FAQs
What is an Apprenticeship or Traineeship?
Click here to find out about Apprenticeships and Traineeships
School-based Apprenticeships and Traineeships?
Click here to find out about School based Apprenticeships and Traineeships
Part-time New Apprenticeships?
Click here to find out about Part-time Apprenticeships and Traineeships.
Group training organisations?
Group training organisations (GTOs) allow you to employ a New Apprentice as you need them. The GTO acts as the 'primary employer' of New Apprentices and 'contracts' them out to businesses. GTOs may place a New Apprentice with more than one business over the life of that New Apprentice training contract, offering more flexibility to small businesses.
What is "Flexible Delivery"?
Flexible delivery is the term used to describe training that is delivered using a variety of methods, predominantly at the employer’s workplace. MTA Institute of Technology has adopted flexible delivery as its primary mode of delivering training to the automotive industry.
Delivering training in the workplace has significant advantages over traditional classroom delivery. Some of these are:
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Apprentices and Trainees are not taken out of the workplace for "blocks" of training, which means that employers can structure their workload more effectively.
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Employers are included in the training process from day one, which means that they are kept up-to-date and are fully aware at all times how the apprentice or trainee is progressing.
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Apprentices and Trainees learn on the vehicles that they are dealing with every day while using the tools and equipment that they are most familiar with.
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The training is directly related to "real-life" work experience by linking the theory to the day-to-day work that the student is performing.
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Training is delivered at regular intervals over the full term of the Apprenticeship or Traineeship. This means that students are not expected to "cram" training into a specified block of time and therefore not receive ample opportunity to practice their new skills.
What are Training Packages?
Training Packages are a set of nationally recognised skills or competencies that have been developed by industry and grouped together to form qualifications such as Apprenticeships and Traineeships. They specify the skills that students must achieve to gain one of these qualifications.
The Automotive Industry National Training Package has superseded the old National Curriculum that has been taught by Registered Training Organisations (RTO) and TAFE in the past. The old curricula placed an emphasis on the learning strategies used to train students, while the new training packages concentrate on what a student will be able to do (outcome) on completion of their training. This is the essence of Competency-Based Training (CBT).
What does "User Choice" mean?
The Federal Government coined the term "User Choice" and introduced it into the vocational training market in 1998. It means that the employer can now choose the Registered Training Organisation (RTO) that best suits their training needs. It is no longer mandatory for trainees and apprentices to attend a TAFE college for block training, the employer and student (User) can choose another training provider (Choice).
Who can be a Trainee or Apprentice?
Any new employee aged between 15 and 64 may register as a Trainee or Apprentice.
Is there any incentives for employing a Trainee or Apprentice?
Employers who employ a Trainee or Apprentice can be eligible for Commonwealth Incentives For further information contact your nearest New Apprenticeship Centre on 1300 363 365 or go to their website http://www.newapprenticeships.gov.au/employer/incentives.asp. In many cases the trainee / apprentice will be eligible for State funding of their training.
How is the training completed?
MTA Institute of Technology uses "Flexible delivery". This means units are completed on-the-job, off-the-job, or a mixture of both. If training is completed on-the-job our trainers will manage the training and supply the student with workbooks and guidance in the form of tasks to be completed. The employer or supervisor will act as a "mentor" and will be responsible for delivering the "day-to-day" training matched to the selected modules.
What is Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)?
Recognition of prior learning (or RPL) is the acknowledgement of a person’s skills and knowledge acquired through previous training, work or life experience. The RTO will measure this against the course in which students are enrolled. A student possessing some of the skills and/or knowledge taught in the course maybe granted credit for a subject, module, course or qualification. (link to skills recognition)
See http://www.wageline.qld.gov.au/
What is a training contract?
A training contract legally binds the apprentice and the employer. It is signed by you and your employer and your parent or guardian if you are aged under 18. It records your details, your employer's details, the name of your apprenticeship or traineeship, the commencement and completion date and the name of your training provider.
What is Education, Training and Employment Schedule (ETES)?
If you are a school-based apprentice or trainee, you must negotiate an Education, Training and Employment Schedule with the support of your school, your employer, your training provider and your parent or guardian. This must be done at the same time as you sign the training contract. This schedule outlines how your day is allocated over school, work and training.
Education, Training and Employment Schedules can vary from student to student and may involve working or training:
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one to two days a week, attending school on the remaining days
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for blocks at a time in the workplace
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on weekends, school holidays or after school.
Your employment and/or training arrangements must impact on your school timetable for your apprenticeship or traineeship to be considered school-based
Training Plan?
You, your employer and your training provider need to develop a training plan for your apprenticeship or traineeship. This outlines:
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your current skills
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what training you need to do
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who will deliver the training
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when and where the training will be delivered
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how long the training will take
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when and how the training will be assessed and monitored
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what qualification will be issued on completion
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any special training needs.
Your training plan must include details of training delivered off-the-job. This is training that takes place outside of your normal work duties.
Trade Recognition?
If you have been working in an apprenticeship occupation for a significant period of time (at least six years full-time after you turned 21 years of age), you may be eligible to have your existing skills recognised. This process of recognising existing skills is called recognition of work or training or trade recognition.
If you think you may be eligible, this process should be undertaken prior to entering into an apprenticeship. For more information about trade recognition, contact the Department of Employment, Training and the Arts on 1300 369 935 or visit http://www.trainandemploy.qld.gov.au/.
If you are not eligible for trade recognition or you are a trainee, once you have entered into your apprenticeship or traineeship you should discuss the skills you already have with your training provider. Getting your skills recognised this way is called Recognition of Prior Learning.
For more information about Recognition of Prior Learning, talk to your training provider or the Department of Employment, Training and the Arts on 1300 369 935 or visit http://www.trainandemploy.qld.gov.au/.
What is required to be done before applying to the Office of fair Trading for a licence or registration certificate?
All persons wishing to apply for a licence or registration certificate must be assessed as competent in units of training. For any information on exactly which licence you require for the duties you intend carrying out, you will need to contact the Office of Fair Trading on 3246 1500 for further information.
What types of licenses are there?
Dealers Licence – for anyone who is wishing to operate their own business or act as the licensed Dealer Principle of a car yard.
Dismantlers Licence – required by anyone wanting to legally wreck vehicles
For sales persons – a registration certificate is needed by anyone who is working for a licensed dealer is either a private business or a car yard.
How long will my licence application take to be processed once I have forwarded it to the Office of Fair Trading?
Approx. 6-8 weeks. After this time, a letter will be sent to you stating your licence number and validation date.
How long is my licence valid for?
You can either apply for a licence for 12 months or three years. (NOTE: If you change work places or address during this period, you need to notify the Office of Fair Trading or your renewal notice will not reach you and you will need to apply again).
Am I still allowed to work in the industry without a licence?
No. You are required by law to hold an appropriate licence under the Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act. If you are employer in Sales and do not yet have a licence you are best to complete the training as soon as possible while at the workplace, but refrain from actively selling vehicles until such time as your application for a licence has been approved by the Office of Fair Trading and a licence number has been issued to you.
If I have previous experience within the sales industry, do I still need to complete all modules for a licence?
No, you may be entitled to apply for Recognition of Prior Learning. You can obtain a Recognition of Prior Learning application form from the MTA Queensland website. All you need to do is fill out your details giving MTA Institute of Technology a listing of your work history and responsibilities you have had, whereby one of the trainers will assess your work history as to how many modules of the licensing courses you will need to complete.
Do I have to be a member of the MTA Queensland to enrol in the short courses?
No, the short courses that MTA Institute of Technology offer are open to everyone.
What requirements do I need to meet in order to be able to successfully apply to Queensland Transport as an authorised officer?
There are numerous criteria which persons need to meet before making application to Queensland Transport, one of these being, the attendance at an Approved Person Course run by the MTA Institute of Technology. For further information on what you require, you should contact Queensland Transport.