One in five teaching grads are not going into the profession, according to the government’s answers to questions on notice.
 
The data shows that 7,174 people graduated from Bachelor of Education and Diploma in Education qualifications in NSW last year.
 
3,973 of these people were then employed in Government schools – 55 per cent of graduates. A further 1,783 graduates went to work in non-Government schools.
 
And the NSW Government does not know what happened to the remaining 1,418 – or 19.7 per cent of grads.
 
This comes after it was revealed that in 2021- the same year – NSW lost 10,918 experienced teachers. One in nine early career teachers left the profession within five years of commencing.
 
A survey from the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into Teacher Shortages found that 78 per cent of teachers thought that the “diminished status of the teaching profession” was a leading cause of teacher shortages.
 
NSW Deputy Labor Leader and NSW Shadow Minister for Education Prue Car said:
 
“This is evidence that the teaching profession has diminished under 12 years of Liberal National government.
 
“The fact that one in five teaching graduates aren’t even choosing to become teachers shows that the Perrottet Government is dropping the ball.
 
“We know teacher shortages are leading to merged and cancelled classes, yet the Perrottet Government has still failed to recruit the teachers needed.”

PRUE CAR MP
NSW DEPUTY LABOR LEADER
NSW SHADOW MINISTER FOR EDUCATION