Find a course that prepares you for real-world community work.
The right course can match your interests and passion with the best chance of employment. Use Community Work Australia’s accredited course finder to identify study options. Our resource exists to support emerging and current community work professionals, and that means helping you find the right qualification. As a not-for-profit organisation, one of our core missions is to ensure that quality training is made available to aspiring professionals.
Find a course that sets you up for success
Choosing the right course lays the foundation for your theoretical and practical knowledge. With so many new training providers — especially online — it’s easier than ever to find a course that you can complete at your own pace. But accessibility only matters if the quality is there too. An accredited course meets recognised industry standards for content, duration, fieldwork placements, teaching expertise, and student resources.
Why does accreditation matter so much?
Your best option would be to find a course accredited by Community Work Australia. Our accreditation is only awarded if a course meets the highest educational and industry standards. This means your learning will prepare you for real-world work.
Some providers say that their course is ‘nationally recognised’, but this does not mean that Community Work Australia accredits the course. All accredited courses are listed on our course finder.
Courses accredited by Community Work Australia are recognised by many of the large employers, such as the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH) in Victoria, Territory Families in the Northern Territory, Department of Health in Western Australia and Queensland Health.
What to look for and what to avoid
There are so many course options that it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Before you enrol in a course, find out the following information:
- Support from teaching staff: What kind of access to teachers and mentors will you have?
- Fieldwork hours: Aim for at least 400 hours of practical experience built into your course.
- Access to resources: What kind of resources and facilities will you have access to?
- Face-to-face teaching: Community work is a people-first industry. Even with blended learning, some in-person time is essential to develop soft skills.
Ask these questions
Your decision will likely depend on the type of course, associated fees, duration, and where it's offered. Be sure to examine all course options carefully before committing.
Ask..
How is the course delivered?
Look carefully at the delivery options. We don’t recommend courses that are 100% online. Skills like basic counselling need in-person training. If fully face-to-face isn’t possible, look for blended learning with some mandatory on-campus time.
How long will the course take?
Be wary of any Diploma of Community Services course that is less than 18 months in duration. Courses shorter than this time are unduly short. They do not allow enough time to develop the skills you need.
How many fieldwork placement hours are there?
We have set our accreditation requirements at 400 hours and do not recommend less. This ensures you are adequately prepared when you enter the workforce.
How are fieldwork placements found?
A quality education provider will have strong links to the community sector and will arrange suitable placements for you. Having to find your own placement is a red flag that the course is not up to standard. We have noticed some non-accredited providers are arranging placements in basic support and care settings, which is not relevant or appropriate for community and human services courses at diploma level or above. These placements are only appropriate for lower-level qualifications such as Certificate III or IV.
Choose a course that meets industry standards
When you enrol in an accredited course, you get quality training, meaningful fieldwork, and support designed to help you succeed in the community services industry after graduation.
