- Fee-free, low-fee TAFE courses providing more
training options to women in non-traditional trades
- Women in Non-Traditional Trades Scholarship
applications open
- $5,000 to help reduce financial barriers women
face when training and upskilling
- Part of Cook Labor Government's drive to ensure
TAFE training continues to be accessible and affordable
- Deadline for competitive course applications
extended to 14 November 2025
The Cook Labor Government
is supporting diverse job opportunities for women, with fee-free and low-fee
TAFE courses providing more training options and scholarships to encourage
their involvement in non-traditional trades.
Those efforts come at the
same time as the government has launched its 'You Can Make It Here' campaign.
The campaign recognises the vital role of fee-free and low-fee TAFE in
delivering a skilled workforce in Western Australia and achieving the
government's priorities of jobs, health, and housing.
As part of its Women in Non-Traditional Trades Scholarship, the
government is investing $2 million to fund 400 TAFE scholarships over four
years.
Since 2024, each TAFE
college has offered 20 of these scholarships per academic year.
Applications
are open across the five WA TAFEs for the 100 Women in Non-Traditional Trades
Scholarships available in 2026, with each scholarship providing $5,000 to
help reduce financial barriers women often face when training and upskilling.
The funding can be used
to cover expenses such as course fees, learning resources, tools, workwear and
personal protective equipment, work tickets and licences, transport,
accommodation, and childcare.
Scholarship recipients
also receive tailored mentoring and support services to assist them in
completing their qualifications and transition successfully into employment.
Women are
underrepresented in some industries - particularly those that have long been
considered male-dominated, where women make up less than 25 per cent of the
workforce.
Making training more
accessible enhances women's economic participation and workforce equality in industries
including building and construction, automotive, electrical, mining, and
engineering.
Fee-free and low-fee TAFE
courses enable women to train in trades that are in demand as the Western
Australian economy continues to grow and diversify.
Fee-free TAFE is jointly
funded by the Albanese Labor Government and the Cook Labor Government.
TAFE WA's website has been redeveloped for prospective students to browse
the full suite of courses and career pathways.
The website has information on more than 250 fee-free or low-fee courses
on offer.
More information on the
Women in Non-Traditional Trades Scholarship is available via: www.tafe.wa.edu.au/scholarships
Comments attributed to Skills and TAFE
Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson:
"Women are underrepresented in many industries - particularly
those that have long been considered male-dominated, such as building and
construction, automotive and electrical, and mining and engineering.
"Our support through fee-free and low-fee TAFE courses and our
Women in Non-Traditional Trades Scholarship is giving more women access to new
career pathways and well-paying jobs.
"That's why we're investing in TAFE and supporting women to gain
the jobs to make more things here, build more homes and ships and deliver our
clean energy transition."
Comments attributed to Women Minister Simone
McGurk:
"We want to help reduce barriers to training and support
increased workforce participation in traditionally male-dominated industries.
"These scholarships will make more training more accessible for
women and help to reduce the financial barriers women often face in training or
upskilling.
"Western Australia's
economy is the strongest in the nation but as we diversify, in order to grow the
workforce at the pace required we need to draw on more than half the
population."
