Apprenticeships: How to find an employer

There are two broad types of employers for apprenticeships – an individual employer or a group-training organisation (GTO). GTO’s pay your wages and organise your formal training but place you with host employers for your on-the-job training. The following are strategies you can use to find an employer.

• Read newspaper job ads (for example ‘Careerone’ in the Saturday Courier-Mail).
• Search the Internet and visit websites such as:
  • Job Active - http://jobsearch.gov.au/;
  • Seek - http://www.seek.com.au/ (use ‘apprentice’ as the keyword);
  • Careerone - http://www.careerone.com.au/ (use ‘apprentice’ as the keyword);
  • Apprenticeship Central - http://www.apprenticeshipcentral.com.au/; and
  • Australian Defence Force - http://www.defencejobs.gov.au/ (do a search for ‘apprenticeships’).
• Contact GTO’s near you. Find a list of Queensland GTO’s at: http://www.training.qld.gov.au/employers/gto/contact.html.
• Scan school and community notice boards.
• Contact trade associations. Find a list of Queensland associations at: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/business/support-tools-grants/support/business-industry-associations/a-z-business-industry-associations.
• Approach previous employers (from work experience or part-time work) and take a copy of your resume with you.
• Visit your school VET coordinator and Guidance Counsellor/Officer.
• Talk to an Australian Apprenticeship Support Network provider. Search for the one located near you at: http://www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au/australian-apprenticeship-support-network.
• Most importantly, check out your social network (parents, extended family, neighbours, and friends’ parents). Usually there is someone who knows someone who might be looking for an apprentice. Don’t be afraid to approach employers who have not advertised a vacancy, up to a third of all jobs are obtained through contacts, not advertisements.