Let’s take a look at some Chef recruitment activity on Seek, Australia’s largest job-search platform.

– The site clearly shows that Chef-related job opportunities are plentiful, giving applicants a wide range of options

– Exceptional hourly rates and annual salaries have become almost standard for Chef roles

Australian universities have largely adopted a teaching approach that combines theory with practice. Institutions deliver programmes covering both food production (including mains and desserts) and management, supported by fully equipped, state-of-the-art commercial kitchens that simulate real-world working environments.As a result, the transition from study to professional work is essentially seamless.

Graduates in the Chef field can typically work acrossa wide range of small, medium, and large Western restaurants, hotel food and beverage departments, high-end clubs, cafés, and dessert establishments.Key roles on offer include:

· Executive Chef

· Chef

· Kitchen Director

· Food and Beverage Director, and more

Overall,the Chef field in Australia offers a wide variety of career paths and a high level of skill specialisation.

In addition, many restaurant owners say they are highly dependent on their chefs. Employers not only offer very competitive salaries and benefits, but may also offer employer sponsorship opportunities to help chefs remain in Australia.

Here we recommendCharles Darwin University (CDU)and itsCertificate IV in Commercial Cookery programme.

Programme highlights —

Low entry requirements:

Compared to typical VET technical colleges, CDU is the only public university in the Northern Territory.

Having completed Year 11 in China is sufficient to apply for and enrol in CDU’s Commercial Cookery programme.Students currently enrolled in or who have graduated from Chinese diploma programmes, technical colleges, or vocational schools, as well as students without Gaokao scores, are also eligible to apply. In addition, working professionals who already have several years of work experience and wish to upskill are also welcome. The English language requirement for the Commercial Cookery programme is relatively low — an IELTS overall of 5.5 with no band below 5.0, or a PTE overall of 42 with no sub-score below 36.

Low tuition fees:

The CDU Commercial Cookery programme runs for two years,with tuition fees of approximately AUD 14,800 per year (with a small annual increase). Compared to programmes costing AUD 40,000+ per year, these fees represent outstanding value for money!CDU also currently offers scholarships for outstanding international students — with tuition fees reduced by 30%!

What’s more,Newstars is a CDU Top Agentand cansecure additional enrolment support for our students! If you’re interested in CDU’s Certificate IV in Commercial Cookery, feel free to message us for a consultation.

Migration advantages —

CDU is based in the Northern Territory, so upon completing CDU’s two-year Chef programme,you automatically receive 5 bonus points for regional study for skilled migrationandcan obtain a 1.5- or 2-year Subclass 485 Graduate Work visa(applications lodged within this financial year receive the 2-year grant).

Furthermore,the NT state nomination pathway is particularly favourable to local graduatesand allows a direct pathway to Subclass 190/491 after graduation (detailed below).The work and residence time required for state nomination can all be accumulated on this single Subclass 485 visa.

The NT state nomination quota has increased this year, in line with other states.In terms of numbers, the NT state nomination has historically had a relatively modest quota,so it hasn’t attracted a great deal of attention,but in practice, the vast majority of invitations go to local graduates, and the baseline requirements are not complicated. For those graduating from CDU, pursuing NT state nomination is a very sensible choice.

This financial year, the NT is accepting applications across all migration occupations, and Chef is on the MLTSSL.

Steps for Chefs Applying for NT State Nomination

– Age under 45; IELTS of at least 4 × 6; EOI points score of at least 65 (Subclass 190 base score 60; Subclass 491 base score 50)

– Two years of local study in the NT (the CDU Commercial Cookery programme above satisfies this requirement)

– Apply for a Subclass 485 Graduate Work visa, work in the NT for two years, and secure a job offer for at least the following year

*This is primarily to meet the requirements of the Chef skills assessment;

*satisfying this requirement also satisfies the NT’s Subclass 190 requirement for local graduates to reside and live in the NT for six months after graduation and demonstrate genuine efforts to find employment

*VET graduates beingexempt from skills assessment to apply for a 2-year Subclass 485 is a policy specific to the 2022–23 financial year.Under normal circumstances, a Provisional Skills Assessment (PSA) is required before applying for the 1.5-year Subclass 485 Graduate Work visa (please contact us for specific requirements).

– Obtain a Chef skills assessment

– Apply for Subclass 190 state nomination

– Apply for the visa

The Chef occupation is eligible for state nomination in the vast majority of Australian states, though requirements vary. Please contact us directly if you’d like more detail.

The skills assessment body for the Chef occupation is Trade Recognition Australia (TRA), a specialist organisation that assesses the trade skills of applicants both in Australia and overseas.

TRA assessments are categorised differently depending on the visa type and the applicant’s qualifications (country of training, occupation, and country in which qualifications were obtained). There are four assessment categories; we focus here on the category most relevant to applicants within Australia, which is theJob Ready Programme (JRP). For international students in Australia, passing this programme is the only route to a skills assessment.

The Chef skills assessment process is as follows:

Step 1: Provisional Skills Assessment (PSA)

Step 2: Job Ready Employment (JRE)

Step 3: Job Ready Workplace Assessment (JRWA)

Step 4: Job Ready Final Assessment (JRFA)

The more complex steps in the Chef skills assessment are Steps 2 and 3, because TRA will send an assessor to the applicant’s workplace to verify that the working environment meets the assessment requirements and to confirm that the applicant has the relevant skills and is performing the relevant duties.

That said, there is no need to be too worried about this stage,as long as the applicant has genuine employment, there are generally no issues — which is why we strongly recommend securing relevant work in the NT as soon as possible before and after graduation.

The Chef skills assessment involves a number of steps, but our experienced and qualified migration consultants can provide comprehensive guidance throughout.

Study and Migration Video Resources

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