When you picture a career after attaining a Diploma of Community Services, what do you see? Youth Workers helping young Australians find their place? Disabled Carers assisting people to live independently? Family Support Workers visiting homes to ensure the environment is safe for children?
It’s true that the scope of Community Services is broad. All you need is to glance the Department of Social Services website listing the services for vulnerable Australians, and you can understand the industry touches many areas of society.
However, there are common threads running through every Community Services specialty. This blog is a glimpse under the surface of our Diploma (and Certificate III) course, and the core competencies that make proficient Community Services professionals.
Personal (and interpersonal) achievement
Much of a Community Worker’s role focuses on the needs of other humans. So, it follows that empathy is an important trait for someone considering a Diploma of Community Services.
Building on this innate dedication to developing healthy relationships, Diploma students learn specialised skills:
- Managing personal stressors
- Recognising and responding to crises
- Establishing a Counselling relationship
- Assessing support requirements
A voice for the disadvantaged
Moving from the individual to the societal (or community) perspective, a strong undercurrent of Community Services work is advocating for people who are overlooked or stigmatised by society. Community Workers are often campaigners for social justice, equity and human rights.
- Promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representation and cultural safety
- Developing service programs to benefit particular groups
- Analysing sociological factors in Community Services work
- Advocating for underrepresented groups
- Promoting diversity in the workplace
In a Diploma of Community Services, these social interests are given structure, to ‘fight the good fight’ with evidence-based arguments and strategic insight.
Professional development
Rounding out the core skills gained from a Diploma of Community Services is the professional application of those personal and community-focussed capabilities.
Professional bodies like ACWA (the Australian Community Workers Association) champion high professional standards of the kind you learn from TrainSmart Australia’s experienced Trainers.
- Reflecting on and improving professional practice
- Effective research and its application in practice
- Legal and ethical compliance
- Work health and safety
- Debriefing and supporting Community Services workers
Getting the best start with a Diploma of Community Services
ACWA is just one voice among many (including TrainSmart Australia) in a campaign to encourage more people to become Community Services workers. Australia’s need for this vital workforce is greater than ever.
By enrolling in a Diploma of Community Services with TrainSmart Australia, you are taking the first steps towards a career defined by empowering, advocating for, and supporting some of the most vulnerable members of our society.
