As one of Australia's online aged care short-course learning providers, we often get asked questions about aged care career pathways. One of the most common is whether getting into the profession without credentials is possible.
When considering your educational path for a career in aged care, it is essential to reflect on your career goals and individual requirements. Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) or micro-credentials/short courses are both viable options for acquiring knowledge in the sector. RTOs often offer more comprehensive and structured programs, such as diplomas and formal studies, whilst short courses provide a focused and flexible approach, focusing on industry insights, allowing you to gain specialised knowledge efficiently within the industry that can be applied immediately.
You must assess your career aspirations and evaluate the specific skills and expertise you need to help you choose the most suitable education path that aligns with your goals and ensure you are equipped with the credentials for a successful aged-care career.
What Do Caregivers Do For The Elderly?
The diverse nature of the work involved in elderly care makes it an exciting career path, so ideally, some training is advisable. That said, some operators will take people without experience and offer on-the-job training, allowing you to learn as you go.
Do Hiring Managers Care About Professional Credentials?
Around 1 in 10 carers are untrained, unpaid family members, so credentials are not always something highly experienced carers have. While some hiring managers see past, not having any aged care online credentials may limit you to the jobs you can apply for, and you could find progression quite hard to achieve.
Also, you'll often find that the care providers in Australia that offer training as part of the role will be in high demand. You'll typically enjoy much more success with recruitment online when you have aged care online learning under your belt.
Why Are Credentials Important?
The reason why aged care career pathways align with the appropriate credentials is that the job requires a range of skills and experience if it is to be done correctly. Sure, you’re just looking after another human being, but it's not just about ensuring they're cleaned, dressed and fed.
You will take care of these things during your day-to-day as an aged care worker, but there’s much more to it than that, and aged care online training ensures people are fully prepared for what the role requires.
As a fully-fledged aged care worker, you will:
- Prepare drinks and meals
- Shower and dress the person you're caring for
- Ensure their home is clean and tidy
- Provide social support, like taking them to the shops or on days out
- Engage with family members to provide updates and observations
- Provide light physiotherapy
- Provide transport to and from medical appointments
- Assist with mobility, helping them in and out of vehicles
You also need to follow all Health and safety guidelines during your work, and as you can imagine, no two days are the same. Multitasking is an essential quality for an aged carer to have. That said, the more paid and free online courses you take, the more complex the tasks you'll be able to take care of.
Aged care career pathways can take you anywhere you want to go. You could remain in residential care for your whole career or specialise as a coordinator or manager. Adding to your skills as you go, online learning makes aged care a career accessible to anyone with the desire and drive to make it.
Boost Your Career With An Online Aged Care Course From Online Courses Australia
You can work in aged care without experience or formal training. Still, it will help you progress and make the most of your career if you study a CPD Endorsed short course from OCA, showing your passion for the position or industry knowledge.
Want to see what studying an online course may be like? You can watch our Student Study Demo. For comprehensive information on our extensive range of courses, visit www.onlinecoursesaustralia.edu.au.
We understand choosing a career direction or the right course to study can be challenging; we are here to help. Contacting us is easy – simply call 1300 611 404 or email [email protected]. Alternatively, you can schedule a FREE career call at your preferred time... Book a call here.
We are excited to discuss your education journey and course options!
