Child Care Courses

Give children the best start in life with our child care courses for accredited qualifications in early education and care.

Bedford College offers child care courses and early childhood education courses so you can become an educator, educational leader, nominated supervisor or centre director for babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers.

Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care
View Course: Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care
Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care
View Course: Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care

Overview

Delivered on-campus, online or hybrid, our child care courses give you the theoretical knowledge combined with practical experience to work hands-on in early education and care. You’ll learn to design and deliver educational programs to encourage healthy childhood development in a child care setting with plenty of opportunities to progress from a childhood educator to a centre director.

Early childhood educators are in high demand due to an acute shortage of skilled staff
The sector is currently experiencing strong growth where the population of children aged 0 to 13 years is projected to grow by 23% by 2025^{^^}
By 2024, Australia will require an additional 39,600 early childhood educators^{^}
In NSW, around 48,200 workers are employed in the early child education and care sector^{^^}

^{^}State of Sector 2021 Report. H.E.S.T. Australia Ltd (2021).
^{^^} Workforce Literature Review: Early Childhood Education Directorate. NSW Department of Education (2021).

Qualification

CHC30121 Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care

12 month duration
Part-time study available for Domestic students
CRICOS Code:107017B

CHC50121 Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care

Requires a prerequisite of Cert III in Early Childhood Education & Care
12 month duration
Part-time study available for Domestic students
CRICOS Code:107016C

Modes of delivery

Domestic students:

Online: Students are provided with a training plan that sets out a course structure for students to follow at their own pace
Face-to-face: Students attend college as per the class timetable set out for the course

International students:

Face-to-face: Students attend college as per the class timetable set out for the course

Entry requirements

Domestic students:

Successful completion of Year 10 (or equivalent)
No ATAR is required
Applicants undertake a Language Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) assessment for the College to determine the level of assistance needed to support the student

International students:

Students must provide evidence of IELTS 5.5 (Academic) with no band lower than 5.0 score or equivalent (test must be completed within 2 years) and
Successful completion of a qualification equivalent to Australian Year 12
Provide a Statement of Purpose (SoP) for studying at Bedford College when applicable
A minimum age of 18 years is required

Career outcomes

Graduates of our early childhood education courses can go into roles in child care and educational centres such as long day care, pre-school and family day care.

Many graduating students go on to fulfil the following career opportunities:

Early Childhood Educator
Family Day Care Educator
Room Coordinator
Educational Leader
Service Coordinator
Assistant Director
Operations Manager
Workplace Mentor
Children’s Services Coordinator
Nanny or Au Pair

Get a head start on your career in early childhood education and care by enrolling in a 12-month child care course at Bedford College. Our nationally recognised courses in early education will provide foundational skills and knowledge to become a qualified educator.

Child Care Courses | Early Childhood Education Courses

Practical placement

Thanks to our 80-year legacy providing nationally recognised training, Bedford works closely with industry partners as part of the students’ practicum placement, with many students going on to receive employment offers upon graduation.

Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care students have a minimum of 160 mandatory hours of practicum placement over the duration of the course.

Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care students have a minimum of 280 mandatory hours of practicum placement over the duration of the course.

Note: If 18 years or over, a valid NSW Working with Children Check number is required for students to undertake the mandatory practicum.

University pathways

Some of our graduates choose to undertake further study upon completion of the Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care.

Bedford College have arrangements with high-ranking universities to provide articulation pathways (with credit) towards Bachelor degree programs. As the formal agreements are subject to periodic change, it is best to contact us directly for the most up-to-date information.