Labour Market Research – School Teachers
Victoria
March 2015
Occupations in cluster
Rating
2411-11
Early Childhood (Pre-Primary School) Teacher
No Shortage
2412-13
Primary School Teacher
No Shortage
2414-11
Secondary School Teacher
No Shortage
2415
Special Needs Teacher
No Shortage
Key issues
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All school teacher occupations surveyed in 2015 retained a no shortage rating from the previous
year. Although the proportion of vacancies filled and the ratios of applicants and suitable applicants
per vacancy decreased in comparison to 2014, survey results remain strong overall and are
reflective of employer comments reporting an ability to fill most school teacher vacancies without
difficulty.
Early childhood (pre-primary school) teacher vacancies in long day care settings attracted similar
numbers of applicants and suitable applicants per vacancy and had similar vacancy fill rates in
comparison to advertised roles in stand-alone sessional based settings. This was a noted departure
from the 2014 survey findings, where vacancies in long day care centres were generally found to be
more difficult to fill than sessional based roles.
Roles for secondary school teachers involving subjects at senior class levels (year 10-12) continue to
attract lower applicant and suitable applicant numbers compared to other secondary school teacher
roles, consistent with findings from the 2014 survey. Fill rates nonetheless remain high for these
vacancies.
Survey results
ISSN: 2202-5243
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The 2015 Department of Employment Survey of Employers who have Recently Advertised (SERA)
found that 92 per cent of school teacher vacancies in Victoria were filled, a decrease from the 97
per cent fill rate recorded in 2014. The number of applicants and suitable applicants also decreased;
the current survey recorded an average of 12.7 applicants and 1.8 suitable applicants per vacancy,
compared to 17.6 and 2.3 in 2014.
o In noting that the proportion of vacancies filled and the ratio of suitable applicants per vacancy
declined from last year, the current survey results do nonetheless align more closely with
longer term SERA trends for Victorian school teachers dating back to 2008. Otherwise, the ratio
of applicants per vacancy has shown a tendency to fluctuate on a yearly basis across the period
(see Figure 1. below).
Labour Economics Office Victoria
Department of Employment
Page 1
Figure 1: Proportion of vacancies filled (%), average number of applicants and suitable applicants
per vacancy (no.), School Teachers, Victoria, 2007-08 to 2014-15
100
20
Proportion of vacancies filled - LHS
90
18
80
16
70
14
60
12
(%) 50
40
10 (no.)
8
Applicants per vacancy - RHS
30
6
Suitable applicants per vacancy - RHS
20
4
10
2
0
0
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
RHS: Right hand side axis, LHS: Left hand side axis
Source: Department of Employment, Survey of Employers who have Recently Advertised
Note: Occupational coverage varies over time series.
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On average, metropolitan vacancies attracted nearly three times as many applicants per vacancy
than regional vacancies (17.6 compared to 5.9 in regional areas) and attracted a higher number of
suitable applicants per vacancy (2.0 compared to 1.6 in regional areas). Metropolitan and regional
vacancies did however both record a high proportion of vacancies filled at 94 per cent and 88 per
cent respectively.
Although the vacancy fill rate for special needs teachers remained high, this occupation recorded
the largest decline in the percentage of vacancies filled from the previous year, dropping by 18
percentage points (down from 100 per cent to 82 per cent). The increase in unfilled vacancies was
however largely attributable to conditional factors particular to individual vacancies rather than a
reflection of broader recruitment challenges across the occupation.
The most significant decrease in applicants per vacancy was represented by primary school
teachers, which dropped to 18.4 applicants per vacancy from 41.9 applicants in 2014. Despite the
drop, employers did not identify any impact on their ability to fill vacancies.
Early childhood (pre-primary school) teacher was the only occupation to record an increase in
applicants, rising to 10.2 applicants per vacancy from 9.2 in 2014. This occupation did also represent
the largest decline in suitable applicants per vacancy, dropping to 1.7 suitable applicants per
vacancy from an average of 3.2 in 2014.
Victorian survey findings

Surveyed vacancies for early childhood (pre-primary school) teachers were located within
government and non-government sessional kindergartens and pre-schools as well as inclusive
programmes within long day care centres. Vacancies for school teachers related to primary,
secondary and special needs schools within the government, independent and Catholic education
systems.
Labour Economics Office Victoria
Department of Employment
Page 2
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All primary, secondary and special needs teacher vacancies required a minimum bachelor degree
level qualification and registration with the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT); additionally, around
one third of vacancies for special needs teachers also required qualification at the postgraduate
level. Early childhood teacher vacancies required bachelor level qualifications approved under the
National Quality Framework (NQF).
Employers across all occupations were seeking applicants with a detailed understanding of modern
pedagogical approaches relevant to the field of education:
o For early childhood (pre-primary school) teachers, significant focus was placed on applicants’
detailed understanding of the National Quality Framework (NQF) for Early Childhood Education
and Care and the Victorian Early Years Learning Framework (VEYLF).
Applicants who could demonstrate that they were attuned to the culture of the educational
environment (learning philosophies, local community conditions and the values of the parents,
students and colleagues) were highly valued.
Employers sought attributes such as enthusiasm, passion and a commitment to maintaining high
quality educational standards. Broader employability skills such as emotional intelligence, flexibility
and the ability to work collaboratively were other areas of strong focus.
While previous teaching experience was highly regarded for all roles, employers were generally
willing to consider recently qualified applicants for a range of vacancies that were likely to be well
supported by experienced colleagues:
o Applicants who had recently attained a special needs postgraduate qualification but were
otherwise lacking in practical teaching experience were typically ranked higher in preference
over generalist qualified teachers with special needs teaching experience.
Previous related experience was however considered essential for roles involving high levels of
operational independence, additional leadership functions or particularly challenging conditions
(such as classes with significant behavioral based issues). For senior level (years 10-12) secondary
teacher vacancies, previous experience and expertise in the discipline area of individual subjects
was highly desirable.
Reasons applicants were unsuitable
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Common reasons for unsuitability across all occupations involved a mismatch between the
applicant’s personal attributes and the culture of particular educational environments. A lack of
previous related experience was also noted as a common cause of unsuitability for roles where
employers considered this to be essential.
Otherwise, the following reasons for unsuitability were specifically identified in relation to individual
occupations:
o Early childhood (pre-primary school) teachers: inability of applicants to demonstrate a detailed
understanding of standards defined in the NQF and VEYLF.
o Primary school teachers: failure of applicants to adequately address the key selection criteria
during the initial written application process.
o Secondary school teachers: a lack of experience and/or expertise in the specific discipline area
of individual subjects taught at senior class levels.
Labour Economics Office Victoria
Department of Employment
Page 3
o
Special needs teachers: generalist qualified teachers who lacked previous experience in a
related special needs teaching role, or lack of a special needs postgraduate qualification for
vacancies where this was the minimum qualification level required.
Figure 2: Proportion of vacancies filled (%), average number of applicants and suitable applicants
per vacancy (no.) by occupation, School Teachers by Occupation, Victoria 2015.
Applicants per vacancy - RHS
100
94%
90
Suitable applicants per vacancy - RHS
90%
Proportion of vacancies filled - LHS
25
95%
82%
80
20
18.4
70
15.0
60
(%) 50
15
(no.)
10.2
40
10
7.5
30
20
5
10
0
1.7
Early Childhood (PrePrimary School) Teacher
2.3
Primary School Teacher
2.0
1.2
0
Secondary School Teacher Special Education Teachers
RHS: Right hand side axis, LHS: Left hand side axis
Source: Department of Employment, Survey of Employers who have Recently Advertised
Note: Occupational coverage varies over time series.
Demand and supply trends
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Demand for school teachers in Victoria has continued to increase in recent years in line with
ongoing population growth and increased student enrolment numbers. The most recent available
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data shows that in 2014 there was growth in the number of
children attending preschool programs in Victoria,1 as well as increased student enrolment numbers
in government and non-government primary, secondary and special needs schools.2
Data from the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) for the primary, secondary and special needs
teacher occupations shows the number of teachers holding full registration declined by 3.0 per cent
in the twelve months to June 2014 (with 100,099 full registrations down from 103,193 in 2013).
Overall however, the number of fully registered teachers in Victoria has increased by 12.5 per cent
since 20093:
o VIT registration of early childhood (pre-primary school) teachers in Victoria will become
mandatory as an ongoing regulatory requirement from 30 September 2015.
1
ABS, Cat. no. 4240.0, Preschool Education, Australia, 2014, Table 1: Enrolments in a Preschool Program, March 2015
ABS, Cat. no. 4221.0, Schools, Australia, 2014, Table 43a: full-time equivalent students by Affiliation, Sex, Grade and
Indigenous Status, States & Territories, 2000-2014, 5 February 2015
3
Victorian Institute of Teaching, Annual Reports (2008-09 to 2013-14), Number of Registered Teachers
2
Labour Economics Office Victoria
Department of Employment
Page 4
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The major source of supply for new school teachers comes from the completion of qualifications in
Victorian universities at the bachelor degree, graduate diploma, or postgraduate level:
o The most recent available data from the Australian Government Department of Education
shows that in 2013 there were 3,555 completions in Victorian courses providing initial teacher
training, an increase of 0.4 per cent from 2012. Over the preceding five years from 2007 to
2011, completions increased by an average of 2.2 per cent per annum.4
o On an occupational basis, completions in 2013 for early childhood (pre-primary school) teacher
and special needs teacher courses increased by 6.0 per cent and 4.1 per cent respectively from
the previous year. Primary and secondary school teacher training completions declined by 11
per cent and 8.5 per cent respectively compared to 2012.5
Data from the Department of Immigration and Border Control shows that 457 visas have been a
limited source of supply for school teachers in Victoria. In the twelve months to March 2015, 140
persons were issued with 457 visas under relevant school teacher categories; this was a 30 per cent
decrease from 2013, where 200 visas were issued.6
Other indicators and issues

Modelling undertaken by the Australian Council for Education Research (ACER) indicates that
demand for primary school teachers is likely to increase sharply. Based on projections from ABS
figures for 2001 and 2010, ACER predicts that by 2020 there could be as many as 569,406 children in
primary school in Victoria, an increase of about 23 per cent on 2010 figures.7
4
Department of Education and Training, Higher Education Statistics Data Cube (uCube)
Department of Education and Training, Higher Education Student Data Collection, 2013, customised tables
6
Department of Immigration and Border Control, Subclass 457 visas granted 2014-15, 31 March 2015
7
Australian Council for Education Research, The Teacher Workforce in Australia: Supply, Demand and Data Issues, March
2015
5
Labour Economics Office Victoria
Department of Employment
Page 5