1989
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The Higher Education Contribution Scheme or HECS introduced. The scheme imposed a debt of $1800 a year on every student. They were required to start paying back the accumulated amount once they began earning more than $22,000 a year.
1997
Differential HECS introduced. Students were charged different amounts for courses, based on their cost and earning capacity as graduates. The new levels were $3300 (Arts, Humanities, Education, Nursing); $4700 (Mathematics, Computing, Architecture, Sciences, Engineering, Administration, Business and Economics); $5500 (Law, Medicine, Dentistry, Veterinary Science). The income level for repayment was also reduced.
2005
Extension of the income contingent loans to domestic students paying full fees, now called FEE-HELP, and universities able to set their fees up to 30 per cent above HECS for federally funded places except teaching and nursing. The income threshold for HECS repayments lifted from $24,365 to $30,000 from 2005
2007
Vocational education FEE-HELP introduced for students studying higher level vocational education and training (VET) courses.