Forms and Policy Information

Schedule of Fees

Skills First Enrolment Form

Pre-training Review form

VTG Quality Charter

Refund Policy

Complaints Policy

Online Service Standards

Victorian Government subsidised training scheme - Skills First Program

Skills First is a set of reforms for the training and TAFE sector. The reforms ensure that Victoria's training and TAFE system delivers high quality training that leads learners to real jobs.

Skills First is made up of:

high-quality training that students and industry can trust, aligned to industry and workforce needs
a real voice for industry in training
funding for high-needs learners who need additional support to engage with and succeed in education and training
access to targeted, relevant training for students in regional areas.

Supporting quality providers

Private providers are focusing their business plans on delivering great training rather than worrying about poor quality, low cost competitors and their bottom line. Quality providers can compete to meet the needs of students, industry and the economy.

Funding subsidies reflect the real cost of qualifications and ensure high quality training is meeting the needs of industry and employers. Contracts are ensuring that public funds are well spent, therefore an eligibility criteria must be met.

This is subsidised training - the funding is NOT a loan.

Skills First Program 2021 Standard VET Funding Contract

AAMC Training Group is a Registered Training Organisation (RTO 51428) and has a contract with the Department of Education and Training to deliver government subsidised training under the Skills First Program. The Training Services are provided to Eligible Individuals and the training is delivered with Victorian and Commonwealth Government funding.

The courses which attract the funding under the Skills First Program through AAMC Training include the:

(Funding only available for classroom delivery mode).

Skills First Program – Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility criteria and requirements must be read in conjunction with the Guidelines About Eligibility. In particular, these Guidelines set out which forms of Evidence of Eligibility are accepted by the Department and provide information about how to apply the eligibility requirements in particular circumstances.

Eligibility Criteria

To be for Skills First subsidised training, an individual must be:

an Australian citizen, a holder of a permanent visa or a New Zealand citizen (the ‘citizenship /permanent residence' eligibility criterion);
enrolling in and commencing training in a program provided by the Training Provider between the Commencement Date and 31 December 2021 inclusive; and
physically present in the State of Victoria at all times at which they are undertaking the training and assessment.

The only exception to this ‘physical presence’ requirement is where a Skills First Student is temporarily located interstate or overseas for a defined period as part of an industry or Practical Placement associated with their training, up to 50%of the total Scheduled Hours applying to the training and/or assessment they are enrolled in may be delivered online during the period they are interstate or overseas.

Impact of age on eligibility

An individual who is under 20 years of age (as at 1 January in the year of commencement of training) is eligible to enrol in any Skills First subsidised training.

An individual who is 20 years of age or older (as at 1 January in the year of commencement of training) is eligible to enrol in Skills Firsts subsidised training in:

a)    a program that is at a higher AQF level than the highest qualification held at the time of the scheduled commencement of training (‘upskilling’);
b)    a program on the Foundation Skills List (unless the individual already holds a qualification issued by an Australian VET or higher education provider that is at AQF level 5 (Diploma) or higher);
c)    training as an Apprentice (not Trainee) under an Approved Training Scheme;
d)    training in the VCE or the VCAL (Intermediate or Senior); ore) a Skill Set.

Limits on the amount of training that can be subsidised

In addition to meeting the eligibility requirements above, a Skills First Student can only:

a)    commence a maximum of two Skills First subsidised Skill Sets in a calendar year (the ‘2 Skill Sets in a year’ limit). Where an individual is enrolled in a Skill Set(s) that is scheduled to commence at a later date in that calendar year, this Skill Set(s) must be counted for the purpose of this limit;
b)    commence   a   maximum   of   two Skills   First subsidised programs that   are   AQF qualifications in a calendar year (the ‘2 AQF qualifications in a year’ limit). Where an individual is enrolled in a program(s) that is scheduled to commence at a later date in that calendar year, this program(s) must be counted for the purpose of this limit;
c)    undertake a maximum of two Skills First subsidised programs at any one time (the ‘2 at a time’ limit); and
d)    commence a maximum of two government-subsidised programs in their lifetime that are at the same AQF level (the ‘2 at level in a lifetime’ limit).

Eligibility exclusions

An individual is not eligible for Skills First subsidised training if they are:

a) enrolled in a school (unless they are a School Based Apprentice or Trainee). This includes:

any government, non-government, independent or Catholic school; or
a student registered for home schooling in Victoria;

b)    a prisoner held at a prison within the meaning of the Corrections Act 1986(Vic);
c)    detained under the Mental Health Act 2014 (Vic), the Crimes (Mental Impairment and Unfitness to be Tried) Act 1997 (Vic) or the Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic) at the Thomas Embling Hospital; or
d)    detained (other than on weekend detention) under the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005(Vic) or the Sentencing Act 1991(Vic) or held on remand in a youth justice facility.

The exclusions described above in (b), (c) and (d) do not apply to individuals who are:

a) either:

young people on community-based orders made under the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005(Vic); or
individuals held in Judy Lazarus Transition Centre; and

b) able to physically access training outside of a custodial setting without supervision.

Skills First Program – Tuition Fees

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees for each qualification can be found in the Schedule of Fees. The student tuition fees as published are subject to change given individual circumstances at enrolment. Additional fees may apply on an individual enrolment basis, as per our Terms and Conditions.

Concession Tuition Fees

Concessions on tuition fees for Government-subsidised training places are available for the following eligible students for Certificate I – IV courses:

Commonwealth Health Care Card holders, and their dependent children and dependant spouses.

Pensioner Concession Card holders, and their dependent children and dependant spouses.

Veteran’s Gold Card holders (but not their dependants).

An alternative card or concession eligibility critrerion approved by the Minister for the puposes of these Guidelines

Concessions for applicants that meet the Government-subsidised funding criteria mean course fees payable are equal to 20 per cent of AAMC Training’s published standard Skills First Tuition fee.

Please note: Enrolment for eligible students is under the Skills First Program and may impact access to further Government-subsidised training. For above Card Holders, concessions do not apply to Diploma and Advanced Diploma level qualifications.

The concession rate of 20 per cent applies to all courses, irrespective of the course level, for individuals who;

self-identify as being of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent;or

are an asylum seeker or trafficked person under the Asylum Seeker VET program

Tuition fee waivers/exemptions

Tuition fee waivers/exemptions are applied to all courses, irrespective of course level, to individuals who are from:

Judy Lazarus Transition Centre – Individuals from the Judy Lazarus Transition Centre (as a prisoner within the meaning of the Corrections Act 1986) with written confirmation from the management of the Judy Lazarus Transition Centre; or

Young People on Community Based Orders – individuals required to undertake the course pursuant to a community based order made under the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 with written confirmation from the relevant Youth Justice Unit of the Victorian Department of Justice and Regulation.