An apprenticeship combines time at paid work with training and can be completed full-time, part-time or while still at school.
Structured training is combined with practical work experience with an employer.
An apprenticeship usually takes between two and four years to complete and leads to nationally accredited qualifications in many professions.
Meredith Stuebe from Western Sydney Migrant Resource Centre says her organisation is a good place to start looking for an apprenticeship.
Australia's largest training provider is TAFE which stands for Technical and Further Education.
Craig Robertson is the Chief Executive Officer of TAFE Directors Australia.
He says young migrants looking for an apprenticeship should contact their local TAFE careers advice officer and discuss what they would like to do.
The careers advisor will then try to match them up with employers looking for apprentices.
The National Apprentice Employment Network is a private organisation offering apprenticeships.
Lauren Tiltman is NAEN’s National Executive Officer.
“Our organisation looks after approximately 50 organisations that specialise in the employment of apprentices and trainees. They employ about 25-thousand apprentices and trainees across Australia. About 12 per cent of all apprentices and trainees are employed by one of our members,”
Lauren Tiltman says the member companies of her organisation focus on delivering entry level training for many industries.
“The model of group training is that the member organisation employs the person as an apprentice or a trainee and they have partner organisations that teach them the on-the-job requirements of the apprenticeship. So, if somebody wants to be an automotive mechanic, our member would employ them but they would go out and work in a workshop to get the on-the-job experience.”
Lauren Tiltman says that there are vacancies for apprentices in many Australian industries and jobs are often advertised on social media or online job sites.
