The role of vocational education and training cannot be undermined as its contribution is crucial to Western Australia’s economy. The constant change in future job outlook that’s directly proportional to the economy’s growth gives rise to more skilled workforce requirements needed to be filled. And here’s where the VET sector comes in.
VET enables students to acquire relevant qualifications and specific skills that are needed in different types of employment. It’s a good thing that the Western Australian government fully supports this endeavour by putting investment in providing training for potential skilled workers. The subsidy includes traineeships, apprenticeships, and qualifying priority industries.
We spoke to Greg Winchester, owner and director of House Washing Perth about his experiences. Greg says that undertaking Vocational and Educational training courses in building and construction during grades 11 and 12 of high school helped him learn more about that industry. He recognised the need for Perth pressure washing specialists who better understand every facet of house exterior cleaning, while working on construction sites as part of his training. He credits that opportunity for fast-tracking his progress to becoming a successful business owner.
Popular VET Courses to Choose From
Agriculture, Animals, Science, and The Environment
If you’re interested in farming, animal care, landscaping and horticulture, and land management, training in these fields can land you to some fulfilling careers. As the names suggest, available careers after training are as follows: veterinary nurse, equine care, farm worker, viticulturist, horticulturist, landscape designer, etc.
Other options also include land management, conservation of forests, rivers, and oceans, and environmental impact assessments. If you want a more unconventional job, perhaps a career that involves the maintenance or preservation of Aboriginal heritage and culture might interest you.
Aerospace, Maritime, and Logistics
Aerospace covers a wide array of sectors and is not limited to manoeuvring actual vehicles and vessels and definitely not limited to the local route but international as well. These include maintenance and manufacturing, ground crew, technical support, and even defence.
Maritime provides high-quality training in fishing, aquaculture, as well marine studies, operations, and engineering. These can lead you to careers in marine biology, shipping, and commercial fishing.
Logistics, on the other hand, pertains to supply chains that include warehousing, freight, local and international shipping, storage, distribution, or as basic as being store personnel.
Automotive
Take this course if you are into anything vehicle or transport-related. This industry covers the production and maintenance of all types of land automotives, including machinery and plant vehicles.
What’s good is that this industry can also open doors to opportunities in the field of research and technology in terms of fuel sustainability and automotive safety. Jobs may include repairs and maintenance, paint, mechanical technology and electrics, plant machinery, and power equipment, among others.
Building and Construction
Another course that covers a wide industry, building and construction entail residential and commercial architecture, engineering, carpentry, plumbing, painting, roofing, and electrical, among others. They also involve anything related to roads, railways, dams, power supplies, and the likes.
If you are not into the “dirty” part of the job, you may opt to be part of the design part team that concentrates on the architecture and building layout. These are where your creativity and imagination can come to life by specialising in aiding in the creation of sustainable and environment-friendly designed structures.
Business and Finance
Perhaps the recognition of being one of the busiest and fastest-moving industries in many aspects goes to business and finance. If this is the kind of work environment you enjoy, this might be a perfect fit for you. This opens career opportunities for you in the fields of accounting, banking, human resources, marketing, sales, real estate, and more.
You can even hone your skills to become a leader of an organisation or be an owner of your own business one day. Training in this course also includes teamwork, problem-solving, as well as communication skills that are crucial in the business world.
Education and Community Services
More often than not, your chosen career is your calling in life. If you aspire to make a difference in other people’s lives, then education, community services, or local government might be for you.
For education, the career options include education assistant, early education, aged and disability care, mental health and funeral or bereavement support, and such. Community services pertain to areas of studies that deal with family and domestic violence, parenting and relationships, mental health, alcohol and substance abuse, adolescent development, and housing, to name a few. On the other hand, local government training can give rise to careers in local council or community roles like being a park ranger and such.
Hospitality, Retail, Tourism and Events
These industries are considered the largest employers in the world as these are what people from around the globe come in for when they visit a country. They are the “best foot forward” of a location so it’s crucial to place the best people in the job.
Training in these fields can open careers as restaurant chefs, café managers and baristas, travel agents, sales and marketing, and even other managerial roles in hotels, etc. For events management, exciting jobs await you involving concerts, festivals, conferences, expos, and such with roles such as the developer of events proposals, sponsorships, marketing and promotions, budgeting, site management, etc.
Information, Technology, Library, and Digital
Since we are now living in a digital world, these fields offer endless possibilities in terms of your profession. Regardless of your chosen media, you’ll never run out of careers to pursue. Training can land you roles in network management and administration, game development and design, software programming, website development, 3D animation, and the likes.
You might also want to be involved in movie or television production where you can land a job in audio and video editing, animation, digital media development, storyboarding, etc. If you are more interested in radio, you can also try announcing and sound production, among other options.
Other VET Courses
If you still can’t find the right course to take from above, other options are still available below and their corresponding potential jobs:
- Creative Industries – fashion design, interior design, visual arts, drawing, film and photography, printing and graphic arts, and even music.
- Engineering and Mining – refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics, process plant operators, machinists, welders, sheet metal workers, fitters, boilermakers, and other tasks in process plant operations.
- English, Languages, and Foundation Studies – these are for those who have non-English backgrounds whose target jobs require language literacy or who just want to improve their literacy skills which can be very relevant in their career of choice.
- Health, Personal Services, Sport and Fitness – massage therapist, sports fitness coach, makeup artist, hairdresser, beauty therapist, nurse or anaesthetic technician, ward or patient services assistant, as well as a trained assistant for professionals such as physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, and the likes.