TAFE Colleges
Australia has a wonderful alternative to those students who want to excel in vocational and skills education. It is called TAFE.TAFE stands for Technical and Further Education It is similar to the Indian Polytechnics which offer Vocational and Skill development courses. State and territory governments own, operate and finance the TAFE institutes in Australia. Certain courses like Culinary Arts, Mechanic, welder etc. are not taught in universities. It is also used as a pathway by students who want to have a lesser academics load in a new study environment, different from India.
Can have numerous campuses, which depends on the state or territory of location. TAFE institutes offer additional security as they are government-owned education providers and qualifications that are duly accredited and recognised by the industry for employment purposes. Certain Australian universities also have TAFE division, allowing students to articulate in to the degrees.
Being the largest education and training sector in Australia TAFE it attracts thousands of international students enrolments each year in to their extensive range of courses that provide hands on, practical skills and vocational training. There are 59 institutions across metropolitan & regional Australia. Areas of study: Business, Accounting, Health, Culinary Arts, Events & Tourism, Beauty, Construction, Community Work, Child Care, Engineering related, Design IT etc. . Duration for these courses can be between 6 months – 3 years. Entry requirements are year 11th or 12th pass. They offer courses starting from Certificate I, Certificate II, Certificate III, Certificate IV, Diploma & Advance Diploma and in some cases higher education qualification such as a Bachelors.The tuition fees is competitive as compared to universities, average fees is A$ 18 ,000- A$ 22,000 per annum.
Designed keeping in mind the industry needs and requirements, TAFE courses incorporate on-the-job training through work experience and out of the classroom projects. TAFE institute is also a good option for student students who are looking for a pathway to a university degree, a vocational qualification incorporating work based skills and leading to various career openings. Ideal for students who are cost conscious, prefer smaller classes with more personalised attention.
Since June 2009, 10 TAFE college mainly in NSW, Victoria, WA, ACT & Queensland started offering their own Bachelor degrees & PG diploma. Melbourne Polytechnic was accredited in 2015 to offer 2 Master degree courses. TAFE NSW is the largest Vocational training provider in Australia as well as in the world. There are numerous benefits of studying at TAFE. Their course have more practical focus, lower entry requirements & shorter completion time with lower fees as compared to Universities. TAFE Diplomas can be used as standalone Diploma qualification or can be used to get credits and enter in to higher level qualification in Universities.
