian defence forces (and their dependants) stationed in Australia; and
• visitors to private dwellings.

SURVEY DESIGN

Sample size and selection

12 Dwellings were selected at random using a multi-stage area sample of private dwellings. All usual residents of the dwelling aged 15 years and over were asked to participate in the survey.

13 The initial sample for the survey consisted of approximately 18,500 dwellings, each of which could include more than one household. Of the approximately 16,000 households that remained in the survey after sample loss (e.g. households selected in the survey which had no residents in scope for the survey, vacant or derelict buildings, buildings under construction), approximately 13,900 (87%) were fully responding. That is, households where everyone in scope of the survey responded fully. In total, almost 27,600 persons responded fully to the survey.

14 As well as persons from fully responding households, the survey includes over 500 fully responding persons from partially responding households (see paragraphs 15-16). The inclusion of these persons had an impact on the estimation of household income because of non-response. See paragraph 57 for more details.

SET FINAL SAMPLE: Number of Persons-2005
	Capital City	Balance of State or Territory	Total
	no.	no.	no.
New South Wales	3 914	2 352	6 266
Victoria	4 216	1 473	5 689
Queensland	2 533	2 737	5 270
South Australia	2 517	845	3 362
Western Australia	2 780	863	3 643
Tasmania	812	959	1 771
Northern Territory	260	110	370
Australian Capital Territory	1 206	-	1 206
Australia	18 238	9 339	27 577
- nil or rounded to zero (including null cells)

Non-responding households

15 Of the 16,000 households remaining in the sample after sample loss, over 2,100 did not respond at all to the questionnaire, or did not respond adequately. Such households included:

• households affected by death or illness of a household member
• households in which person(s) in the household did not respond because they could not be contacted, had language problems or refused to participate
• households in which person(s) did not respond to key questions.

• not every person aged 15 years and over residing in the household responded but at least one person in the household responded. The responses of these persons have been included; however, some household details such as income and access to a computer and the Internet at home may not have been collected.
• where earnings, income or training cost information is missing from a person's record because they are unable or unwilling to provide the data.

18 The first step in calculating weights for each person was to assign an initial weight, which was equal to the inverse of the probability of being selected in the survey. For example, if the probability of a person being selected in the survey was 1 in 600, then the person would have an initial weight of 600 (that is, they represent 600 others).

Benchmarking

19 The weights were calibrated to align with independent estimates of the population of interest, referred to as 'benchmarks', in designated categories of state/territory of usual residence by sex by age and age by labour force status. Weights calibrated against population benchmarks compensate for over or under-enumeration of particular categories of persons and ensure that the survey estimates conform to the independently estimated distribution of the population by age, sex, labour force status and state/territory of usual residence, rather than to the distribution within the sample itself.

20 It should be noted that the benchmarks relate only to persons living in private dwellings, and therefore do not (and are not intended to) match estimates of the total Australian resident population (which include persons living in non-private dwellings, such as hotels) obtained from other sources.

Estimation

21 Survey estimates of counts of persons are obtained by summing the weights of persons with the characteristic of interest. Estimates of other counts (i.e. training courses and qualifications) are obtained by multiplying the characteristic of interest by the weight of the reporting person, and then aggregating.

RELIABILITY OF ESTIMATES

22 The estimates provided in this publication are subject to sampling and non-sampling error.

Sampling error

23 Sampling error is the difference between the published estimates, derived from a sample of persons, and the value that would have been produced if all persons in scope of the survey had been included. For more information refer to the Technical Note.

Non-sampling error

24 Non-sampling error may occur in any collection, whether it is based on a sample or a full count such as a census. Sources of non-sampling error include non-response, errors in reporting by respondents or recording of answers by interviewers, and errors in coding and processing data.

25 Non-response occurs when persons cannot or will not cooperate, or cannot be contacted. Non-response can affect the reliability of results and can introduce a bias. The magnitude of any bias depends upon the rate of non-response and the extent of the difference between non-respondents' characteristics and those of persons who responded to the survey.

26 The following methods were adopted to reduce the level and impact of non-response:

• face-to-face interviews with respondents;
• the use of interviewers who could speak languages other than English, where necessary;
• follow-up of respondents if there was initially no response; and
• weighting to population benchmarks to reduce non-response bias.

REFERENCE PERIOD AND SEASONAL EFFECTS

28 The estimates in this publication are based on information collected over different reference periods. SET collected information on current study relating to persons enrolled in study at any time during 2005. As the period of collection for SET was from May to August, the minimum reference period for data items on current study was 5 months and the maximum reference period was 8 months. Since SET is collected at a time of year which crosses over the semesters of the study year, seasonal variation may exist depending on when students were interviewed and when they commenced or completed their study. Estimates would include enrolments in the first half of 2005, as well as some enrolments which commenced in the second half of 2005.

29 For work-related training, the reference period is the 12 months prior to the date of interview. Therefore, the estimates for 2005 study cannot be related to those for work-related training.

30 The reference period also has an impact on other estimates including Level of Highest Non-school Qualification and Level of Highest Educational Attainment. There is a proportion of students who would have completed a non-school qualification in the middle of the year, that is after May and before September. Thus, due to seasonal effects, the attainment estimates collected in SET may not be representative of other time periods in the year.

CLASSIFICATIONS

Occupation

31 Occupation data are classified according to the ASCO - Australian Standard Classification of Occupations, Second Edition, 1997 (cat. no. 1220.0).

Industry

32 Industry data are classified according to the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC), 1993 (cat. no. 1292.0).

Country of Birth

33 Country of birth data are classified according to the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC), 1998 (cat. no. 1269.0).

Education

34 In 2001, the ABS Classification of Qualifications (ABSCQ) (cat. no. 1262.0) was replaced by the Australian Standard Classification of Education (ASCED) (cat. no. 1272.0). The ASCED is a national standard classification which can be applied to all sectors of the Australian education system including schools, vocational education and training and higher education. ASCED replaces a number of classifications previously used in administrative and statistical systems, including the ABSCQ. The ASCED comprises two classifications: Level of Education and Field of Education.

35 Level of Education is defined as a function of the quality and quantity of learning involved in an educational activity. There are nine broad levels, 15 narrow levels and 64 detailed levels. For definitions of these levels see the Australian Standard Classification of Education (ASCED), 2001 (cat. no. 1272.0).

36 The relationship between categories in the Level of Education classification should be essentially ordinal. In other words, educational activities at Broad Level 1 Postgraduate Degree should be at a higher level than those at Broad Level 2 Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate, and so on. However, when this idea is applied to the reality of educational provision in Australia, it is not always possible to assert that an ordinal relationship exists among the various levels of education.

37 This is particularly evident in the case of the relationship between Certificates I-IV in Broad Level 5 Certificate Level, and School Education included in Broad Level 6 Secondary Education. In this instance, the level of education associated with secondary education may range from satisfying the entry requirements for admission to a university degree course, to the completion of units in basic literacy, numeracy and life skills. Educational activity in these categories may therefore be of an equal, higher or lower level than Certificates found in Broad Level 5 Certificate Level.

38 Field of Education is defined as the subject matter of an educational activity. Fields of education are related to each other through the similarity of subject matter, through the broad purpose for which the education is undertaken, and through the theoretical content which underpins the subject matter.

39 There are 12 broad fields, 71 narrow fields and 356 detailed fields. For definitions of these fields see the Australian Standard Classification of Education (ASCED), 2001 (cat. no. 1272.0).

LEVEL OF HIGHEST EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

40 Level of Highest Educational Attainment is derived from information on Highest Year of School Completed and Level of Highest Non-school Qualification. The derivation process determines which of the 'non-school' or 'school' attainments will be regarded as the highest. Usually the higher ranking attainment will be self-evident, but in some cases some Secondary Education is regarded, for the purposes of obtaining a single measure, as higher than some Certificate level attainments.

41 The following decision table is used to determine which of the responses to questions on Highest Year of School Completed (coded to ASCED Broad Level 6) and Level of Highest Non-school Qualification (coded to ASCED Broad Level 5) will be regarded as the highest. It is emphasised that this table was designed for the purpose of obtaining a single value for the output variable Level of Highest Educational Attainment and is not intended to convey any other ordinality.

43 The decision table was also used to assign a single value for the output variable Level of Education of 2005 Study for a Qualification, for persons who were studying towards a non-school qualification (e.g. Certificate I or II), while undertaking secondary education at school.

CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS

Persons aged 65-69 years

44 Persons aged 65-69 years were included for the first time in SET in 2005. Data for these persons have been included throughout this publication except for the time series tables (tables 5, 6, 17, 21 and 26) where the inclusion of this group would not allow time series comparisons. The data for these persons have been presented in the following table.

Persons aged 65-69 years - 2005
			Males	Females	Persons
Participation in education
	Enrolled to study for a qualification in 2005	'000	*5.5	7.2	12.7
	Did not enrol to study for a qualification in 2005	'000	372.2	391.5	763.7
Educational Attainment
	Bachelor Degree or above	'000	44.9	41.7	86.6
	Advanced Diploma/Diploma or below	'000	149.7	90.2	239.9
	Total with non-school qualifications(a)	'000	196.9	133.2	330.1
	Did not have non-school qualifications	'000	180.8	265.5	446.3
Participation in work-related training
	Completed a work-related training course in last 12 months	'000	30.6	15.4	46.1
Total persons aged 65-69 years		'000	377.7	398.7	776.4
Mean training hours(b)		no.	11.1	9.5	10.6
Total training hours(b)		'000	673.9	313.3	987.2
* estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution
(a) Includes persons whose highest non-school qualification could not be determined.
(b) Counts the number of training courses completed not the number of persons. Estimates relate to a maximum of four training courses per person.

Persons aged 70 years and over

45 Persons aged 70 years and over were included for the first time in SET in 2005. They were asked a subset of the questions asked of those aged 15-69 years. The purpose was to reduce respondent burden by only asking the most relevant questions of this group. Data for this group have been included in the publication wherever possible.

46 Persons aged 70 years and over were asked:

• socio-economic characteristics including cultural background, disability and personal and household income;
• labour force status, and if employed, details of their current main job;
• highest year of school completed; and
• level of highest non-school qualification obtained.

48 Detail on the data items available for those aged 70 years and over can be found in the SET data item list.

Labour force status

49 Prior to 2005, SET did not align with the standard labour force definitions of employed, unemployed and not in the labour force. Under the standard definition, those who usually and actually worked less than one hour a week are not considered to be employed and are asked additional questions to determine whether they are unemployed or not in the labour force. In previous SET surveys, these persons were treated as employed. In 2005 they are treated as unemployed or not in the labour force depending on whether they have been actively looking for work at any time in the four weeks prior to the end of the reference week. This change has very little impact on the estimates.

Employee excluding owner managers of incorporated enterprises

50 This group is generally comparable with 'wage or salary earners' presented in previous editions of this publication. For current employees excluding owner managers of incorporated enterprises, some additional employees have been included but have a negligible impact on the estimates. The additional employees are those who received remuneration in the form of a retainer from their employer while working on a commission basis, tips, piece rates or payment in kind. Prior to 2005, only employees who self-identified as wage or salary earners were sequenced through the questions on leave entitlements, trade union membership, apprenticeship/traineeship and earnings. In 2005, all employees were asked these questions; however, those paid in kind were not asked their earnings. For employees excluding owner managers of incorporated enterprises either in the last 12 months or at time of training, the category is directly comparable with 'wage or salary earners' in previous editions.

All qualifications at same level

51 Two or more qualifications are considered to be at the same level if they are in the same broad level category. The broad level categories align with ASCED and are: Postgraduate degree; Graduate diploma/Graduate certificate; Bachelor degree; Advanced diploma/Diploma; and Certificate. Where the level of one of the qualifications could not be determined, it could not be determined whether all qualifications were at the same level.

All qualifications in same field

52 Two or more qualifications are considered to be in the same field if they are in the same broad field category. The broad field categories align with ASCED and are: Natural and physical sciences; Information technology; Engineering and related technologies; Architecture and building; Agriculture, environmental and related studies; Health; Education; Management and commerce; Society and culture; Creative arts; Food, hospitality and personal services; and Mixed field programmes. Where the field of one of the qualifications could not be determined, it could not be determined whether all qualifications were in the same field.

Study not leading to a qualification

53 Study not leading to a qualification was collected for the first time in SET in 2005. Data have been presented in the same format as the Survey of Education and Work (SEW) but were collected differently, resulting in different estimates. In SET, study not leading to a qualification was collected for all persons aged 15-69 years, where SEW collects this only for those aged 15-64 years who had not reported that they were studying for a qualification but had reported that they had studied at an educational institution. SET was specifically designed to collect all study not leading to a qualification, including study which was not undertaken at an educational institution. Data are available for SET 2005 for all study not leading to a qualification. However, this publication only presents the data for those who were not also studying qualification based or school level study. For a definition of Study not leading to a qualification, see the Glossary.

Employee training course

54 The categories of internal and external training courses are no longer used for SET. The definition prior to 2005 for an internal training course was a work-related course that was attended mainly by persons working for a person's employer or business at the time of training. For 2005, data have been presented for all work-related training courses. However, for some data items, the data were not collected for those who attended an employee training course because the information was not applicable. Employee training courses are defined as courses attended mainly by persons working for an employer for wages or salary, where the course was provided by their employer. The course was delivered by a staff member working for the employer or a consultant or trainer hired/contracted for the purpose, and was attended mainly by persons working for their employer. Data from the 2005 survey can be requested on the same basis as for 2001 and previous surveys.

Personal earnings, personal income and household income

55 In 2005, SET collected total personal and household income for the first time. Prior to 2005, SET only collected earnings in main job and profit and loss from own business. This information was collected in 2005 on the same basis as 2001, but additional information was also collected on personal and household income.

56 Earnings and income differ in that earnings only includes money received from wages and salary from the respondent's main period job or current main job, whereas income includes receipts from all regular income sources including wages and salaries. Additional receipts include any wages or salaries from a second job, profit and loss from own unincorporated enterprise, money received from government pensions and allowances, superannuation, worker's compensation and investment income.

57 Household income is the sum of the personal income of each person aged 15 years and over in the household. Where one person in the household either refused or did not know their income, the income for the household had to be classified as not known. In some households, not all persons responded to the survey; however, the records for those persons who fully responded were included in the survey. For these persons, their household income was also classified as not known. Mean and median income excluded those households whose income was not known or inadequately reported.

INCOME AND EARNINGS NON-RESPONSE, Persons 15 years and over
	no.	% of persons
Personal income refused/not known	809	2.9
Household income not known due to personal income refused/not known	1 156	4.2
Household income not known due to partially responding household	536	1.9
Total household income not known	1 692	6.1
Personal earnings in current job refused/not known	492	1.8
Personal earnings in main job refused/not known	430	1.6
Profit/loss from business refused/not known	251	0.9
Total persons in SET05 sample	27 577	100.0

COMPARABILITY WITH PREVIOUS EDUCATION AND TRAINING SURVEYS

59 Results of four previous household surveys on this topic were published in Education and Training Experience, 2001 (cat. no. 6278.0), Education and Training Experience, Australia, 1997 (cat. no. 6278.0), Training and Education Experience, Australia, 1993 (cat. no. 6278.0) and How Workers Get Their Training, Australia, 1989 (cat. no. 6278.0).

60 Essentially the same methodology was used for the 2005, 2001, 1997 and 1993 surveys; however, the scope of the surveys differed. The 2005 survey included all persons aged 15 years and over, with those aged 70 years and over asked a subset of questions. The 2001 survey only included persons aged 15 to 64 years. Both surveys included persons regardless of their employment or study status. See paragraphs 7-10 for more details on the scope of the 2005 survey.

61 In comparison, the scope of the 1997 survey was narrower and included persons aged 15-64 years who:

• had worked as wage or salary earners in the previous 12 months;
• were employed, unemployed or marginally attached to the labour force;
• were aged 15-20 years and still at secondary school; and
• were not in the labour force but were studying, or had studied in 1997.

• persons aged 15-20 years still at school; and
• persons working as unpaid family helpers or solely for payment in kind unless they had also held a wage or salary job in the last 12 months.

• In 2005 and 2001, data were collected from Australian Defence Force Personnel living in private dwellings. This was not the case in 1997 or 1993.
• ASCED was introduced in 2001 to classify educational activity by the level and field of activity. ASCED replaced the ABSCQ (which was used in the 1993 and 1997 surveys), where the main focus was on a qualification as a unit of measurement. ASCED has been designed to be applied to a number of education-related concepts, such as a 'qualification', 'unit of study', 'module' or 'course'. The classification includes all pre-primary, primary and secondary education, as well as all formal non-school education and training.
• For the 2005 survey, 'training' only refers to courses undertaken to obtain, maintain or improve employment-related skills or competencies. 'On-the-job' training has been excluded. For the 2001 survey, 'training' included 'on-the-job' training. In the 1997 survey the term 'training' also included any study undertaken towards the completion of an educational qualification.

COMPARABILITY WITH LABOUR FORCE, AUSTRALIA (CAT. NO. 6203.0)

65 Wherever possible, standard question modules were used to ensure that data from the SET were comparable with data from other ABS surveys. However, there will be differences between the estimates in this publication, those given in Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0), and publications from surveys conducted as supplements to the ABS's monthly Labour Force Survey. This is due to differences in scope, sample size, definitions and estimation methodology.

66 See paragraphs 49-50 for changes to the definition of labour force status between the 2001 SET and the 2005 SET. The definitions now align more closely with the definition used in Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0).

67 In this survey, unemployed persons were defined as those who were not employed during the reference week, had actively looked for full-time or part-time work at any time in the four weeks up to the end of the reference week, and were available for work in the reference week. Conversely, the definition used in Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0) also includes future starters who had actively looked for work in the four weeks up to the end of the reference week but reported that they could not have started work in the reference week, as they were waiting to start a job. These were persons who were not employed during the reference week, who were waiting to start a new job within four weeks from the end of the reference week and could have started in the reference week if the job had been available.

68 In addition, estimates in this publication include some persons who are excluded from estimates of employed in Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0). These are persons who were absent from work:

• on workers' compensation and were not returning (or were unsure about returning) to their employer; or
• without pay for more than four weeks up to the end of the reference period (for reasons other than an industrial dispute or standard work arrangements).

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

70 ABS publications draw extensively on information provided freely by individuals, businesses, governments and other organisations. Their continued cooperation is very much appreciated: without it, the wide range of statistics published by the ABS would not be available. Information received by the ABS is treated in strict confidence as required by the Census and Statistics Act 1905.

SET PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Results for states and territories

71 A set of tables in a spreadsheet format equivalent to those in this publication will be produced for each state and territory (subject to standard error constraints and excluding time series tables) and Australia. These tables will be available from the ABS web site <https://www.abs.gov.au> (as Datacubes to cat. no. 6278.0) or from the ABS upon request.

Unit Record File

72 It is expected that a confidentialised unit record file (CURF) will be produced from SET, subject to the approval of the Australian Statistician. A CURF is expected to be made available as a CD-ROM and/or Remote Access Data Lab (RADL), in both SAS and SPSS format. A full range of up-to-date information about the availability of ABS CURFS and about applying for access to CURFs is available via the ABS web site <https://www.abs.gov.au> (see Services We Provide - Confidentialised Unit Record Files (CURFs)). Inquiries to the ABS CURF Management Unit should email: curf.management@abs.gov.au, or telephone (02)6252 5853.

Special tabulations

73 As well as releasing publications and standard products, the ABS can make special tabulations available. Subject to confidentiality and sampling variability constraints, tabulations can be produced from the survey incorporating data items, populations and geographic areas selected to meet individual requirements. These can be provided in printed form, or in spreadsheets sent by email or on CD-ROM.

74 Education, industry, occupation and other data are available on request at more detailed levels than those presented in this publication.

RELATED PUBLICATIONS

75 Other ABS publications which may be of interest include:

• A Directory of Education and Training Statistics (cat. no. 1136.0) - available on the ABS web site <https://www.abs.gov.au>
• Aspects of Literacy: Assessed Skill Levels, Australia (cat. no. 4228.0) - issued irregularly, latest issue 1996 released in September 1997.
• Aspects of Literacy: Profiles and Perceptions, Australia (cat. no. 4226.0) - issued irregularly, latest issue 1996 released in May 1997.
• Education and Training Indicators, Australia (cat. no. 4230.0) - issued irregularly, first issue 2002 released in December 2002.
• Education and Work, Australia (formerly Transition from Education to Work, Australia) (cat. no. 6227.0)- issued annually, latest issue May 2005 released in December 2005.
• Employer Training Expenditure and Practices, Australia (cat. no. 6362.0) - issued irregularly, latest issue 2001-02 released in April 2003.
• General Social Survey: Summary Results, Australia (cat. no. 4159.0), latest issue 2002 released in January 2004.
• Information Paper: Measuring Learning in Australia - A Framework for Education and Training Statistics (cat. no. 4213.0) - first issue 2003 released in January 2003.
• Information Paper: Measuring Learning in Australia - Dictionary of Standards for Education and Training Statistics (cat. no. 4232.0.55.001) - first issue 2004 released in October 2004.
• Information Paper: Measuring Learning in Australia - Plan to improve the Quality, Coverage and Use of Education and Training Statistics (cat. no. 4231.0) - first issue 2004 released in September 2004.
• Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0) - issued monthly.
• Schools, Australia (cat. no. 4221.0) - issued annually, latest issue 2005 released in February 2006.

NEXT SURVEY

77 The ABS intends to conduct this survey again in 2009.