The enrolment process for a Smart and Skilled training program involves a number of steps which must be completed. This training is subsidised by the NSW Government.
Under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL), when you buy products and services they come with automatic guarantees that they will work and do what you asked for. The ACL covers refunds, consumer guarantees, unsafe and defective products, purchases using lay-bys and unsolicited consumer agreements with door-to-door sellers or telemarketers. The ACL has been in force across Australia since January 2011 and has brought consistency to consumer law across Australian states and territories.
Australian Early Childhood College are committed to ensuring all students and potential students are provided with a quality training and assessment service and are well informed of their rights as consumers and given a fair avenue for any complaint. If we fail to meet our obligations students can claim compensation for expense incurred as a result of loss or damage.
Choosing the right Registered Training Organisation (RTO) for you can be a confusing process. The RTO that you choose will support and guide you through your chosen qualification. Fair Trading NSW has published on their website recommendations for potential students to undertake before choosing their RTO. Please read these here.
If you have decided that we are the RTO for you then we can begin the steps within the Smart and Skilled Enrolment Process.
1. Student Eligibility
Australian Early Childhood College must ensure that prospective students meet the eligibility criteria before finalising enrolment. The following information is a general guide only, and prospective students can check their eligibility on the "Are You Eligible?" page of the Smart and Skilled website or call 1800 772 104.
Eligibility criteria:
The individual either lives or works in New South Wales, and is:
- an Australian citizen, a permanent Australian resident, a humanitarian visa holder or a New Zealand citizen, and
- be aged 15 years or older, and
- no longer be at school.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students who do not live or work in New South Wales but live in specific defined interstate New South Wales border areas are eligible for government-subsidised training under Smart and Skilled. For more information please contact the main office.
If you are not eligible for Smart and Skilled funding you have the option of enrolling as a self-funded student. For more information please contact us on 02 4822 7109 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
2. Fees and Charges
Australian Early Childhood College must ensure all fees and charges related to the provision of training services are outlined to all parties prior to enrolment. We ensure that we provide information that is clear, accurate and sufficient to enable an informed choice. Fee information for students enrolling in a Smart and Skilled subsidised training program can be found below, and students are encouraged to contact Recognition First for information about fees also:
3. Initial Skills Assessment
Australian Early Childhood College conducts an initial skills assessment comprising of an assessment of Language, Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) skills to ascertain that the proposed training program is appropriate for the student. This is usually done through an initial interview over the phone, but may be carried out face-to-face during an enrolment visit.
4. Recognition
Where a student has extensive workplace experience or has undertaken prior studies in a field related to the current training program they may also be eligible for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) or credit transfer. All students are able to apply for RPL - please see our RPL and Credit Transfer page and our 
student RPL guide275.36 KB for more information. To be eligible for RPL you need to provide evidence of your skills and knowledge, which can include (but is not limited to):
- a resume
- a current job description
- copies of training certificates/transcripts
- third party references such as a performance appraisal
- reports and other documents you have developed at work
- confirmation of knowledge through oral assessment interviews
- confirmation of skills through interviewing students' supervisors and managers
For Credit Transfer you will need to provide certified copies of certificates AND a transcript, or a Statement of Attainment, which details the units you previously studied.
5. Training Plan
Information on training and assessment is to be documented in a training plan for all students. The training plan must be developed by the RTO and agreed with the student and employer. The training plan must be consistent with the qualifications or competencies to be attained, consistent with the proposed delivery and assessment strategies, customised as required, for the needs of the employer and the student, and signed and dated by relevant parties.
6. Smart and Skilled Enrolment Form
All students enrolling in a Smart and Skilled subsidised program are required to complete a Smart and Skilled Enrolment Form. Australian Early Childhood College collects your personal information for the purposes of training, assessment, reporting, administration and evaluation of the program you are involved in. Your information, progress and results will be reported to the NSW State Training Authority - Training Services (TS) in the NSW Department of Education and Communities who are responsible for government-funded vocational education and training (VET) in NSW. This information will be held securely and is governed by the Privacy Act 1988.
7. Training and Assessment Program Begins
Once the steps above have been completed the student is ready to begin their training and assessment. Upon meeting eligibility and initial skills assessment requirements students are provided with orientation information and their first training and assessment materials this can be via email, visit or phone, or a combination of any of these three methods. This usually includes (but is not limited to) the following:
- Requirements for Written Assessments
- Cover Sheet
- Australian Early Childhood College contact details and how to contact the office
-
A course outline for the qualification being undertaken
- Training information and assessment instructions for the first unit of cluster
It is very important that students carefully read all the information they have been given when they begin their course as your trainer will assume you have read and familiarised yourself with the above documents and processes.
