Australian Government Australian Skills Quality Authority

What is an accredited course?

A vocational education and training (VET) accredited course has been assessed by ASQA as compliant with the Standards for VET Accredited Courses 2021 and the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).

Accreditation is formal confirmation that the course:

  • is nationally recognised and meets quality assurance requirements
  • meets an established industry, enterprise, educational, legislative or community need
  • provides appropriate competency outcomes and a satisfactory basis for assessment
  • is aligned appropriately to the AQF where it leads to a VET qualification.

Each VET accredited course receives a national code and appears on the national register, training.gov.au.

Individuals or organisations retain copyright on a VET accredited course. Training.gov.au publishes the contact details for all course owners under the details of the course.

The unit code, title and course completion mapping for each unit of competency are available online. More substantive course content is not publicly available.

It is an offence to imply that non-accredited training is accredited training. Training providers’ promotional material should clearly define which courses are accredited and which are not.

About course accreditation

  • What are the benefits of course accreditation?

    Accredited courses are nationally recognised and meet quality assurance requirements.

    Accreditation also means that a course may be eligible for:

    Accreditation means that participants in the course may also be eligible:

    • for Austudy, Abstudy and other entitlements
    • to achieve an occupational licensing or regulatory outcome.
  • What types of courses can be accredited?

    A VET accredited course must fulfil a training need not addressed by a training package or address training in a new or emerging area. 

    ASQA can accredit a VET course for all qualification types recognised under the AQF that are eligible for delivery within the VET sector, including:

    • Certificate I
    • Certificate II
    • Certificate III
    • Certificate IV
    • Diploma
    • Advanced Diploma
    • Graduate Certificate
    • Graduate Diploma.
    Find out more about AQF qualification types and levels.

    You can also apply to accredit a course that results in a Statement of Attainment outcome. The title of such a course begins with the words ‘Course in’.

  • Who can develop an accredited course?

    Anybody can develop a course for accreditation.

  • Who can deliver an accredited course?

    Accredited courses can only be delivered by registered training organisations (RTOs) that:

    • own the course or have permission from the course owner to deliver the accredited course
    • have the accredited course on their VET scope of registration.
  • Do I need to have a course VET accredited?

    No, learners can receive training to meet industry, enterprise, educational, legislative or community needs through:

    • non-accredited training, or
    • a selection of training package units identified as a skill set, or
    • a non-award course listed on CRICOS.

    An organisation wanting to deliver a skill set or non-award course would need to satisfy other delivery requirements.

    • Introduction to course accreditation with ASQA

    The video below explains the basics of what course accreditation is and describes how course accreditation with ASQA works.

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