From AVETMISS to reliable, accessible and timely data.
What RTOs need to be aware of:
If you work in VET, chances are you know this one without thinking:
20 = Competency achieved/pass
Outcome codes such as 20, 30 and 60 have been part of VET administration for years.
But that familiar way of thinking about VET activity data is about to shift.
AVETMISS is being replaced by the VET Information Standard, changing not only how VET data is structured, but also how it is reported and how frequently it needs to be provided.
So, what does that actually mean for an RTO?
It’s not just about replacing Outcome 20
Under AVETMISS, we are used to seeing a final outcome recorded against a unit:
Unit XYZ → Outcome 20 – Competency achieved/pass
Of course, Outcome 20 was never the only information being reported. It was one piece of a much larger dataset about the student, their enrolment and training activity.
The VET Information Standard takes a different approach by placing greater emphasis on the student’s status throughout their training journey.
Instead of only thinking about the final outcome, a successfully completed unit may be represented through:
Assessment type: Standard
Student status: Concluded
Student status reason: Successful completion
Credit Transfer looks different again:
Student status: Concluded
Student status reason: Credit transfer applied
And for RPL, the assessment type can identify Recognition of Prior Learning, while the status and reason tell us how the unit concluded.
Student status is central to the new standard, with subject enrolments moving through stages such as Registered, Commenced, Cancelled and Concluded.
So this is not:
Outcome 20 → new outcome code
It is a different way of structuring the information around what is happening with the student.
Does that mean more data entry?
Not necessarily.
Seeing multiple data elements might immediately make you think:
“Are our admin staff now going to have to enter three fields instead of one?”
Potentially not.
The VET Information Standard defines the information that needs to be captured and reported. It does not mean the person entering a result will necessarily have to manually enter every one of those data elements.
Your SMS may still allow someone to select something familiar such as:
Competent
and then translate that into the required student status and status reason behind the scenes.
That makes one conversation particularly important:
How is your SMS provider planning to implement the VET Information Standard?
And don’t forget the LMS
For RTOs using both an LMS and an SMS, there is another piece of the puzzle.
Your current process might be:
Assessor marks Competent in the LMS → result transfers to the SMS → Outcome 20 is recorded.
As the reporting structure changes, it is worth understanding exactly what is travelling between those systems.
Does the LMS simply send a result?
What will trigger the SMS to change the student’s status?
What happens with RPL, Credit Transfer, withdrawals or cancellations?
And importantly, which system is the source of truth?
The new reporting technology is designed to connect an RTO’s SMS with the national Student Training Activity Reporting System (STARS) using APIs, replacing the familiar process of manually extracting and submitting NAT files. RTOs will still maintain their student activity data within their SMS.
In practice, the data flow could look something like:
LMS → SMS → STARS
The technology may become more streamlined, but the information still needs to be correct before it gets there.
Reporting frequency is changing too
Another change that deserves attention is when data needs to be reported.
Under the VET Information Standard, student status changes must be reported as they occur or within the relevant reporting period, with quarterly reporting the minimum requirement.
That means student activity for each quarter is due by the end of the following month.
For RTOs already reporting government-funded activity regularly, this may not feel particularly new.
For others, it is a shift away from thinking of national VET activity reporting as an annual exercise.
It also puts more emphasis on keeping records accurate throughout the year, rather than relying on a large data clean-up before annual reporting.
This isn’t just an SMS update
It would be easy to think:
“Our SMS provider will take care of it.”
They will certainly play an important role.
But an SMS can only work with the information it receives.
This is also a good time for RTOs to look at their:
VET activity data policy and procedures
result-entry and completion processes
LMS-to-SMS data flow
RPL and Credit Transfer processes
withdrawals and cancellations
data validation and correction processes
reporting calendar
staff responsibilities and work instructions.
The question is not whether every document needs to be rewritten tomorrow.
It is whether your current systems and processes will support the new reporting model when you transition.
There is time to prepare
RTOs do not need to transition overnight.
For RTOs registered before 1 January 2028 without a state or territory reporting arrangement, transition can commence once their SMS is ready, with all RTOs required to be reporting under the VET Information Standard no later than 1 January 2029. RTOs with state or territory arrangements will need to follow the transition timing advised by the relevant authority.
So there is time.
But now is a good time to start asking questions, particularly of your SMS provider, and to understand what the change will mean for the way student information moves through your organisation.
Want to hear more?
If you want to better understand what is changing with national VET data reporting, there is a free VETQI webinar coming up that is worth watching.
The session will bring together representatives from NCVER and the Australian Government Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) to explain the changes to national VET data reporting and what RTOs need to know to prepare.
The webinar will also introduce DataBuilder 2.0, NCVER’s new tool for exploring national VET data and turning it into more meaningful insights.
For RTOs wanting clear information directly from the organisations leading these changes, this is a valuable opportunity to hear what is coming and start thinking about what it may mean in practice.
