Subsidised Training in South Australia

If you want to study a course that will give you skills employers need, you may be able to pay reduced course fees. If your training is subsidised, the South Australian Government pays you part of your course fees.

Individuals must meet course entry requirements and verify their enrollment eligibility before enrolling in a government-subsidised training place. Participant Eligibility Criteria apply.

For more information about subsidises Supported by the Government of South Australia, please visit the website at www.skills.sa.gov.au

Current courses available with training subsidies

AWT currently has the following qualifications available with training subsidies Supported by Government of South Australia for eligible participants:

Eligibility for government subsidised training

Participant Eligibility Criteria apply.

Individuals can check what government subsidised training options they may be eligible for by answering a few questions through the following eligibility calculator – https://www.skills.sa.gov.au/subsidised-eligibility
It’s easy and will take around a minute to complete.

You may be eligible for a government subsidised training place if you either live or work in South Australia

and you are:

an Australian or New Zealand citizen, or
a permanent Australian resident, or
the holder of an eligible visa (Visa types as below).

You also need to be one of the following:

aged 16 years or over and not enrolled at school, or
aged 16 years or over, enrolled in school and undertaking training through the Training Guarantee for SACE Students (TGSS)/VETRO, or
undertaking training through a training contract as an apprentice or trainee in identified courses.

Eligible individuals may be able to access:

one foundation skills course (if you are assessed to need it)
up to five bridging units at every qualification level (if assessed to need them)
unlimited priority courses.

Based on your training and employment level you may also have access to:

Highest accredited non-school qualification at first enrolment	Access to
No qualification, or An unemployed job seeker who is registered with an Employment Service Provider	a total of – one Certificate II course – two courses from Certificate III to Advanced Diploma level
Qualification up to Certificate II level	a total of – two courses from Certificate III to Advanced Diploma level
Completed a Certificate III or above (including university qualifications)	a total of – one course from Certificate III to Advanced Diploma level

Highest level of qualification
This refers to the highest level of qualification you have obtained in Australia.

This may include:

Vocational qualifications such as Certificate, Diploma or Advanced Diploma level courses
Higher education qualifications such as bachelor’s degrees or above, or
School qualifications such as the South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE).

You can only be enrolled in two subsidised courses at a time.
Specific subsidised projects and initiatives may stipulate additional criteria and conditions which will apply in addition to those outlined above.

Previously completed training through WorkReady or Skills for All
You may have already studied courses through WorkReady or Skills for All. If you have completed courses from 1 October 2015 onwards, your entitlement to access government subsidised training may be affected. If you’d like more information, call the Skills and Employment Infoline on 1800 673 097.
** For course enrolments after 15 October 2020 (until such time as notified by the Minister), the Standard Entitlement Criteria limitations do not apply to any Courses on the Subsidised Training List. This means eligible Participants can access low-fee training regardless of their prior qualifications and training they have undertaken.

Temporary visa types eligible for government subsidised training
In addition to all permanent residency visa holders, the following visas are eligible for subsidised training:

Skilled – Work Regional (subclass 491)
Skilled – Regional (Provisional) Visa (subclass 489)
Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (subclass 494)
Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) Visa, subclass 188
Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV), subclass 790
Bridging Visa A, subclass 010*
Bridging Visa E (BE), subclass 050 and 051*
Temporary Protection Visa (TPV), subclass 785*
Bridging Visa F (BVF), subclass 060*
Partner Visa (Temporary), subclass 820 and 309
Temporary Humanitarian Stay visa (subclass 449)
Temporary Humanitarian Concern (THC) visa (subclass 786)

*Individuals on Bridging visas are only eligible where they are waiting on the outcome of an application for a permanent visa or one of the temporary visas listed above.
A list of repealed provisional visas that are also eligible can be found online at https://www.skills.sa.gov.au/courses-careers/eligibility-explained

If you are unsure whether your visa category is permanent or temporary you can check your visa type on the Department of Home Affairs website at https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/
To check your work or study entitlement conditions attached to your visa, we will use the Australian Government’s Visa Entitlement Verification Online service (VEVO).

Foundation skills
Before you start training, you may need to gain some basic skills. This may include improvement in reading, writing or numeracy skills. If assessed to need them, eligible individuals will be able to access foundation skills courses with training subsidies.

Bridging units
To help you successfully complete your qualification, you may need to undertake additional learning. Bridging units, including vocational, literacy and numeracy units of competency, can equip you with these necessary basic skills. If assessed to need them, eligible individuals can undertake up to five bridging units as part of their subsidised training course.

Conditions
Some subsidised training courses are only available to certain participants and we describe these as Conditions.
Conditions explained:

This course is available while at secondary school
You must be enrolled in school and undertaking vocational education and training within your South Australian Certificate of Education program as part of the Training Guarantee for SACE Students to enrol in this course.
This course is available if you need help with reading, writing and maths
If your pre-enrolment assessment identifies skills gaps you may enrol in this course. Contact your training provider. All Subsidised Training participants receive an upfront assessment of their learning and support needs using a foundation skills assessment tool. Based on the assessment and individual preferences you can access subsidised training and foundation skills courses or bridging skills, if you need them.
This course is available under a traineeship or apprenticeship
An apprentice or trainee with an approved Training Contract including School-based Training Contracts may enrol in this course.
This course may have additional conditions.
Eligibility for courses may vary, please contact your training provider for more information. You must be aged 17 years or over and not enrolled in secondary school.

If the course you want to study is not currently subsidised check again later. Funding periods generally run for six months.

The government subsidised training place available to you will depend on what approved Training Providers are offering. You will need to meet the entry requirements of any course.

If it looks as if you do not meet the eligibility criteria, or you’d like more information, call the Skills and Employment Infoline on 1800 673 097.

Persons under the Guardianship of the Minister
South Australians of any age who have been, or are under the Guardianship of the Minister for Education and Child Development are eligible for an exemption from Student Course Fees for Subsidised Training. The normal government subsidised training eligibility rules apply.

Call the Skills and Employment Infoline on 1800 673 097 for an application form.

Information on Eligibility contained above is taken from the Eligibility Explained page on the WorkReady website.

You can search for subsidised courses online: https://www.skills.sa.gov.au/course-search

Subsidised Training Application/Enrolment Process

Enrol for training at your chosen Training Provider.

What to take with you when you enrol
When you enrol, your Training Provider will assess whether you meet the entry requirements of the course and do an upfront assessment of your learning and support needs. They will also verify your eligibility and collect some personal information including:

Proof of identity (Driver’s licence, Proof of Age Card, Passport etc)
Proof of residential address (Driver’s licence, Proof of Age Card, Bank Statement etc)
Proof of citizenship
Proof of previous learning if you are claiming Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).
Employment Service Provider name and details
Participant job seeker ID.

Upfront assessment of learning and support needs
Your Training Provider will assess your learning and support needs before you can enrol in a course. This should ensure you have the best chance of success in your course of choice by learning more about your needs.

The process includes:

Discussing whether the course is a good fit for you and providing you with detailed information relating to the course
Assessing your reading and math’s skills, and sometimes writing as well, to make sure that any additional learning support needs are addressed
Discuss with you whether any personal/life issues could interfere with your training and planning to provide support where needed.

By discussing these before enrolment, your training provider can work with you to identify early what is needed to help you achieve your training goals and record the strategies in a Learning and Support Plan.

What to know before enrolling

Student/Participant Number and Participant Agreement
If you enrol in a government subsidised course you are given a Participant Number (prior to 1 July 2015 it was known as a Skills for All Student Number). You cannot access government subsidised training without this.

This number stays with you and is used for any further subsidised training.

To get a Participant Number, you need to provide some personal details and sign a Participant Agreement. Your Training Provider will ask you to complete a Participant Agreement and write your Participant Number on the top of the form.

If you are a new student you may receive confirmation of this number by text message or email from the Department of State Development (DSD).

This number is used by the Training Provider and DSD to record your participation in and your results of government subsidised training.

Your personal information may also be used to determine future eligibility for subsidised courses and for statistical purposes, including reporting to other bodies.

Keep a record of your Participant Number particularly if you plan to do further study. If you misplace your Participant Number you can call the Infoline on 1800 673 097 or ask your Training Provider to search for your number.

Collecting Information
The Participant Agreement sets out the purposes for which personal information is collected by the Minister and how it will be used. The Department of State Development (DSD), on behalf of The Minister collects, uses, stores and discloses information only in accordance with the South Australian Information Privacy Principles.

Freedom of Information
If you require access to your personal information held by DSD, call the Infoline on 1800 673 097 who will advise you of the process you need to follow. In some cases you may need to apply through the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 1991.

The Freedom of Information Act 1991 (FOI Act) gives you the right, subject to certain restrictions, to make an application to access your personal information held by DSD. You can request your records personally or through another person acting with your authority (ie a solicitor). The FOI Act gives you the right to apply to have your personal information held by DSD amended if it is incorrect, out of date or misleading.

Call the Infoline on 1800 673 097 for more information about:

making an FOI application
fees and charges that may apply and
access to application forms.

Unique Student Identifier
The Unique Student Identifier (USI) scheme links every student who undertakes nationally recognised Vocational Education and Training (VET) in Australia to an online account that contains all your enrolment and achievement records completed from 1 January 2015 onwards. This will make it easy for you to provide evidence of your academic results, for example when applying for a job or enrolling in further study.

You must have a USI if you are studying in Australia.

You can apply for your own USI or your training provider can apply for a USI on your behalf, with your permission. When applying for a USI, you will be asked to supply information that can be verified by the Australian Government’s Document Verification Service, such as a Medicare card or Driver’s Licence. When using an accepted form of identification, the USI should be available within minutes.

Visit the USI website to create your USI – www.usi.gov.au

Information on the application process contained above is taken from the How to Enrol for Training page on the WorkReady website.

Timeframes for Enrolment and Commencement

Enrolment and Application Process
After the initial enquiry, we estimate the Subsidised Training application and Enrolment process to occur over 3 sessions (approximately).
This includes:

an Information Session / Information Exchange process (in person or via email),
a one on one appointment with an AWT Trainer, and
the Literacy and Numeracy Assessment.

Depending on an individual’s own circumstances there may be other sessions that occur.

Accepting the offer of a training place

As students satisfactorily complete the Upfront Assessment of Needs process, they will be contacted and offered a place in the course. To accept the offer and finalise the enrollment process, students will need to complete the Subsidised Training enrolment and application forms and return them to AWT so that their enrollment can be processed and their funding can be secured.

Once you have been offered a place in the course, you will have 2 weeks to accept the offer and return the completed forms to AWT..

Commencing your studies
Once a student is enrolled, they should commence their studies within 30 days. Students are required to pay their student course fee before they can commence their training.
After commencing their studies we expect students to submit at least one unit for assessment/marking within 90 days of commencing the course.
Failure to adhere to the timelines may result in the student being withdrawn from the course and their Subsidised Training account being terminated.

Maintaining your studies
Students will need to maintain active enrollment by participating in their studies. This can be achieved by regularly commencing and submitting units of study, participating in course practicals, and attending work placement activities. We ask that students make satisfactory progress towards completing their course (e.g., completing and submitting a unit for monthly assessment).

Students who do not maintain an active enrolment or do not make satisfactory progress toward completing their course are at risk of having their Subsidised Training Accounts closed and their course subsidies terminated..

Next steps to take if you would like to enrol

Phone our Elizabeth office on (08) 8282 7600; or Email us at enrolments@awt.edu.au, or visit us at our location in Elizabeth City Centre
We will then email some information out to you along with an Expression of Interest form for you to complete
If you would like to continue with the enrolment process after reading through the provided information please complete the Expression of Interest form and email it back to us at enrolments@awt.edu.au

Upon receipt of your completed form we will check your eligibility for Subsidised Training and contact you to advise you on the outcome of the Eligibility check.
Student’s who are eligible will be invited to book an interview with one of our course trainers.

Varied interview times are available throughout the week during office hours and we will work with you to arrange a suitable time between you and the trainer
Interviews are held at the AWT premises in Elizabeth and run for approximately 1 hour

When coming in for your appointment please bring the following with you:

Photo ID (Driver’s licence, Proof of Age Card, Passport)
Proof of residential address (Driver’s licence, Proof of Age Card, Bank Statement)
If Born outside of Australia: Citizenship Certificate, Passport, Documents for Travel to Australia, Immicard
Certificates/Statements of Attainment from previous relevant study
Jobseeker ID (if applicable)
Any Concession Cards (Health Care Card, Pension Card etc) (if applicable)

After completing the interview with the trainer students will need to attend to complete a Literacy and Numeracy Assessment. This will gauge the individuals Core Skill levels in Reading, Numeracy and sometimes writing. The Assessments can vary in duration for each individual. Some estimated durations times are

Certificate II and III level courses – 30 minutes to 1.5 hours
Certificate IV and Diploma level courses – 1.5 – 3 hours

Sessions are scheduled to run during the week and can be booked into at reception or by contacting our admin staff on 8282 7600 or info@awt.edu.au

After the Upfront Assessment of Needs process is complete, individuals will be contacted to advise the outcome and where successful individuals will be offered a subsidised training place with Australian Workplace Training.
Individuals wishing to accept the offer will need to complete the relevant enrolment and application forms and submit them to be processed so their Subsidised Training application can be processed and their subsidies a secured.

Once we have created your Training Account and secured your subsidy, you can pay your course fees and commence your training.

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