Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care

Yes, on both sides of the sector. Jobs and Skills Australia estimates the country needs around 21,000 additional qualified early childhood educators to meet demand, with shortages reported in metropolitan, regional and remote areas.

Demand for places is climbing too. Since January 2026, every family eligible for the Child Care Subsidy has been guaranteed at least 72 hours of subsidised care a fortnight, part of a $5 billion commitment towards universal early childhood education. More children in care require more educators to look after them.

Attracting enough educators to meet that demand has become a funding priority for the federal government, which has committed money directly to wages. A worker retention payment funds a 15% wage increase for around 200,000 workers, extended in June 2026 to continue until 30 June 2028. Separately, the Fair Work Commission found childcare work had been undervalued on gender grounds and awarded staged increases of 15% to 23% under a new classification framework.

The Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care is the minimum qualification for working in the sector. Employers also require a Working with Children Check and some ask for a police check or evidence of immunisation. You’ll also need a first aid unit to graduate from the Certificate III, which you’ll complete through an approved external organisation and submit your statement of attainment to earn credit.

You have 12 to 18 months to finish, depending on the pace you set throughout. Seventeen online modules cover the theory, with each one opening after you complete the last. You’ll also spend 200 hours in an early childhood service completing Structured Workplace Learning and Assessment, which you arrange yourself under a formal agreement with the host organisation.

As of August 2026, salary platforms report different earnings for childcare workers and closely related roles in Australia. Indeed reports an average salary of $71,952 for childcare providers, while PayScale reports an average of $47,987 for child care or day care workers.

SEEK shows advertised childcare worker salaries of approximately $75,000 to $80,000 a year, while Glassdoor reports average pay of around $27 an hour. These figures aren’t directly comparable because the platforms use different datasets, methodologies, job titles and ways of reporting pay.

If your employment is covered by the Children’s Services Award, minimum pay rates apply according to your classification and employment type. Under the rates applying from 1 July 2026, a Level 3 qualified educator receives a minimum of $1,233.90 a week, while different minimum rates apply at other classification levels. Casual employees covered by the award also receive casual loading.

Award rates are minimum entitlements for employees covered by the award, rather than estimates of average earnings. Your actual pay can vary depending on factors such as your qualifications, classification, experience, responsibilities, employer, location, employment type and working hours.

An early childhood educator cares for children and supports their learning through everyday play. You set up experiences that develop children’s physical, social, emotional and language skills, observe how each child responds and use those observations to plan what comes next. Nappies, meals, sleep routines and first aid all come with the job. You’ll also plan and document each child’s progress using an approved learning framework, which the Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care covers.

Yes, for the theory component. You work through all 17 modules on Swinburne Open Education’s platform, using a desktop, tablet or mobile whenever suits your schedule. You do have to complete the 200 hours of workplace learning in person at an early childhood service, which you’ll arrange and schedule yourself around any other commitments.

Yes. The Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care qualifies you to work while you study at the diploma level, which is the usual next step for educators moving towards room leader and centre management positions. Many people complete the Certificate III, spend time in a service applying it, then continue their study with the experience behind them.