Youth Pathways for High School Students

What is Otago Secondary Tertiary College?

Sometimes the learning environment at high school doesn’t suit everyone. A blend of high-school and applied learning can be a great option to keep students engaged in education.

Our youth pathways, via Otago Secondary Tertiary College (OSTC), offer high school students a chance to learn applied skills, keep earning NZQA credits and get a taste of work and tertiary study.

What can I study? 

We have a range of OSTC programmes offered at both our Dunedin and Cromwell campuses.

The Otago Secondary Tertiary College (OSTC) delivers level 2 and 3 courses in some of the key trades in New Zealand. This vocational pathway is to ensure that you are building the right foundation skills and knowledge for the job you want in the future.

See below for a full list of programmes. 

How does this fit with high school study?

You’ll spend one or two days a week at OSTC and the rest of the week at school. The best part is you will gain NCEA credits while gaining real-world, practical experience in the industry of your choice. This will help you get on the right career path after you finish school.

In most cases, study at OSTC is funded by the government, which means you can test out a career without spending too much money.

Fees

In most instances, study at OSTC will be fully funded, with no cost to you or secondary school. However, please note that OSTC is only funded for a limited number of places.

Additional places may be offered but your school will be charged a fee. Please clarify any costs with your school or contact elizabeth.gilmore@op.ac.nz for more information.

Entry requirements

• you must be a Year 11-13 secondary school student attending a high school anywhere in Otago
• you must be motivated
• you must be keen to pursue a career pathway related to the programme
• your school must support your application
• ideally you should have achieved NCEA Level 1 including English and Maths or be working towards it (exceptions may be made in some circumstances)
• at this stage, you don’t need to be fully vaccinated or present a My Vaccine Pass to attend OSTC classes on campus.

How to apply

Talk to your school’s careers advisor and they will guide you through the application process. You can download application forms for either our Dunedin or Cromwell programmes below.