Compare Cert 3 Early Childhood Education Training Providers

If you are looking at the Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care, this page puts the training providers that deliver it side by side. Cert 3 early childhood education is the shorthand most people search for. The official title is Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care. The comparison table shows how each training provider treats the things that matter most to a learner who studies online. Use it to build a shortlist, then confirm every detail with the training provider before you enrol.

Compare Cert 3 early childhood education training providers

The qualification is CHC30125. It has 17 units, made up of 15 core units and 2 elective units, and it includes a minimum of 160 hours of work in a regulated children’s education and care service. Every training provider delivers the same qualification, but they differ in how they support you, what they charge and how long they take. That is why a side by side view is useful.

The table lists the training providers we have researched. Each row is one training provider. Each column is one question that learners ask. You can tap or hover over any cell to read what it means, and each cell that has a confirmed value shows the date on which it was checked.

How we compare

We look at six things. For each one, a cell shows a tick, a cross, a dollar sign or a question mark, with a short label beneath it. The sections below explain each column in plain terms.

Work Placement

This column shows whether the training provider helps you arrange the practical placement that the qualification requires. A tick means the training provider helps students find a placement. A dollar sign means it helps, but for an additional fee. A cross means the training provider expects students to find their own placement. Because the placement is 160 hours of real work with children, this is often the most important detail. Our work placement guide explains how to read this column and what to ask a training provider.

Industry Checks

Industry checks are the checks required before you work with children, such as a working with children check. This column shows whether the cost of those checks is included in the training provider’s fee. A tick means the training provider states they are included. A cross means the training provider states they are an additional cost. The name of the check differs between states and territories, and you can read about them on the pages for New South Wales, Victoria and the other states and territories listed below.

Role Play Partner

Some assessments ask you to practise a scenario with another person. This column shows whether the training provider helps you find someone to practise assessment role plays with. We only show a tick, a dollar sign or a cross when we can confirm it. For many training providers the cell currently says Unknown, so it is worth asking.

Teacher Access

This column shows how much one-to-one time you can book with a teacher. A tick means the training provider states that students can book unlimited one-to-one sessions. A question mark in amber means some access is offered, and you should check the exact amount with the training provider.

Fast Track

This column shows whether a fast track option is available. A tick means the training provider offers one. Where we could not confirm it, the cell says Unknown, so it is worth asking the training provider.

Cost

The cost column shows the published full course fee, excluding optional extras. Where a training provider publishes both a pay-in-full price and a higher total for paying by instalments, we show the higher instalment total, copied as published. We never calculate a total ourselves. Where a training provider only advertises a weekly price, the table shows that weekly price and labels it clearly. Our cost guide explains what a fee can cover and why some training providers show an unknown cost.

What the symbols and “Unknown” mean

A green tick is a positive statement from the training provider. A red cross is a statement that the feature is not offered, or that you carry the cost or the task yourself. An amber symbol means something is offered with a condition. A grey question mark means we could not confirm the detail from the training provider’s public information.

Please read a grey question mark as a prompt to ask a question. It is not a negative mark against the training provider. Some public pages simply do not mention every detail.

Where our information comes from

We use public information only. The qualification details come from the National Training Register at training.gov.au. The details about each training provider come from the pages that the training provider publishes about this course. Each table cell that is not Unknown is backed by a recorded source and shows the date we checked it, and the table shows the date it was last reviewed.

The qualification itself does not list a nominal duration, so we do not state one. Instead, the duration guide lists the durations each training provider publishes for its own course.

Information changes, and a training provider can update its prices or conditions at any time. Treat the table as a starting point for your questions, not as a final quote.

Study in your state or territory

Funding, working with children checks and regulators differ across Australia. These pages bring the main facts together for each jurisdiction, with links to the official sources:

• Certificate III study in New South Wales
• Certificate III study in Victoria
• Certificate III study in Queensland
• Certificate III study in Western Australia
• Certificate III study in South Australia
• Certificate III study in Tasmania
• Certificate III study in the Australian Capital Territory
• Certificate III study in the Northern Territory

If you plan to study from home, our page on online study options explains how online delivery works and what you still need to do in person.

Guides to help you decide

Our study guides cover the questions that come up most often:

• What the course costs, including the published fees in the table.
• Free and subsidised study, by state and territory, with links to the official government pages.
• How the 160-hour placement works and what to ask about it.
• How long the course takes at each training provider.

About this website

Cert3 Comparisons is a comparison website. You can read how we compare and who we are, and you can send us a question or correction. We also publish our privacy policy and terms of use. If you would like help choosing a training provider, use the form on this page to ask for help.