Certificate 3 Guarantee
The Certificate 3 is a Queensland Government initiative. The Certificate 3 Guarantee supports eligible individuals to complete their first post-school certificate III qualification and increase their skills to move into employment, re-enter the workforce or advance their career.
It also supports school students to access training in high priority qualifications.
To be eligible to enrol in the Certificate 3 Guarantee, prospective students must:
- Be aged 15 years or older.
- Be no longer at school (with the exception of school students in Year 10, 11 and 12 undertaking a VET in Schools [VETiS] program).
- Permanently reside in Queensland.
- Be an Australian or New Zealand citizen or Australian permanent resident (including humanitarian entrants), or a temporary resident with the necessary visa and work permits on the pathway to permanent residency.
- Not hold, and not be enrolled in a certificate III level or higher qualification (not including qualifications completed at school and foundation skills training).
Given the benefits that training provides to individuals, students undertaking certificate III level training and non-concessional students undertaking lower-level vocational training are required to contribute to the costs of their training through a co-contribution fee.
The fee may be paid on a student’s behalf by an employer or another third party, but cannot be paid or waived by the Queensland College of Wine Tourism or any organisation related to the training provider unless approved by the Department of Employment, Small Business and Training.
Students are required to complete a Training and Employment Survey within three (3) months of completing or discontinuing subsidised training.
For an overview of what the Certificate 3 Guarantee means for students, view the Certificate 3 Guarantee student fact sheet.
VET in Schools (VETiS)
Vocational education and training (VET) courses are available to students while they are still at school. This is often referred to as VETiS.
School students in year 10, 11 and 12 have the opportunity to study a vocational education and training course as part of their Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) and/or the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR).
Benefits of the VETiS Program
VETiS provides students with the opportunity to achieve job readiness and gain:
- practical hands-on training;
- valuable skills for greater employability;
- credit towards the Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE);
- real trade skills and qualifications while completing high school;
- a competitive edge in the employment marketplace;
- credit towards further study.
There are two ways to undertake a VETiS program.
- Become a school-based apprentice or trainee. For more information on school-based apprenticeships or traineeships, please visit https://desbt.qld.gov.au/training/apprentices/resources/information-sheets/is26.
- Study a VET course with QCWT – delivered at our campus.
For more information on VET in schools (VETiS) visit https://desbt.qld.gov.au/training/training-careers/incentives/vetis/faqs.
Free TAFE for year 12 graduates
To support Year 12 graduates into work, the Queensland Government offers free training in high priority areas.
To be eligible for free tafe, Year 12 graduates need to start an apprenticeship, traineeship or training in a high priority qualification with a pre-qualified supplier within the calendar year after leaving school. While completing a qualification, students gain experience int eh workplace, learning skills employers need and giving them a competitive edge in the job market.
Fee-free training applies to high priority qualifications available under the Queensland Government’s Certificate 3 Guarantee program or User Choice program, which funds training and assessment services for apprenticeships and traineeships.
To find out more on the high priority qualifications available, visit the Queensland Skills Gateway.
To be eligible to access fee-free training, individuals must:
- have completed Year 12 in Queensland and hold a Senior Statement issued by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority or equivalent certification;
- enrol and start an apprenticeship, traineeship or training, with an approved training provider in a high priority qualification under the program, by the end of the calendar year following completion of Year 12;
- permanently reside in Queensland.
For further information on the Free tafe for Year 12 graduates, visit https://desbt.qld.gov.au/training/training-careers/incentives/freetafe.
Free Apprenticeships for Under 21s
The Queensland Government have introduced free apprenticeships for students under 21. Commencing from 1 July 2019, this program will cover the cost of training for Queensland apprentices and trainees under 21 years of age who commence or are undertaking one of the 139 priority apprenticeship or traineeships qualifications.
To be eligible for the fee-free program, students must be employed in Queensland as an apprentice or trainee under a training contract in one of the 139 high priority qualifications.
For details on the 139 priority qualifications to choose from, visit https://desbt.qld.gov.au/training/providers/funded/freeapprenticeships/eligible-qualifications.
For further details on the free apprenticeships for under 21s, visit https://freeapprenticeships.desbt.qld.gov.au.
Higher Level Skills
The Higher Level Skills program aims to assist individuals to gain the higher-level skills required to secure employment or career advancement in a priority industry, or to transition to university to further their studies.
To be eligible to enrol in the Higher Level Skills, prospective students must:
- be aged 15 years or older;
- be no longer at school;
- permanently reside in Queensland;
- be an Australian or New Zealand citizen or Australian permanent resident (including humanitarian entrants), or a temporary resident with the necessary visa and work permits on the pathway to permanent residency;
- not hold, and not be enrolled in a certificate IV or higher-level qualification (not including qualifications completed at school and foundation skills training).
Given the benefits that training provides to individuals, students are expected to contribute to the cost of their training through a co-contribution fee, payable to the Queensland College of Wine Tourism. The co-contribution fee may be paid on a student’s behalf by an employer or another third party.
For an overview of what the Higher Level Skills program means for students, view the Higher Level Skills student fact sheet.
User Choice
User Choice is a national policy whereby State and Territory Governments fund registered training organisations (RTOs) to provide structured training to Australian apprentices and trainees. These funds reduce the cost of the training for an Australian apprentice/trainee.
Apprentices are trained in a skilled trade (e.g. electrical, pluming, cabinet-making, automotive) and, upon successful completion, become a qualified tradesperson. Apprenticeships generally take up to 4 years to complete.
Trainees are trained in vocational areas (e.g. business administration, information technology, tourism) and, upon successful comletion, receive a qualification in their chosen vocational area. Traineeships generally take between 12 months and 3 years to complete.
An apprentice or trainee is a person contracted to an employer under a training contract for a nominal period of time. Apprenticeships and traineeships provide a combination of employment and structured training, enabling the person to successfully gain competence in a trade as an apprentice, or vocational area as a trainee.
The types of apprenticeships and traineeships are:
- full-time
- part-time
- adult and mature age
- school based
Types of apprenticeships and traineeships
Full-time or part-time
- Full-time apprentices and trainees work and train an average of 38 hours per week and have ongoing employment.
- Part-time apprentices and trainees are rostered to work on a regular basis, working and training no less than 15 hours per week, averaged over a 4-week cycle.
- Existing workers may be employed as an apprentice or trainee in a full-time or part-time capacity.
- The nominal term of a part-time apprenticeship or traineeship is generally double that of the full-time apprenticeship or traineeship.
School-based
- School-based apprenticeships and traineeships (SATs) allow high school students, generally in Years 10, 11 and 12, to work for an employer and train towards a recognised qualification, while completing their secondary schooling and studying for their Queensland Certificate of Education and/or ATAR score.
- School-based apprentices and trainees undertake an apprenticeship or traineeship as part of their high school studies (generally in years 10, 11 and 12).
- A school-based apprentice’s or trainee’s employment and/or training arrangements must impact on their school timetable for the program to be considered school-based.
- The nominal term of a school-based apprenticeship or traineeship is generally double that of the full-time apprenticeship or traineeship.
- In most cases, school based apprentices and trainees are exempt from paying the Student Contribution Fee.
For further details on apprenticeships/traineeships go to https://desbt.qld.gov.au/training/apprentices/about.