Thinking of switching to Early Childhood Education and Care?

Is your current job leaving you unfulfilled? Ever consider pivoting to a career that would make a real difference in the world? Then Early Childhood Education & Care might be for you!

A child’s environment and education in the early years set the foundations for not only their future academic success but also for the rest of their life. By working in Early Childhood Education & Care as a carer, educator, or teacher, you can help children develop skills that will set them on the path to success. And now, more than ever is the time to make the switch!

The Victorian government has recently started rolling out a three-year-old kinder program, with the intention of investing almost $5 billion over the next decade to give Victorian children the best start to life. Under this plan, every three-year-old child in Victoria will be provided 15 hours of subsidised kindergarten per week. This will create over 6,000 new teaching jobs, with Victoria needing over 4,000 new kindergarten teachers and over 2,000 new educators across the state.

The demand for newly qualified professionals in this field is high and will continue to grow as the Victorian government continues to roll out this initiative. It is also likely that other states will follow soon, which means getting qualified now will put you ahead of the curve.

If you’re looking for a rewarding, dynamic field that’s constantly growing, then look no further! There are so many reasons why working in Early Childhood is rewarding. Flexibility in hours, great career progression, and a good work-life balance are just a few.

Some skills that would make you a great candidate for an Early Childhood career:

• Empathy
• Creativity
• Teamwork
• Flexibility
• Confidence
• Communication

To become an Early Childhood Educator, you will need to complete either a Cert III in Early Childhood Education and Care or a Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care.

If you’re looking to become a kindergarten teacher, you will likely need an undergraduate degree at the minimum, though if you already have a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care, the course may take into account your previous credits and accelerate your degree. There are hundreds of financial support packages available that you may be eligible for. These can help pay for your course fees, living costs while you study, and other associated costs.

• $25,000 towards an approved undergraduate qualification
• $12,000 towards an approved graduate diploma qualification
• $18,000 towards an approved master’s qualification

• $34,000 towards an approved undergraduate qualification
• $16,000 towards an approved graduate diploma qualification
• $24,000 towards an approved masters qualification
• $2,500 towards an approved early childhood Certificate III qualification
• $5,000 towards an approved early childhood Diploma qualification

You could qualify for Government funding, to see if you do, click here!

And the support doesn’t stop once you finish school. There are free training programs and initiatives available for new Early Childhood teachers, including access to a minimum of five hours of individual coaching for first-year teachers, as well as webinars and alumni networks.

Our Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care and our Cert III Early Childhood courses both feature work placement requirements. This means that you can get practical experience in a real workplace environment before you graduate.

To find out more, give us a call at 1300 737 004. You can also email us at info@mcie.edu.au.