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  • Can a young person leave school before completing Year 10 to undertake a full time apprenticeship or traineeship?

    Yes. The Minister has given approval for young people who have completed Year 9 to undertake a full time apprenticeship or traineeship and for completion of this to be accepted as completion of Year 10 of secondary education.

  • How does a young person who has been offered a full time apprenticeship or traineeship go about leaving school to take up the apprenticeship or traineeship?

    In order for students who have completed Year 9 but not Year 10 to do so by entering into a full time apprenticeship or traineeship they must obtain an exemption from enrolment. Exemptions in this category will only be granted where:

    a.        the principal considers that, in all circumstances, the student is a suitable candidate to complete his or her education through an apprenticeship or traineeship,

    b.        the student's parents give written permission for this to occur,

    c.        the principal has recorded the sighting of a full time apprenticeship or traineeship contract signed by the employer and a summary training plan authorised by the Registered Training Organisation,

    d.        the employer agrees to notify the Department of Education and Training in writing (through the principal) if the apprenticeship or traineeship is abandoned or cancelled before the student turns 17. If the student does not complete the apprenticeship or traineeship, he or she will not have completed Year 10 and will be legally required to do so under another pathway of the Act (for example by returning to school or seeking enrolment at TAFE), and

    e.        the apprenticeship or traineeship is subsequently approved by the Commissioner for Vocational Training, State Training Services, as suitable for the young person and that the training contract attains a 'registered' status following the probationary period. Where approval is granted by the principal and the Commissioner subsequently notifies the student of his or her decision not to approve the contract following the probationary period, the approval, and the exemption from compulsory schooling, ceases to operate, and the student's parents must take other steps to comply with their compulsory schooling obligations.

    The Minister has delegated to principals the power to grant an Exemption from Enrolment at School for the purposes of undertaking a full time apprenticeship or traineeship.

  • My child has been offered a full time apprenticeship (or traineeship). What do I do next?

    If your child has completed Year 9 discuss the apprenticeship (or traineeship) offer with the school principal.  The principal will work through a list of conditions that have to be met by you, your child and the employer. When all have been met, the principal will be in a position to issue a Certificate of Exemption from Enrolment to allow your child to leave school to take up the apprenticeship (or traineeship) and complete the compulsory schooling requirements by completing the apprenticeship (or traineeship).