Australian jobs of 2030: The training courses and skills you need to land a lucrative new career
From cybersecurity in Sydney to space technicians in Adelaide, Australia’s jobs market is undergoing a massive and rapid transformation. Here’s how you can cash in.
Australia is in the middle of a jobs bonanza, with one million new positions created in Australia over the next five years – most of them high-paying and ideal for non-university graduates.
Brian Wexham, CEO of National Skills Week, said young people should “start thinking about skills rather than jobs”.
“It’s not about just getting a degree in order to get a job but about the acquisition of skills,” he said.
“Think about some of the opportunities that are available as careers rather than just jobs. Don’t look at hospitality as a job, because you can easily turn it into a career. Same goes with horticulture,” Mr Wexham said.
He cites famous TAFE alumni including designer Nicky Zimmerman, food author and entrepreneur Donna Hay, and Oscar-winning designer Catherine Martin as VET success stories.
Mr Wexham said it was a matter of “following your passion and looking at what career paths are associated with it”.
“These days kids can stay at school and do school-based apprenticeships or traineeships and earn money,” he said.
“The recent university accord encourages unis and the VET sector to work together, and we’re already seeing a rise in degree apprenticeships.”
Fastest-growing jobs and skills
According to KPMG Australia analysis, the fastest-growing jobs in Australia are aged and disabled care workers, tech and IT professionals and early childhood and care workers.
Other growth roles include marketing, advertising and PR jobs, nurses and midwives and human resource professional. Such positions can start with a vocational course, often obtaining credit with a university degree along the way.
Analysis from Jobs and Skills Australia reveals digital technology and data are the fastest-growing skills useful across the workforce spectrum.
For example, job advertisements requiring childcare centre managers to have social media skills grew from less than 1 per cent in 2015 to almost 15 per cent in 2020.
Future jobs
A large number of future jobs will come from AI and digital transformation, the mining and metallurgy fields and aviation. The latter is tied to the opening of Western Sydney International Airport which is projected to create 10,000 new jobs by 2031, driving demand for local training and upskilling.
Experts note that more than 90 per cent of jobs growth in the next decade will require post-school qualifications, including 43 per cent where VET is the primary pathway.
Most (459,000) jobs will require a certificate II or III qualification. Another 170,200 jobs will require a certificate III or IV, including an apprenticeship, and 206,300 jobs will require a diploma, advanced diploma or associate degree.
Shortages
Many level 2-4 jobs are in shortage right now. These include defence roles in Adelaide and Perth, cyber positions in Canberra and Sydney and space jobs in Adelaide, Toowoomba, Avalon (near Geelong) and Townsville.
Other shortages include all trade and technical roles, health care professionals, particularly in regional areas and ICT specialists, especially in digital transformation, and cybersecurity roles.
The hospitality and tourism industries are also severely short of workers employed in hotels, events, food services, and travel operations. The biggest demand is for skilled chefs, event managers, and frontline staff.
There is also large unmet demand for engineers working in mining, infrastructure, and renewable energy and forensic psychiatrists in mental health and justice systems.
Other areas that are highly gendered, such as education and training, healthcare and social assistance, have extreme workforce shortage pressures.
The industries that have traditionally employed more men, such as construction, mining, and electricity, gas, water and waste services, are also short on workers.
Where should you go?
Cyber and IT jobs
The national goal is to reach 1.2 million tech workers by 2030, with roles across bank, mines, hospitals and government.
The federal government’s digital and cyber workforce plan is a reliable pipeline for early-career tech workers, with cyber safety an area of particular demand.
Hotspots for cyber and tech jobs are Canberra (public service agencies), Sydney/Macquarie Park (finance/tech), Melbourne CBD, Brisbane CBD, and Perth (resources tech).
Core pathways include cert IVs in cyber security.
Defence jobs
The defence industries will need high-skill trades, technicians, engineers and digital roles. Some of the highest-paying defence jobs will be based near Adelaide due to the AUKUS submarine contract, which will need more than 20,000 jobs over the next 30 years.
The Henderson Defence Precinct will also need more than 10,000 high-skilled jobs in regional WA and Perth, as will the SA Osborne naval shipyard for frigate and submarine work.
Other defence jobs will be located in Newcastle and Williamstown in Melbourne (aerospace and defence), Brisbane and Amberley (air) and Darwin’s northern defence region. There are also jobs in defence coming in Geelong, Townsville and Toowoomba.
Insiders say core skills are VET level 3 roles, including aircraft engineers, electrician and metal trades workers. These jobs are very hard to fill and the opportunities are immediate.
Space and aerospace jobs
These industries will create 20,000 new jobs by 2030, with the majority STEM-intensive.
Current opportunities include Lockheed Martin munitions and advanced manufacturing ramping up in Avalon near Geelong, the Boeing assembly plant near Toowoomba and the Townsville Aviation Training Academy for aircraft engineers.
The Australian Space Agency in Adelaide highlights many careers in robotics, automation, earth observation and space-enabled services.
Teachers, aged care, disability
Teachers are in demand in all capital cities, especially in growth corridors such as Western Sydney and South-East Queensland. Aged care and disability workers are in demand in all states and all regions.
Photos
The photos accompanying this article come from the annual TAFE Photo Competition run by the Australian Education Union.
TAFE students were invited to take photos that depict ‘The Heart of TAFE’ in 2025 and the life-changing opportunity that TAFE brings.
Correna Haythorpe, AEU national secretary said every image “tells a story of determination, skill, and opportunity and together they show how TAFE changes lives”.
The winners will be announced on September 3.
