Section 7: Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL)
Data source: 2023 data were extracted from the VCAA corporate database at 19 January 2024 (Published).
If you have any concerns or comments, please contact the Data Analysis and Reporting Unit by emailing:
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Section 7
Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning
VCAL’s accreditation period ended in 2023. Students were only able to be enrolled in and receive the Intermediate VCAL certificate in 2023.
Foundation and Senior VCAL unit completions from 2023 are included in VPC and VCE VM data.
There were 1,480 enrolments in VCAL Intermediate in 2023. Students were enrolled with 202 providers. About 65.5% of VCAL certificate enrolments were students enrolled in Government schools.
Table 7.1: Numbers of Schools Providing VCAL and VCAL Certificate Enrolments by Sector, 2023
| Home Sector | Schools | VCAL Certificate Enrolments |
|---|
| Government | 135 | 970 |
| Catholic | 40 | 238 |
| Independent | 21 | 235 |
| Adult | 6 | 37 |
| Total | 202 | 1,480 |
Table 7.2: VCAL Enrolments by Certificate, Gender and Level, 2023
| | Gender | |
|---|
| Level | Title | Female | Male | Gender X | All |
|---|
| Intermediate | VCAL (Intermediate) | 637 | 821 | 22 | 1,480 |
Gender
About three in five VCAL student enrolments in 2023 were male (55.5%).
Unit Completions
In 2023 there were a total of 7,027 VCAL unit completions (See table 7.3).
VCAL units are not the full range of curriculum that contributed towards the attainment of a VCAL. Students enrolled in a VCAL certificate can also gain credit from VET and VCE studies towards their VCAL qualification. VCAL students enrolled in VET and VCE units are included in the participation and completion reports for those VET certificates and VCE units.
VCAL Personal Development units (27.6%) and VCAL Work Related Skills units (25%) accounted for the majority of enrolments in VCAL units.
Overall 83.1% of VCAL units were satisfactorily completed. The overall completion rates for each major unit were as follows: Literacy Skills (83.8%); Numeracy Skills (84%); Personal Development Skills (82.4%) and Work Related Skills (82.4%).
Table 7.3: VCAL Unit Completions by Level, 2023
| | Unit Completions |
|---|
| Description | Unit Enrolments | Completed | % Completed |
|---|
| Advanced Numeracy Skills (Senior) | 1 | 1 | 100.0 |
| Literacy Skills (Intermediate) Oral Communication | 1,014 | 861 | 84.9 |
| Literacy Skills (Intermediate) Reading And Writing | 1,101 | 921 | 83.7 |
| Literacy Skills (Senior) Oral Communication | 110 | 87 | 79.1 |
| Literacy Skills (Senior) Reading And Writing | 114 | 91 | 79.8 |
| Numeracy Skills (Intermediate) Unit 1 | 935 | 790 | 84.5 |
| Numeracy Skills (Intermediate) Unit 2 | 574 | 483 | 84.1 |
| Numeracy Skills (Senior) Unit 1 | 111 | 90 | 81.1 |
| Numeracy Skills (Senior) Unit 2 | 49 | 39 | 79.6 |
| Personal Development Skills (Intermediate) Unit 1 | 1,063 | 893 | 84.0 |
| Personal Development Skills (Intermediate) Unit 2 | 1,022 | 823 | 80.5 |
| Personal Development Skills (Senior) Unit 1 | 136 | 118 | 86.8 |
| Personal Development Skills (Senior) Unit 2 | 114 | 89 | 78.1 |
| Work Related Skills (Intermediate) Unit 1 | 940 | 776 | 82.6 |
| Work Related Skills (Intermediate) Unit 2 | 911 | 749 | 82.2 |
| Work Related Skills (Senior) Unit 1 | 141 | 117 | 83.0 |
| Work Related Skills (Senior) Unit 2 | 121 | 99 | 81.8 |
| Total | 8,458 | 7,027 | 83.1 |
Note: Where a student has formally withdrawn from the Unit, these have been excluded from the above table.
Certificate Completions
There were 1,098 VCAL Intermediate completions out of 1,339 enrolments which were eligible to complete in 2023. This is a completion rate of 82% (See Table 7.4). A VCAL Intermediate student is eligible to complete if they have completed sufficient units or modules, or are enrolled in sufficient units or modules that, if completed satisfactorily, would meet the requirements for satisfactory completion of the qualification. Students may also gain credit towards their VCAL from VCE units and VET units of competency.
Table 7.4: VCAL Certificate Completions by Level, 2023
| Level | Eligible Enrolments | Completed | % Completed |
|---|
| Intermediate | 1,339 | 1,098 | 82 |
Of those students who completed a VCAL Intermediate, 56.6% were male and 42.1% were female. This is a reflection of the enrolment pattern.
Table 7.5: Percentage of VCAL Certificate Completions by Gender, 2023
| Level | Gender | Completed | % Completed |
|---|
| Intermediate | Female | 462 | 42.1 |
| Intermediate | Male | 622 | 56.6 |
| Intermediate | Gender X | 14 | 1.3 |
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