Welcome to the Australian Apprenticeships Centre

What is a Traineeship?

A traineeship is a Full-time or Part-time employment based training arrangement between an employer and a trainee.

Traineeships provide structured on and off the job training and nationally recognised qualifications for new employees.

Certificate II Traineeships are normally for 12 months. A trainee successfully completing a Certificate II traineeship can progress to a Certificate III traineeship for normally another 12 months. Many traineeships are now available at Certificate IV and Diploma level.

Traineeships are for new employees of any age. Normally a one month probationary period applies from the date of commencement of a traineeship.

School Based Traineeships

A school Based Traineeship provides an opportunity for a student (year 11 & year 12) to begin preparing themselves for a career by working in a traineeship environment and continuing their secondary education. The requirements for a School Based Traineeship are:

Nominal duration is 18 months (normally year 11 & 12 timeframe)
Must undertake an average of 8 hours per week of paid work over the period of the Training Contract. Minimum hours of employment over this period must be 624 hours.
‘Off the Job’ training is undertaken by a Registered Training Organisation.
A Training Agreement and Training Program Outline must be completed and registered with the Western Australian Department of Training.

Successful completion of the traineeship will provide the student with a Certificate II industry recognized qualification.

There are a wide range of traineeships potentially available.

Training existing staff as Australian Apprentices

Training existing staff as Australian Apprentices gives you the benefit of investing in employees you know and trust, and saves you from having to go through the time-consuming and costly recruitment process.

Australian Apprenticeships are competency-based so they recognise the skills your employees already have from working in their current job. This can cut down the time it takes to complete training.

What is an existing employer?

For the purpose of Australian Apprenticeships, an existing worker is an employee or prospective employee who has a more than 3 month full time equivalent employment relationship with their employer. The working relationship can be built up through full time, part time, casual employment, or engagement as a seasonal or contract worker.

Please note - Employment as an Australian School-Based Apprentice or employee relationship whilst at school (such as casual and part time job) are not included.

The benefits of training existing staff

Training your existing employees in an Australian Apprenticeship means you may receive Government funding. You'll also be ensuring the availability of skills that are tailored to your business, and be providing your employees with the opportunity to learn new skills and gain nationally recognised qualifications.

You may receive financial incentives for training your existing employees as Australian Apprentices, provided certain conditions are met which can offset the cost of training and assessment.

An employer of an existing worker may attract incentives for Certificate level III, IV or selected higher qualifications, if

the qualification and the postcode of the employers workplace attract the special Rural and Regional Skills Shortage Commencement Incentive; or
the Training Contract, as declared by the relevant State/Territory Training Authority specifies that the expected duration is 2 years or more. Part time employment is prorated.

The eligibility of the existing workers to attract incentives also depends on whether they meet the eligibility requirements of the programme and prior qualifications they hold. The Australian Government offers the following range of incentives for eligible existing employees undertaking an Australian Apprenticeship:

Commencement incentive of $1,500
Completion incentive of $2,500

List of Traineeships

Please refer to the Department of Training website: