jsac0 Posted May 28, 2014 Share Posted May 28, 2014 Hi, I'm heading out to Melbourne in August with my family! I'm an HLTA (Higher Level Teaching Assistant) and would love to carry on working in Schools. Most jobs for teaching assistants/aides that I've seen ask for applicants to be graduates....I don't have a degree...is this the norm....any advice appreciated:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VERYSTORMY Posted May 28, 2014 Share Posted May 28, 2014 Yes, I believe you would need a degree here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 Um, no, teaching assistants (STAS, Teacher aides, whatever) are usually lowly paid, often casual, mostly unskilled positions, highly sought after by mums who want school hours while their kids are young. You can do a cert ii or iii in integration studies but generally all that is required is a first aid cert and a clean police record. It's not the same paraprofessional role that it is in UK. Teachers definitely need to be graduates with 4 yrs university training. It's not a great "career" option - you'd earn more and with more stability being a checkout chick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosiew Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 I have to agree with Quoll. There is not equivalent of the teaching assistant in Melbourne. Integration aides are as Quoll describes. Most of the other roles are in after school care and tutoring centres such as Kumon. These are only a few hours a day after school. You should contact http://www.anzuk.com.au which is a teaching agency who deal with teachers and aides. They will be able to give you a good idea of the work situation and whether they have schools on their books looking for more qualified assistants. The going rate for an aide is $20 per hour, and yes you do get paid more on the checkout, but it is alos about doing work you enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest godknows Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 nice post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy1 Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 Hi,I'm heading out to Melbourne in August with my family! I'm an HLTA (Higher Level Teaching Assistant) and would love to carry on working in Schools. Most jobs for teaching assistants/aides that I've seen ask for applicants to be graduates....I don't have a degree...is this the norm....any advice appreciated:) Each state is different as is each school. However, education assistants do not need degrees. Increasingly education assistants are required to have a certificate III and therefore your best bet is to have your qualification assessed once you are here. It is very true that a lot of Mums seek those positions as they fit in well with school times. If you offer any qualification/experience in special needs you may well find it easier to gain employment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack13 Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 How are you getting over, if you are not properly qualified?!:no::err: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy1 Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 How are you getting over, if you are not properly qualified?!:no::err: Probably via another member of the family. Are you being grumpy again Jack? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack13 Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 I hope not that wrong. I' not grumpy i'm happy. I washed my hair today in celebration. :huh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest30085 Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 How are you getting over, if you are not properly qualified?!:no::err: Defacto visa maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack13 Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 Defacto visa maybe? disgraceful I think. How is it right someone like me is expected to get all those qualifications whilst someone else just walks in without doing any of the work!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosiew Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 Did you think that spouses had to be qualified too? Or that they were not allowed to work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsac0 Posted May 30, 2014 Author Share Posted May 30, 2014 Thanks to all of those with useful information, I will follow up the links and suggestions. Many thanks:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy1 Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 disgraceful I think. How is it right someone like me is expected to get all those qualifications whilst someone else just walks in without doing any of the work!? Jack,you already know the answer to that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tickled Pink Posted May 31, 2014 Share Posted May 31, 2014 Please let's not let the OP's post be overtaken by a certain someone.... OP, in QLD you don't need a degree, but as others have said the pay is terrible and hours are not likely to be full time (not sure what you're after). I know in the news not so long ago that Perth were having a lot of education cuts, affecting TA's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsac0 Posted May 31, 2014 Author Share Posted May 31, 2014 Thanks:) I currently work full time but it'd depend on childcare and job availability in Melbourne:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy1 Posted May 31, 2014 Share Posted May 31, 2014 Please let's not let the OP's post be overtaken by a certain someone.... OP, in QLD you don't need a degree, but as others have said the pay is terrible and hours are not likely to be full time (not sure what you're after). I know in the news not so long ago that Perth were having a lot of education cuts, affecting TA's. Lots of our education assistants in WA are waiting to be re-deployed or have completely lost their jobs. I hope for the OP that the situation is better in Melbourne. One thing I do want to say is that education assistants are respected and have had training. I greatly value mine and they do an important job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Posted May 31, 2014 Share Posted May 31, 2014 I am a specialist TA in QLD and I don't really agree with what some of what has been written here. My pay is virtually identical to in the UK - it is 2.25 times more per hour in Australia in terms of £ to $. I do have a degree but no one has ever asked about it. I got my job by doing voluntary work which led to casual and now I am on a contract. I am in a high school (and sometimes a primary school) whereas I was in post 16 education in the UK so can't comment about responsibility differences but it seems to be broadly the same. In general we are well respected by the teachers and given quite a lot of responsibility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy1 Posted May 31, 2014 Share Posted May 31, 2014 I am a specialist TA in QLD and I don't really agree with what some of what has been written here. My pay is virtually identical to in the UK - it is 2.25 times more per hour in Australia in terms of £ to $. I do have a degree but no one has ever asked about it. I got my job by doing voluntary work which led to casual and now I am on a contract. I am in a high school (and sometimes a primary school) whereas I was in post 16 education in the UK so can't comment about responsibility differences but it seems to be broadly the same. In general we are well respected by the teachers and given quite a lot of responsibility. That's exactly how it should be. Education assistants (as we call them in WA) do a fabulous job and are respected. The pay is low though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tickled Pink Posted May 31, 2014 Share Posted May 31, 2014 I'm currently working on a project involving 20 schools across QLD and NT, without a doubt the TA's are seen as essential help by the teachers, but all the TA's I've spoken to have mentioned low pay, with one man doin two jobs to support his family... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Posted May 31, 2014 Share Posted May 31, 2014 A lot of the reason that the pay seems low is because it is a short day - mine is 5 hours and also you are doing a 40 week year. It's not quite that simple though as I do extra time per day (unpaid at the time) which then covers the holidays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tickled Pink Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 A lot of the reason that the pay seems low is because it is a short day - mine is 5 hours and also you are doing a 40 week year. It's not quite that simple though as I do extra time per day (unpaid at the time) which then covers the holidays. Thats a good point about working hours, TA's I've talked to have all said they do extra hours every week, mostly because they seem to be incredibly dedicated... but it's unpaid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ali Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 I have removed a number of posts containing Youtube clips - which had nothing at all to do with the thread and the question posed by the OP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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