Considering a career in child care?

If you are considering a career in child care and have a passion for working with children, you will play a vital role in helping shape the dreams and futures of children during their most impressionable and formative years.

Will I be able to get a job?

With entry through VET qualifications or traineeship study options, Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) is a fast-growing sector in Australia. Employing over 150,000 childcare workers, the industry has been steadily growing at a rate of 17% over the last five years.

The demand for qualified child care workers is estimated to continue to grow and more than 300,00 new jobs in the sector are projected to open up in the next five years, bringing the projected child care workers to over 180,000 in the next half decade. With further training, it even offers opportunities for child care workers to transition into a career in early learning and teaching.

Child care sector: A strong foundation for the future with great career prospects

Early childhood education is strongly supported by the Government and policy-makers providing a long-term and sustainable future in both funding for infrastructure, expansion of early learning centres and improved teaching strategies.

The Australian Early Years Learning Framework and the National Quality Standards, which govern and guide best practices and outcomes for our children, support the value of early education and care of children. The Framework and Quality Standards require educators and teachers to have a high level of training to exercise best practice in an education and care environment.

What’s involved with working in child care?

Some of the tasks of a child care worker include:

Providing a safe and nurturing environment where children’s social, emotional, and physical care needs are met;
Contribute towards planning, and administrative tasks of the child care centre;
Interact effectively with parents, co-workers for delivery of the services; and maintain documentation

Rising demand

Australia’s growing population would also warrant more demand for child care centres and thus, more childcare workers would be needed to match the demand. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australia’s population is projected to reach 28.3 and 29.3 million people by 2027. (source: abs.gov.au)

Moreover, the Victorian Government recently funded 3-year old kindergartens in 36 kindergarten services across six regional local government areas in Victoria. The full programme will be rolled out over a decade and will ensure that an extra year of learning will be added to children’s play-based education in Victoria.

This means more jobs will be created for teachers and educators in the sector. It is estimated that about 2,000 new educators and over 4,000 new early childhood teachers are needed.

A world of opportunity for anyone interested in entering the industry. The Australian Jobs 2019 report states childcarers among the top five occupations with the largest projected growth.

Salaries and prospects

According to data, the hourly pay of a childcare worker in Australia is between AU$19.86- AU$27.99 with the media sitting at AU$23.18. (source: payscale.com). With experience, and qualifications added, the pay tends to increase. The sector also offers flexible working hours which is great for a work-life balance. In fact, according to figures, half of the childcare workers work part-time.

A Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) is a minimum qualification required to enter the sector to work as a child care worker in Australia, and you can then upskill with a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) for a more managerial or coordinator role in the industry. These courses can be undertaken through a VET provider, TAFE, or through an on the job traineeship. With these qualifications, you can work anywhere in Australia. Your typical workplace would include formal childcare facilities such as child care centres, outside school hours care, early learning centres, kindergarten programs, or even find work privately for in-home care as a nanny.

Your range of career opportunities in the childcare sector includes working as a;

Child Carer
Day Care Worker
Nanny
After School Carer

With upskilling and added qualifications, you can grow in the ranks as a Child Care Centre Manager, Early Childhood Teacher, or even start your own Child Care Centre or Home Daycare business.

Starting your career in child care

If you are thinking about a career in child care, then MCIE offers funded Certificate III and Diploma courses in Early Childhood Education and Care to eligible participants. The first step is a Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care. This course provides the foundational knowledge upon which to build your career and gain entry into the sector.

The next step up is a Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care. This program develops a greater depth of knowledge and skill to be a successful leader in the industry. And if you want to take it further, MCIE has an ECEC Pathway option for Diploma graduates to the Victoria University Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education). The Diploma of ECEC means you gain direct entry into the second year of the bachelor’s degree.

If this sounds like you, then get in touch with one of our course consultants to learn more about our Certificate III or Diploma courses in ECEC. Have a chat and prepare to take your next steps for a career in the early childhood sector. Call us on 1300 737 004 ( Monday-Saturday from 9:00AM- 5:00PM)