About Us
Claire Field & Associates specialises in strategic advice and support across Australia’s tertiary education sector.
Strategic support to key tertiary education stakeholders
Claire Field and Associates provides advice and strategic support to key Australian and international providers and stakeholders across the tertiary education sector. We assist education providers and others engaged in the tertiary education sector to successfully navigate changes in policy, funding and regulatory settings across the higher education, international education, vocational education and training (VET) sectors, as well exploring the impact of GenAI and EdTech.
Understanding Australian education within the global context
In 2024 – 2025 Claire has made presentations at various events, including:
- keynote presentation, AVETRA Annual Conference 2025
- keynote presentation Corrective Services NSW Annual Conference 2025
- panel chair ASEAN-Australia Education Dialogue 2024 (Vientiane, Laos)
- panel chair Digital Education Council Global Summit 2024 (Singapore)
- moderator ASEAN TVET Council’s 3rd Regional Policy Dialogue (Bali, Indonesia)
- keynote presentation University of Melbourne’s Centre for the Study of Higher Education, Forum on International Education
- keynote presentation VET Development Centre’s VET National Teaching & Learning Conference 2024
- panel presentation Australian International Education Conference 2024
- ‘Great Debate’ keynote presentation TAFE Directors Australia national conference 2024
- MC – Victorian TAFE Association state conference TAFE Creates 24
- keynote presentation VELG 2024 Forum AI in Education
- panel presentation Community Education Australia annual conference Creative Resilience 2024
- keynote presentation SkillsIQ NSW ITAB Industry Forum 2024, and
- facilitating professional development sessions for various TAFE Institutes and dual sector providers on GenAI and tertiary education, and
- invited to give evidence to the Senate Committee inquiry into the Education Services for Overseas Students Amendment (Quality and Integrity) Bill 2024.
In 2023 Claire was recognised as the IEAA “Excellence in Professional Commentary Award Winner” for her commentary on international education issues. She was also recognised by The PIE as one of Australia and ASEAN’s ‘Top 50’ voices on international education.
In 2023 she was also:
- MC – Vietnamese Directorate of Vocational Education and Training (DVET) and Australian Embassy in Vietnam’s VET International Forum
- keynote presentation Community Colleges Australia Annual Conference
- panel presentation annual Australian International Education Conference
- presentation JVET “Early Career Researchers Group”
- Chair – two panel sessions at the EduGrowth National EdTech Summit
- panel presentation Global Entrepreneurship Congress
- panel presentation Australia China Business Council Annual Education Symposium
- keynote presentation VET Development Centre’s Annual Conference
- Chair – two panels National Apprentice Employer Network Annual Conference
- MC – Victorian TAFE Association’s Annual Conference
- keynote presentation NSW Teachers Guild’s Annual VET in Schools Forum
- keynote presentation ‘TAFE Talks’ The Future of Learning: ChatGPT, EdTech, and the Impact on Academic Integrity, and
- invited to give evidence to the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Subcommittee’s inquiry into Australia’s tourism and international education sectors.
Latest advice from key international events
Higher education and VET providers
Claire Field and Associates work with higher education and vocational education and training providers to:
- expand their operations through the identification of new business opportunities and potential partners (on- and offshore)
- understand and proactively respond to emerging policy changes and competition from non-accredited education providers
- explore EdTech/GenAI opportunities, partnerships and challenges
- undertake reviews of their business operations and assist with strategic planning, and
- assist with due diligence on potential acquisitions.
Consulting services that assist government agencies and tertiary education providers
Claire Field and Associates also provide consulting services that assist government agencies and tertiary education providers to:
- understand the changing world of work and changing education and skill needs
- develop new regulatory approaches
- examine the growth and potential of GenAI and EdTech
- develop new operating models, and
- review the performance of higher education and vocational training organisations.
About Claire Field
Claire has run her independent consulting practice for more than 10 years. In 2023 she was awarded the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA) Excellence in Professional Commentary Award. She is undertaking a PhD at Torrens University writing the history of the university’s first ten years of operations in Australia.
Claire has worked in a variety of educational institutions including TAFE NSW and a national not-for-profit VET provider. She is the former Chief Executive of the Australian Council for Private Education and Training (ACPET) which represented more than 1,000 private VET and higher education providers. Prior to that Claire held senior positions in State and Commonwealth government agencies with responsibility for policy, planning, performance review, and regulatory reform in the post-secondary education sector.
