A great senior secondary education requires a highly skilled and world-class workforce, including teachers, trainers, and other staff in schools to support vocational and applied learning.
The Department of Education is supporting teachers, trainers, and school staff to develop their expertise in vocational and applied learning.
TAE Grant Fund 2024-25
The TAE Grant Fund is available to Victorian government schools in 2025 to support eligible school staff with vocational competency in a VCE VET program certificate to become qualified to teach VET.
Under the TAE Grant Fund 2024-25, schools can claim reimbursement for:
- up to $1,500 in Skill Set course fees, and
- up to 5 days of casual relief teaching (CRT) costs or time release not exceeding $2,500.
Funds can be claimed per eligible teacher or education support staff member.
Schools can claim reimbursement for costs incurred between 1 January 2024 and 30 May 2025. Schools do not need to seek pre-approval to purchase and enrol a staff member in a course, provided they meet the below eligibility criteria.
Funding for qualified secondary school teachers
The TAE Grant Fund will provide funding for qualified secondary school teachers completing core Skill Sets from TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment (Cert IV TAE).
As of 1 March 2024, secondary school teachers with vocational competency no longer need to complete a full TAE40122 to become qualified to teach VET. For more information, visit the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations website.
Secondary school teachers can qualify to teach VET by completing TAE Skill Sets:
- TAESS00019 Assessor Skill Set (3 units)
- TAESS00024 VET Delivered to School Students Teacher Enhancement Skill Set (5 units).
Course costs and CRT costs will only be reimbursed once the teacher has completed the course.
Funding for education support staff
Education support staff will still need to complete a full TAE40122 Cert IV TAE to become a qualified VET trainer. All education support staff wishing to become a VET trainer should complete a Cert IV TAE via the Free TAFE initiative.
Time release may be available for education support staff to support them to complete the Cert IV TAE either through the Free TAFE initiative or private Registered Training Organisation (RTO).
For education support staff who are actively working towards completing the Cert IV TAE course between 1 January 2024 and 30 May 2025, a pro-rata amount of time release may be provided to eligible staff based on the number of units completed.
For more information, contact: Vocational.Workforce@education.vic.gov.au
Eligibility
To be eligible for the TAE Grant Fund 2024-25, school staff must:
- have vocational competency and intend to deliver Units of Competency or a certificate from a VCE VET program
- be employed in a Victorian government school (either ongoing or fixed term and in either a full-time or part-time capacity)
- have their principal’s endorsement
- be willing and able to complete the Skill Set or Cert IV TAE with the intention of delivering VET in a Victorian government school
- be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
In addition, the school must be able to demonstrate that the teacher or education support staff member will either:
- fill an existing workforce gap
- expand a school or cluster’s VET offering, or
- provide future delivery certainty by building VET teacher/trainer succession planning.
Reimbursement process
To claim reimbursement:
- Read the TAE Grant Fund 2024-25 Application Guidelines (DOCX, 1041KB)
- Complete and submit the intention to claim form by 5pm Friday 30 May 2025. Please note that an education.vic.gov.au email address will be required to access the form.
- Await advice that a Funding Program has been created for the reimbursement through the Schools Targeted Funding Governance Portal (the Portal).
- Submit a Funding Request through the Portal.
The Funding Request must include an invoice for the total sum being claimed, as well as evidence (as applicable) of:
- completion of the full Cert IV TAE or one of the 2 TAE Skill Sets (listed above), or Cert IV TAE Units (for education support staff)
- payment of the TAE Skill Set course fees to an accredited RTO
- payment of time release or casual relief teaching costs.
VET Trainer Career Pathway Pilot
The Department of Education is leading an innovative industry attraction pilot in collaboration with WorkSafe Victoria.
The VET Trainer Career Pathway pilot supports industry professionals recovering from a work-related injury to start new exciting careers as VET trainers in Victorian schools.
At the end of the 12-month program, participants will be qualified to deliver their VET subject in Victorian schools, TAFEs or private RTOs. Participants will also have specialist knowledge and skills to support the learning needs of school-aged students.
The program has 5 key components:
- Completion of a Cert IV TAE - the nationally recognised qualification to deliver VET in schools, private RTOs and TAFEs.
- Supplementary professional learning - to increase the likelihood of long-term success in the classroom, boost early-career VET trainer confidence, and supplement gaps in the Cert IV TAE related to applied learning pedagogy and the school environment.
- Additional supports - to assist participants to return to study under WorkSafe Victoria’s Return To Work and New Employer Services schemes.
- Placement and mentoring - participants receive 1-2 terms of in-school experience and learning with an experienced VET mentor.
- Application assistance - to help participants find employment in a VET trainer role and receive Permission to Teach VET from the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT).
For more information on the pilot, see the Minister for Education’s press release and 7 News coverage on the pilot launch.
For more information on the Return to Work and New Employer Services Schemes please visit WorkSafe Victoria’s Return to Work page.
Expressions of Interest for hosting and mentoring a participant in 2025
Expressions of interest are now open for Victorian government schools wishing to participate in the 2025 pilot program.
During the program, pilot participants will shadow and be mentored by a VET trainer at a host school for 2 days per week, for up to 2 school terms. Host schools will be provided with salary reimbursement for in-school support and a one-off payment of $1,000 for the VET mentor.
Host schools will have the opportunity to meet the participant prior to committing to hosting them and can opt-out of the program at any time.
Schools must meet the eligibility criteria to be considered for the pilot.
To learn more about the 2025 pilot and express interest, download the expression of interest form (DOCX, 180KB). Expressions of Interest close on Friday 28 March 2025.
VDSS Workforce Gateway Pilot
The VET Delivered to School Students (VDSS) Workforce Gateway is a digital platform for accessing and recording professional learning. The Gateway helps VDSS teachers and trainers to maintain their currency requirements as both VET educators and industry professionals.
The Gateway pilot is being delivered in partnership with Chisholm Institute from 7 October 2024 to 23 May 2025. The digital platform has been adapted from Chisholm’s Educator Passport to better suit the needs of those delivering VET to school students.
Pilot participants are provided access to:
- a wide range of professional learning opportunities to develop and refresh existing skills and knowledge
- industry activities that are reviewed by industry experts
- guidance on maintaining and demonstrating vocational competency and currency
- a self-assessment tool, linked to a capability framework
- industry and/or VDSS specific communities of practice.
This pilot will test if a system like the Gateway can address the professional learning and currency needs of the VDSS workforce that were identified both in the Firth Review and through subsequent consultations with schools and VDSS teachers and trainers.
The Department of Education will undertake an evaluation of the Gateway pilot to determine the ongoing model to support VDSS teachers and trainers to enhance their practice and maintain industry currency.
Teach the Future initiatives
VET trainers who become qualified secondary school teachers have greater opportunities to progress their careers within the education sector.
If you are a VET trainer and interested in undertaking a course to become a qualified secondary school teacher, the Department of Education provides several initiatives to support study pathways including scholarships and employment-based programs.
Visit Teach the Future to learn more.
VCAA professional learning
The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) delivers professional learning to support the delivery of VCE Vocational Major and VPC.
This includes self-guided on-demand courses and Communities of Practice.
Visit the VCAA website to learn more.
Further information
For further information about the opportunities listed above please, contact the Senior Secondary Pathways Reform Taskforce’s Workforce team by email: Vocational.Workforce@education.vic.gov.au
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