Teachers in Victoria work in government, Catholic and independent schools. Since the establishment of the Victorian Institute of Teaching at the start of 2003, every teacher undertaking the duties of a teacher in a Victorian school, must be registered with the Institute. There are approximately 116,000 teachers on the Teachers' Register. The register is available for inspection by the public at the offices of the Victorian Institute of Teaching, Level 24, 570 Bourke Street, Melbourne.
The process for assessing an application for registration is rigorous and intensive. The Institute must ensure that only teachers of good character, who meet the qualifications requirements, are registered to teach in Victoria. In this way the Institute protects the professional status of teaching and assures the general community that all teachers in Victoria meet high professional standards. All applicants for registration must consent to a criminal history record check as well as provide a character reference, provide evidence of their qualifications, and meet standards of competence in both written and oral communication in the English language.
The Minister approved the Qualification for Teacher Registration Policy 2012 in accordance with the Nationally Consistent approach to Teacher Registration on 16 July 2011. The policy takes effect on 1 April 2012 and all applications received at the Institute from that date will be assessed under the 2012 policy.
Read the Qualification for Teacher Registration Policy 2012 (PDF - 96 KB)
Institute approved university programs
Victorian university teacher education programs which prepare teachers must be approved by the Institute as part of its accreditation function. In order to be accredited, teacher education programs have to meet guidelines set by the Institute to ensure graduates have appropriate preparation in both theory and practice to be effective beginning teachers.
How are teacher graduates supported?
Teacher graduates are granted provisional registration usually for the first year of teaching while they complete an induction program, developed by the Institute and supported at the local level by a teacher mentor. At the end of this year, provisionally registered teachers demonstrate, through an evidence-based process, that they have met the standards for full registration. These standards (PDF - 1.5 MB), approved by the then Minister for Education and Training, were the result of a state-wide consultation with teachers, principals and school communities.
A school panel assesses the evidence provided by the teacher and makes a recommendation to the Institute that the teacher may be granted full registration, or that their provisional registration should be extended for the purposes of further professional development and support.
Do teachers have a Code of Ethics?
The Institute has consulted extensively with teachers to develop a Code of Ethics and a Code of Conduct.
Download the Code of Conduct (PDF - 499 KB)
Salaries in Victorian schools
Download the salary rates for teachers in Victorian government schools.
For information about salaries for teachers in Catholic schools, click here, then follow the links to 'Industrial Relations', and 'Rates of pay'.
For information about the salaries for teachers in independent schools, contact Independent Schools Victoria.
What areas are in demand?
While secondary teachers are needed over the whole range of school subjects, the areas that have the greatest opportunities for employment include mathematics; general science; chemistry; physics; Languages other than English especially Indonesian, Italian, French, Japanese and German; information technology; and technology subjects.
Primary teachers with qualifications in Languages other than English, physical education or music are much in demand.
The demand for appropriately qualified special education teachers is also high.
For more information, go to 'Teacher Demand' on the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development website.