Industry training packages are a key feature of vocational education and training in Australia. They are part of the National Training Framework (NTF) which has established a national focus for vocational education and training. The aim of the NTF is to ensure that training and assessment arrangements are flexible, consistent, relevant and of high quality.

The music industry training package:

• Has been developed by industry, for industry
• Permits many different ways of learning
• Provides many pathways to competence and a national qualification
• Provides a national framework for training and assessment
• Gives workplaces and industry bodies more scope to be involved in establishing and providing training
• Provides training and assessment opportunities for people entering the industry and those already working in it

What’s in the training package? 

Industry training packages generally have two components: the endorsed component and support materials.

The endorsed component of the music industry training package is in three parts: national competency standards, a national qualifications framework and assessment guidelines.

The national music industry competency standards describe the skills needed by people working in all sectors of the music industry. The qualifications framework sets out the competencies required to achieve qualifications in particular areas and at different levels. When a person has been assessed, either in the workplace or in a training institution, they can receive formal recognition of their skills. This recognition leads to a Statement of Attainment or a qualification. To achieve a qualification, a person must achieve the full set of units of competency that are specified for that qualification.

The national music industry qualifications are based directly on national industry competency standards do not require people to achieve units of competency that are not needed for their work are based on workplace and ‘real-life’ requirements allow training to be structured and delivered through a range of pathways allow for the recognition of existing competencies provide a framework to help identify training needs.

Qualifications may be achieved in a number of ways but, however they are gained, they should demonstrate the achievement of competency standards. A qualification can only be issued when the required units of competency are achieved.

The qualifications framework:
identifies the full range of national qualifications which is available in the music industry
shows the titles for each national qualification
sets down the units of competency that make up each qualification

The qualifications have been developed by packaging national competency standards into combinations that are meaningful to the industry and aligning these to the Australian Qualifications Framework.

The music industry training package covers vocational education and training qualifications at six levels:
Certificate I
Certificate II
Certificate III
Certificate IV
Diploma
Advanced diploma

Qualifications

To receive a qualification, a trainee must be competent in the required number of units for each qualification.

For each qualification, there are two types of units:

• core units which all trainees must achieve
• 'other' units, a minimum number of which must be achieved at each level. These other units may include units from other endorsed industry training packages. Each qualification sets out the maximum number of units that may be included from other industry training packages.