Childcare is one of the most popular sectors in this country in terms of finding work. Chances are, you could too. With a booming industry growth of 7.1%, there are hundreds of thousands of new job vacancies set to be created in the next five years.

Henceforth, if you plan to get into the childcare sector and are passionate about early childhood education, you’ve come to the right place. We are here to help you understand all the benefits associated with being an early childhood educator and more importantly, how to become one.

In a nutshell

So what are childcare jobs really about? As a worker in this particular field, you will look after the wellbeing and healthy development of kids. In early childhood education, you will cater to the needs of children in the first five years of their lives, which as you know are extremely important. You will inspire young minds, foster their growth and potential and make a difference in their lives as well as their families’.

The first step : Choosing the right course

Getting a proper qualification before you start looking for work in this field is highly important. To ensure you find the best jobs with the best employers for you, you’ll have to ensure you have everything they’re looking for. Studying a certificate or diploma is pretty much what is going to give your career a head start, along with the right skills and knowledge. There are certain certificates or diplomas that you’ll have to undertake before you become qualified to work as an early childhood educator. Institutions offers a wide range of these courses which more and more people are studying due to the upward trend in this industry.

Some of these courses include;

• CHC30113 Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care
  

The Certificate III in Early Childhood Education will give you the skills and knowledge necessary to plan an implement care and learning methods for children. You will learn to work as an effective team member who provides quality education in a range of environments. The duration of the course is about 12 months and there’s also a work placement that you complete as part of the course.

With this qualification, you can get entry level jobs with childcare facilities, school or residential settings. The Certificate III In Early Childhood Education and Care is a nationally recognised qualification, meaning you can work anywhere in Australia. With this certificate in hand, you could land a variety of jobs including- Early Childhood Educator, Early Childhood Director, Family Day Care Provider, Nanny, kindergarten assistant, childhood educator assistant.

• CHC50113 Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care

Another sought after qualification, the Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care will prepare you for higher level, supervising roles in childcare. This is also ideal if you are already working in the industry and want to go to a higher level. You will get to learn about the physical, emotional and social needs of children and how to best fulfil them.

The course lasts for 16 months on the completion of which you will be able to undertake job roles like early childhood educator, out-of-school-hours educator or coordinator, family day-care operator, early childhood centre director or coordinator. Of course, there is a work placement that is compulsory as part of the course.

What comes next?

As mentioned before, you have to complete a work placement as part of the course. This will help you gain pertinent experience before you formally start to work in the industry and teach you all the small details and know-how of everything. These work placements are with well known organisations and can help you network a LOT and gain references for your future job roles.

Finding jobs

Once you get the qualifications , finding a job shouldn’t be that hard. You will already have a lot of networks if you do everything right as well as considerable experience to get the jobs you apply for. There are also a lot of online platforms where employers update their job vacancies on a regular basis. Browsing through websites like Seek, Gumtree, Indeed can help you explore loads of options and you can then choose what suits you best. Melbourne has a lot of childcare facilities, so no matter where you are located, you’ll be able to find many good ones near you. With the subsidy system and dual income families, many people in Melbourne send their kids to childcare facilities. To meet this high demand, you can be sure that they aren’t running out of employment opportunities any soon.