Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL)

The organisation is financially supported by the Australian Government and the Minister of Education and Training. The organisation aims to provide the best services for teacher and school faculties to maximise the students’ learning and productivities in schools. Consequently, the organisation is responsible to administer the knowledge, skills and experiences of the professionals. The organisation has been appointed by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) as the assessing authority for the professions that fall under Skilled Occupation List (SOL) and Consolidated Sponsored Occupation List (CSOL) for the purpose of migration.

AITSL roles and responsibilities:

· Administering the knowledge, skills and experiences of the professionals;

· Collaborating with regulatory authorities for accreditation of existing or new programs;

· Assessing pre-service teachers, to prepare the graduates for requirements and challenges of teaching;

· Providing induction programmes; and

· Assessing and providing relative services for applicants who wish to migrate under Skill Migration.

The list of occupations assessed by AITSL can be found below:

Number	Occupation Name	ANZSCO Code	Assessing Authority
1	Early Childhood (Pre-Primary School) Teacher	241111	AITSL
2	Secondary School Teacher	241411	AITSL
3	Special Needs Teacher	241511	AITSL
4	Teacher of Hearing Impaired	241512	AITSL
5	Teacher of Sight Impaired	241513	AITSL
6	Special Education Teacher (not elsewhere classified)	241599	AITSL

Skill Assessment Procedure for migration:

Australia has a federal government system with federal and state laws. Therefore, applicants must be registered under the Educational department of chosen state. As mentioned earlier the body is an assessing authority responsible for assessment of overseas qualification of applicants, who wish to migrate to Australia and practice their profession. Applicant’s qualification and skill’s must be assessed before being registered under Educational department.

	YES	NO
Are you a registered professional in Australia?	You are qualified to practice in Australia.	You are not qualified to practice in Australia.
Have you received your qualification from an accredited University/College in Australia or New Zealand?	You are not required to be assessed.	You are required to have your qualification and skills assessed by the relevant authority.
Are you required to be submitted for assessment?	Documents required: · Certificate or a degree, in original language and a certified copy of an official English translation, if applicable. · Official transcript, in original language and a certified copy of an official English translation, if applicable. · Evidence of supervised teaching practice. · Evidence of membership, in the relevant association, if applicable. · Evidence of employment, from graduation to presernt. · Evidence of registration/ license, if applicable. · Assessment form, and · Evidence of English proficiency.**

** English proficiency, applicant who has acquired his/her qualification from a non-English speaking country, is required to sit for IELTS examination. It is essential to achieve a minimum score of 7 in each of the four components (Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening).

The English proficiency test required for assessment is IELTs, however, other English examinations like TOFEL iBT may also be accepted by the relevant authoritiy.

Below is the table of score comparison between English Proficiency examinations:

Listening		Speaking		Reading		Writing		Total Score
IELTS	TOFEL iBT	IELTS	TOFEL iBT	IELTS	TOFEL iBT	IELTS	TOFEL iBT	IELTS	TOFEL iBT
9.0	30	9.0	30	9.0	30	9.0	30	9.0	118-120
8.5	29	8.5	28-29	8.5	29	8.5	30	8.5	115-117
8.0	28	8.0	26-27	8.0	29	8.0	30	8.0	110-114
7.5	27	7.5	24-25	7.5	27-28	7.5	29	7.5	102-109
7.0	24-26	7.0	23	7.0	24-26	7.0	27-28	7.0	94-101
6.5	20-23	6.5	20-22	6.5	19-23	6.5	24-26	6.5	79-93
6.0	12-19	6.0	18-19	6.0	13-18	6.0	21-23	6.0	60-78
5.5	7-11	5.5	16-17	5.5	8-12	5.5	18-20	5.5	46-59
5.0	4-6	5.0	14-15	5.0	4-7	5.0	14-17	5.0	35-45
4.5	3	4.5	12-13	4.5	3	4.5	12-13	4.5	32-34
<=4	0-2	<=4	0-11	<=4	0-2	<=4	0-11	<=4	0-31

Assessment of overseas qualification is a complex and time consuming procedure. It may take up to 8 weeks for the process to take place. After completion of the assessment a letter and Statement of Teaching Qualification is received by the applicant. The received qualification is useful to assist:

· Migration officers to determine the suitability of the applicant for migration under the General Skilled Migration Categories;

· Registration as a teacher under Education Department of relevant state or Territory of Australia ;

· Entry to accredited teaching courses; and

· Eligibility for relevant jobs.

For further information as to fees and assessments please contact us.

Here is the list of links that may be useful:

Immigration

· www.aitsl.edu.au

· Victoria: www.vit.vic.edu.au/content.asp?Document_ID=234

· NSW: www.teach.nsw.edu.au/apply

· Tasmania: trb.tas.gov.au/

· South Australia: www.trb.sa.edu.au/