Apprenticeships have, for many years, been the traditional way that young people received training in a broad range of trade areas. This usually involves 4 years of work and study before becoming fully qualified or licensed in that trade. Apprentices will usually work on the job with their employer four days per week and receive "off the job training" 1 day per week, usually with an organisation such as TAFE.

More recently we have seen the introduction of Traineeships. These are like Apprenticeships in that a person is taken on by an employer and receives "on the job" training with the employer and "off the job" training with an organisation such as TAFE. Traineeships only go for 12 months. At the end of a Traineeship you will receive a qualification, but you will not be a fully qualified tradesperson (you can go on to get this qualification however). You can even undertake a traineeship while you are still at school and have it count towards your HSC.

An apprenticeship is the traditional way that people have learned the skills of a particular trade. As an apprentice you have a job with an employer and you undertake "off the job" training with an organisation such as TAFE. You will normally attend this training 1 day per week, or possibly as a block of 5 days every 5 weeks. This will tend to vary according to your job and where you live.

Apprenticeships normally take four years to complete. Like any employee, you are entitled to sick leave, holidays and other benefits.

As an apprentice, you get:

• a job
• free training
• ongoing advice and support
• financial assistance
• a nationally recognised qualification

For complete information about apprenticeships, click here.

A traineeship works in a very similar way to an apprenticeship, in that you have both, on the job training with your employer, off the job training with an organisation such as TAFE or a mixture of both.

Traineeships are available in a huge number of industry areas and normally last from 1 to 3 years. The Traineeship can take less time if you have had previous experience in that industry area or if you learn quickly and complete the required work in less time.

For complete information about traineeships, click here. 

New Apprenticeships:

New Apprenticeships are similar to Apprenticeships and cover both apprenticeships and traineeships. The cover more areas that the traditional apprenticeships and are competency based. This means that achieving a complete apprenticeship (or traineeship) is not so linked to a set period of time, but rather, demonstrating that you have developed the required knowledge and skills for that occupation. If you learn quickly, it means that you can complete your training sooner. There are now New Apprenticeships available in more than 500 occupations.

Training for a new apprenticeship is quite flexible - it can be "on the job" (with your employer), "off the job" (with a training provider such as TAFE) or a mixture of both.

For complete information about New Apprenticeships, click here.

It is possible to complete a traineeship while you are still at school. In a School Based, Part Time Traineeship, you complete your Traineeship part time and complete your HSC as well. A school based, part time trainee must complete the same number of hours of work and training that a full time trainee is expected to complete (normally 1200-1600 hours) they just do it over a longer period of time.

You would normally work with your host employer for between 5-7 hours per week, plus some time in the school holidays.

As an school based, part time trainee, you get:

• a job
• free training
• ongoing advice and support
• a training wage
• an HSC
• a nationally recognised qualification

For complete information about Part Time, School Based Traineeships, click here.

Group Training Companies:

A Group Training Company is an organisation which employs trainees and apprentices and then "hires" them out to host employers where they do their training. Group training can be a great way to go if you are looking for an apprenticeship or traineeship as they provide you with a lot of extra help and support.

They also often have access to apprenticeships and traineeships that individual employers will not offer. For example, a builder might not want to take on an apprentice because they are worried that the amount of work they have is not enough to make it possible to put on an apprentice. A group training company can put on an apprentice and then hire that apprentice out to a number of builders. You get very good training because you get to work with a number of different people.