Aussie Childcare Network Forum

Hello
So my situation is a bit tricky. I've been studying since around October last year and I am due to start placement this month. I was in contact with the centre I am doing placement at today and calling back tomorrow to talk further about starting, days of availability ect ect
Now in the next 2-3 months my living arrangements will be changing and moving into my own place which will be much more expensive than where I am now so I need a paying job. I'm having no luck applying for anything at the moment so I was wondering, I was speaking to a lady that said I could try doing relief work at different or a certain centre while I was doing placement. Can I do this if I haven't finished placement, study, first aid ect? Or should I just do the placement and deal with a very low income for the time being?
How likely is it for me to get a job from my place of placement and how far in would you usually find out you were getting a job?

Thank you

As of now some centres usually prefer to have qualified staff working because they are the requirements that have been set in. A cert 3 qualification is the minimum required by all staff. Since you are yet to complete you may have some difficulty getting a job until you are fully qualified. However according to ACECQA you can be counted as a cert 3 qualified educator provided that you meet the following requirements:

• being enrolled in a course for the qualification
  having commenced the course
  making satisfactory progress towards completion
  meeting the requirements to maintain enrolment

Ref: http://www.acecqa.gov.au/actively-worki ... lM8Gc.dpuf

So this basically means if you are meeting the above requirements you are "actively working towards" your qualification and can be considered as a cert 3 educator. So, you can try and look for a job for a cert 3 position. You just need to make it clear that you are yet to complete your qualification but are enrolled and commenced the course.

You can begin relief work as a cert 3 educator at various centres and you can probably try and go through an agency to help you arrange casual work. Another option s go to all centres within your locality, drop off your resume and cover letter that you are looking for relief/casual work or even full time work and see what happens. With relief/casual work it's never consistent. One week you may work 3 days and another 2 days it really depends... It's probably better to continue to try and find a full time job.

As far as getting a job at your work placement it really depends on your overall performance as well as the needs of the centre. If they are well staffed then you wont get a job however if they need an extra set of hands then you may get a job. A big factor is also how you perform. If you do a really good job and show you are wanting to learn and you interact well with the children and educators etc. then they wouldn't want to pass you up. So, just think of this as an opportunity to show off your skills. If they do offer you a job it will most likely be after your work placement. Please don't rely on a job offer at your work placement because in the end it does depend on the centre's needs... If it happens it happens... If not, it's OK just try and continue looking.

So, best bet is to continue looking for a job now itself especially if you are moving into your own place. It may take a little longer but I'm sure you'll find somewhere...

,
Lorina