What is VET Delivered to Secondary Students (VETDSS) Program?
Vocational Education and Training (VET) programs delivered to secondary
school students are designed to expand opportunities and pathways for students
and improve educational outcomes in line with the Victorian Government’s
objective to increase the number of young people completing Year 12 or
equivalent. The skills you learn relate to a career pathway, so can apply them
at work or in further education and training. You can add a VET course or
certificate to your studies while you're at school.
From 2023, students will be able to include VET within the new VCE Vocational Major (VCE VM) and Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC).
Incorporating VET in your VCE, VCE Vocational Major (VCE VM) and Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC)
VET can play an important role in senior secondary schooling. When you add VET to your VCE or VCE VM and VPC studies you gain practical skills in an industry you are interested in.
VET courses:
- provide a nationally recognised qualification in a specific industry, or provide credit towards one
- contribute towards the completion of your VCE
- allow you to study through School-Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships, which are often paid positions.
VET programs in the VCE and VCE Vocational Major:
There is a range of VET programs that you can select as part of your VCE or VCE Vocational Major. Please ask your school VET Coordinator or Careers Counsellor about the VET programs your school offers.
Apprenticeships and traineeships at school
Your VCE or VCE Vocational Major can also include an apprenticeship or traineeship. You can also combine an apprenticeship or traineeship with your VPC. Starting an apprenticeship or traineeship while at school means you can get paid on-the-job training that leads to a qualification. School-based apprenticeships and traineeships give you the confidence and vocational skills that employers need.
Some courses are delivered in specialised Trade Training Centres situated within secondary schools. These centres provide an appropriate environment to develop practical skills on tools used in the workplace.
WynBay LLEN VETDSS Clusters
The Wyndham VETDSS cluster and its sister Hobsons Bay VETDSS cluster are two separate partnerships brokered and facilitated by the WynBay LLEN.
The two partnerships bring together government, independent and catholic schools as well as respected and well-known Learn Local providers, TAFE, and private RTOs. The strategic aim of the two partnerships is to provide a local, affordable, and accessible range of courses in schools. Our strategic objective with these partnerships is retention and vocational pathways for students.
VET is now widely accepted by schools in the Western Metropolitan region, and undertaken by one in every four Year 12 students. WynBay LLEN's joint administration of the Wyndham and Hobsons Bay VETDSS cluster has allowed cross-cluster provision for Hobsons Bay students, allowing access to additional programs and for excess demand to be addressed.
WynBay VETDSS Cluster is based on the Home-Host School Model. It has been running for over 10 years in partnership with 21 secondary education providers within Wyndham and Hobsons Bay regions.
The Home-Host School Model
The Home-Host School Model of VET Delivered to Secondary Schools is an administrative agreement developed through partnerships between government and catholic schools in the Wyndham and Hobsons Bay areas.
- The ‘Host’ school is the school or provider who opens their VET subjects to any students in the region, ‘hosting’ the students, who are enrolled at another school or agency.
- The ‘Home’ school is the school or agency at which the student is enrolled for the bulk of their secondary studies.
The Home-Host Model relies on VET programs being offered by providers (mostly schools who are either Registered Training Organisations (RTO) in their own right or are auspiced by local RTOs to deliver VET programs to any student in the region.
The Home-Host Model was set up in response to the high demand for VET programs and the huge cost to schools providing VET courses. The students in the Wyndham and Hobsons Bay region can access 38 different VET courses. For the schools, this model allows them to be able to cover the costs of developing, providing, and resourcing these programs.
