Vocational Education - National College Australia

By Author: Nationalcollege
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Vocational education and training (VET) is training that prepares you for a specific trade, occupation or vocation. It is traditionally non-academic and heavily focused on one’s ability to perform set tasks. Every VET course in Australia is part of a national training package. Every training package outlines specific skills a person needs to demonstrate when performing a given set of tasks. VET also includes a component of theoretical knowledge to ensure students have a sound understanding of the fundamentals of the subject area they are studying.

In Australia the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) defines all nationally recognised qualifications. Within the VET sector the following qualifications can be issued:

• Certificate I
• Certificate II
• Certificate III
• Certificate IV
• Diploma
• Advanced Diploma
• Vocational Graduate Certificate
• Vocational Graduate Diploma

The most popular qualifications are Certificate III and Certificate IV courses. A Certificate III course ...
... is usually an entry level qualification meaning that it is the minimum formal qualification a worker needs in order to enter a specific industry. Workers with a Certificate III qualification will have some relevant theoretical knowledge; they will apply a range of well-developed skills; be able to find solutions to a variety of predictable problems; and take limited responsibility for of others.

Let’s take the Certificate III in Aged Care as an example. This very popular community services course is for people who work or want to work in a range of residential aged care facilities. It teaches people about the aged care sector and the specific skills required to perform personal care, support for older people, and how to communicate with them within a residential setting.

A Certificate IV courseis a higher level qualification that is beyond the entry-level content of the Certificate III. At this level students are required to demonstrate understanding of a broader range of theoretical concepts; apply a greater range of skills, analyse and evaluate information, find solutions to a range of unpredictable problems, and take greater responsibility for others.

Using the aged care example again, a Certificate IV in Aged Care is also for people who work or who want to work in aged care work within a residential facility but it also includes those who have prior experience in this field and want to develop their knowledge and skills. It does not qualify students to provide direct care services to clients, to do this you will need to complete CHC30208 Certificate III in Aged Care or CHC30308 Certificate III in Home and Community Care.

With Certificate IV training workers are able to work independently and undertake a team leader role within an aged care facility or centre-based service.

Today, the VET sector provides a great deal of flexibility when it comes to when, where and how learning can take place. Students are not restricted to having to attend classrooms at set dates and times but can choose to study using a blended approach of online and classroom based learning or they can study an entire course online – without ever having to see anyone else and with the convenience of studying in their own home, at their own pace. There are other ways to attain or Certificate or Diploma qualification; it can be through work-based training, or what is referred to as a traineeship. You complete a course at your own pace while you continue to work and earn money. The other option is recognition. If you have prior qualifications, work or life experience you can apply for recognition and cut down on your study load.

Gaining a qualification has never been easier. There are hundreds of Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) including National College Australia that deliver nationally recognised training in all of the qualifications listed above – for more information on qualifications available in the VET system and the RTOs that offer them go to ntis.gov.au.