WHAT IS VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING (VET)?
Vocational education and training provides students with the skills and knowledge to work in a variety of occupations through hands-on and practical learning.
Called VET for short, it can encompass a range of qualifications, courses and pathways to careers.
It focuses on providing job-ready, workplace skills and technical knowledge to students so they meet the needs of employers and industry now.
Students can learn on-the-job or in real-life training workshops and workplace settings, using the tools, machinery and software that they will encounter in their desired occupations.
Apprenticeships and traineeships are a part of VET but courses and qualifications can be completed without being under that kind of employment or training arrangement.
Some people will complete their qualification, then get a job; while others will complete their qualification while working full or part time. Other students will complete their qualification, then find a job.
There are more than 500 different qualifications to choose from.
WHAT IS A QUALIFICATION IN VET?
A VET qualifications are certificates, labelled one, two, three or four in Roman numerals, depending on their level of complexity. They can also be diplomas or associate degrees.
Students can enrol in a qualification at any level but each qualification can provide a pathway to higher levels. For example, a student may first obtain a certificate II before moving on to a certificate III; or they can enrol in a diploma from the outset.
Certificate I: Provides basic knowledge and skills, and takes six months to one year to complete in full-time study. For example, a Certificate I in Skills for Vocational Pathways provides students with language, numeracy and literacy skills to be able to undertake a higher VET course.
Certificate II: Provides students with skills and knowledge to undertake basic tasks in an occupation. The six to 12-month course may also be called a pre-apprenticeship or a VET in Schools course. For example, a Certificate II in Hospitality will provide basic skills to work in a restaurant as a food and beverage attendant.
Certificate III: Provides the broad range of skills to work as an entry-level skilled worker in a range of qualifications. For trade roles, such as automotive or construction, it is the qualification that is earned through completing an apprenticeship that takes three to four years. For non-trade roles, such as healthcare or business, it may take one to two years to complete, either as part of a traineeship or independent of having a job.
READ MORE: TAFE NSW outlines various course types
Certificate IV: Provides complex skills and specialised knowledge. It may be occupation-specific, such as a Certificate IV in School Age Education and Care, or it may be applicable to many occupations, such as a Certificate IV in Leadership and Management. It can take between six months and two years to complete.
Diploma: Provides a high level of expertise for advanced skilled or paraprofessional work and takes one to two years to complete. For example, a Diploma of Graphic Design provides theoretical concepts as well as technical expertise.
Advanced Diploma: Provides high-level practical and professional skills and will take two to three years to complete. For example, an Advanced Diploma of Conveyancing qualifies workers to undertake conveyancing, financial transactions, contract law and compile legal documents and advice in the property industry.
Associate Degree: Provides high level, practical skills that can prepare students for higher education. It can take at least two years to complete. For example, an Associate Degree in Electrical Engineering provides introductory theoretical principles as well as advanced practical skills.
Graduate Certificate: Provides specialised skills to students who have already obtained a bachelor degree, at least three years work experience in the field, or a VET qualification and two years work experience. It takes six months to one year to complete. For example, a Graduate Certificate in Cyber Security provides skills and knowledge in cyber security ethics as well as risk and incident management.
Graduate Diploma: Provides advanced, specialised skills to students who have already obtained a vocational diploma or bachelor degree and are working in the field, and takes one to two years to complete. For example, a Graduate Diploma of Financial Planning may provide business bachelor degree graduates with financial planning skills.
CASE STUDY – HOW ARIAH BECAME QUALIFIED THROUGH A DIPLOMA
Ariah Holmes, 28, turned to VET when she wanted to study a qualification that she could use wherever her career took her.
Ariah had been studying a nursing and midwifery degree at university when illness caused her to drop out.
“I was working full time and I felt academic options were limited,” she says.
“VET has a lot of really great opportunities that are accessible to people who are working full time or part time and they are able to do a qualification in a flexible way.
“It’s also accessible around cost – it doesn’t carry those same financial burdens that other types of education do.
“With online learning options, I was able to complete my diploma studying one day a month of class for 12 months and doing assignments in between each of those classes.”
READ MORE: Christopher Fitzsimons’s story
She completed her Diploma of Leadership and Management as part of a traineeship with her employer, so was able to immediately apply the skills as she learned them to her job as well as receive mentoring and advice.
She encourages people to explore all their options when considering their next career move and research the opportunities available through VET.
“I really thought of VET as trade, like electricians and carpenters, but VET really holds a lot of opportunities,” she says.
“VET has empowered me to gain skills and knowledge and networks and references and recognition that I never would have had otherwise.”
IS VET THE SAME AS TAFE?
TAFE institutes across Australia are public training providers that offer vocational education and training to students.
Every state has its own TAFE institute. In the NT, TAFE courses are delivered through Charles Darwin University, and in the ACT, through Canberra Institute of Technology.
However, there are other training providers where students can obtain these same VET skills.
A range of organisations can be Registered Training Organisations that provide students with qualifications that are recognised by employers across Australia.
These are a few examples of VET training organisations that are not TAFE.
READ MORE: Tips to choose a training provider at Your Career
Private training providers: Many privately run organisations also offer VET qualifications to students. They can be training providers that focus on qualifications for a particular industry, such as community services or construction, or provide a range of qualifications.
Dual sector universities: Universities that offer vocational education and training as well as higher education qualifications are called dual sector universities. In Australia, these are Swinburne University of Technology, Charles Darwin University, CQ University, Federation University, RMIT University and Victoria University. They provide courses from certificates and diplomas through to degrees and postgraduate qualifications, providing accessible pathways through the qualification levels and within the one institution.
Employer academies: Large employers often run their own training programs equipping apprentices, trainees and other workers with the industry and occupational skills they require, as well as business-specific skills. For example, Komatsu has its Komatsu Training Academy which skills its employees as well as other workers in the construction, quarry and mining industry.
CASE STUDY – HOW ANDY BECAME QUALIFIED AT A PRIVATE TRAINING PROVIDER
Andy Bartlett, 49, was looking to make a career change into more satisfying work when friends suggested he consider the disability sector.
He approached the private training provider Avidity Training, which has won awards in state and national training awards, to ask how he could get the qualifications to work in this industry.
He enrolled in a Certificate III in Individual Support (Disability) and has not looked back.
“I could do my assessments online and the assessors were very helpful if I got anything wrong – they would help me or guide me on how to find out everything properly,” he says.
He did not have to pay course fees, as the qualification was one of the priority areas identified by Federal and State Governments and was subsidised under fee-free VET initiatives.
While it is often called Fee-Free TAFE, courses at other VET providers may also be subsidised.
READ MORE: Madeline Ziegler’s story
Andy completed the qualification by studying one day a week, on his day off from his other job, for six months then was employed by Possability when he finished.
He is now looking to go back to study and obtain a Diploma of Community Services with the same training provider.
“Because I used them before, I know how good they are as trainers,” he says.
“I know they can help me if I have any troubles.
“I know a diploma is a lot bigger than a certificate III but knowing that they’re there for me if I need them is so good to know that it gives you more confidence to do it.”
WHAT TYPES OF VET COURSES ARE THERE?
Vocational education and training offers hands-on, practical learning in a variety of settings.
Apprenticeships: VET is perhaps best known for apprenticeships, which are training pathways for trades workers. Apprentices are employed and will conduct work-related tasks as their skills develop, receiving mentoring and advice on the job from their employer and colleagues. Technical training for their qualification occurs at a training provider, such as TAFE or a private training provider.
Traineeships: Trainees usually are employed for non-trade roles, such as one that is performed in an office, in the same way apprentices are.
VET course: Students can also study a VET course without being employed under an apprenticeship or traineeship. Students may be employed in a relevant role, for example a personal care worker may be employed in the aged care sector while they complete a Certificate III in Individual Support but their job is not directly tied to the training. Students may also study a VET course without having a job and complete work placements as part of their training to gain practical experience.
READ MORE: Victoria University answers popular questions about VET
CASE STUDY: HOW HARRY BECAME AN APPRENTICE
Harry Roberts, 30, worked in the construction and tourism industries before he started his apprenticeship to be an arborist.
He found himself out of work during COVID and he regretted not having obtained a skill or a career path that he could fall back on.
He didn’t really know what job title or industry that he wanted to work in, so instead defined the type of work that he wanted to do – working at heights, working outdoors and working as part of a team.
“I didn’t know where to go next, so I started looking for job ads,” he says.
“I sat down one day and wrote all the things I wanted out of a job (and typed in the keywords in the job search).
“The arboriculture job came up and I thought I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to be a mature-age apprentice, but I had nothing to lose.
“It’s my dream job. It’s such a good time and the training was second to none.”
READ MORE: Nathan Powell’s story
He completed a Certificate III in Arboriculture as part of the apprenticeship.
“The hardest part of study for me would probably be the tree identification and understanding different species and the biology side of it behind it,” he says.
“All the on-ground training came through practice, just putting in the time.”
He wishes there had been more information when he was at school that VET was not just for the well-known trades available, such as in construction, but the wide variety in various areas.
“There’s way more opportunities than you think, like masonry, aviation, boilermaking – the list is endless of all the options,” he says.
He says there is also support such as government incentives that pay for fees for some courses and for tools that help apprentices with costs during their training.
When selecting a course to study, it is a good idea to Explore All The Options
Cara Jenkin is a freelance journalist with more than 20 years’ experience working in the print, digital and television media. It included 10 years as the editor of NewsCorp’s Careers employment section, covering topics ranging from education and training to workplace career advice.