Do You Need A Certificate To Work In Childcare?

Check out everything you need to know about childcare certificates and why you need a certificate to work in childcare.

Wondering if you need a certificate to work in childcare? Well, you’ve come to the right place. This post covers everything you need to know about childcare certificates. Including which courses to choose to get a certificate that will make your CV shine. Enjoy!

What Is A Child Care Certificate?

A childcare certificate is what you get after completing a childcare course. With childcare courses, you will learn how to look after children professionally. They cover many topics such as child development, safety, and nutrition.

What Can You Do With A Child Care Certificate?

A childcare certificate shows employers that you have been trained and know how to be a childcare worker. Having a qualification means you beat the rest of the bunch when applying for jobs.

Who Needs a Certificate to Work in Childcare?

According to the Children’s Act, anyone working in nursery schools must have some formal training in Early Childhood Development.

What Jobs Can You Get With A Child Care Certificate?

Take a look at the different positions you could apply to with a certificate in childcare.

Position Duties
Day Care Manager Plans work shifts, trains staff, maintain safety standards, and keeps an eye on everything at the daycare.
Day Care Administrator Handles paperwork, the budget, enquiries and keeps all processes organised.
Au Pair Live with families abroad and take care of their kids.
Child Health And Nutrition Caretaker Creates meal plans for kids to ensure they stay healthy and active.
Nanny Cares for children by watching over them, feeding them, and playing with them
Crèche owner Open your own childcare centre and run it yourself.

What Qualifications Do I Need To Become A Childcare Worker?

Taking care of children is not for the faint-hearted. The first few years of a child’s life are very delicate and you have to help them develop into beautiful human beings. Employers are thus looking for people qualified in this field and you can be one of them with these courses:

Creche Management 

If you want to focus more on administration or operations in a childcare facility, consider a crèche management course. This course provides you with knowledge on: 

  • Managing a childcare facility 
  • How to provide a safe environment for kids 
  • Handling staff

If you want to become a crèche manager or open a crèche one day, give it a go!

Child Psychology 

Understanding a child’s mental and emotional state is just as important as ensuring they are physically okay. This is another reason why you need a certificate to work in childcare, especially one in child psychology. Child Psychology Courses teaches you what to look out for when around kids so you can understand them better and provide them with the best care.

Child Day Care 

No matric? That’s cool. Our Child Day Care courses don’t require matric to get started. Child day care courses teach you the ins and outs of looking after little ones. Even if you already know how to take care of kids, this course will teach you other skills like speaking with parents, resolving conflicts, and child development.

First Aid 

Our First Aid courses are short courses designed to train you on handling emergency situations so you can take control if an accident were to occur.

Importance Of Certifications For Daycare Workers 

Here are a few reasons you might want to get a certificate to work in childcare instead of trying your luck with zero qualifications:

  • Emergency Preparedness 
  • Child safety 
  • Increased job opportunities
  • Better wages

Emergency Preparedness

Child care courses provide you with knowledge on first aid so you would know what to do in case of an emergency.

Child Safety 

Certificate courses in childcare teach you how to look after children so you can ensure their safety at all times.

Increased Job Opportunities

Having a certificate to work in childcare makes our CV look good, leading to more interview calls because recruiters can trust you to do the job well.

Better Wages

A person with a certificate is more likely to get paid well by a childcare facility. Your certificate proves that you put effort into your studies and are serious about your career. Qualified childcare providers boost the daycare’s reputation and show that the daycare only employs trained staff.

How To Be A Child Care Worker In South Africa

Getting into the childcare field is not as hard as it seems. Here’s what you need to do:

Get The Required Qualifications 

The South African job market is tough to get into and to get in front of employers you need a degree or certificate in any child development course.

What Qualifications Do You Need To Teach Children In A Preschool? 

Employers look for teachers with degrees or diplomas, and doing an Educare Course at Skills Academy can get you there.

What Certifications Do You Need To Work At A Daycare? 

Daycares require you to have some formal training. This could be a short course of a few months or longer depending on how in-depth you want to study. The longest child daycare course we offer is up to one year but it is jampacked with everything you need to know to do your job well.

Accumulate Years Of Relevant Study And Experience

You can do a 3-4 year Educare course or take one of our other childcare certificate courses to get you there quicker. Focus on building your experience while studying, this is easy if you study at Skills Academy. You get to learn through distance learning so you can work part-time to get experience.

Find Relevant Employment Opportunities

There are plenty of opportunities you could go into with a certificate in childcare. You could decide to work at a daycare, creche, or nursery depending on what age group of children you prefer to look after.

Getting Qualified With Us Is As Easy as 1,2,3!

Now that you know why you need a certificate to work in childcare, are you ready to take the leap and pursue your studies? If you are ready let’s get started:

  • Give us a ring at 0800 39 00 27 – It’s free!
  • Contact us and we’ll call you in a moment

Frequently Asked Questions

To open a creche you need to register it with the relevant authorities so that it is legal and appears trustworthy to parents. Also, running a creche requires some leadership skills enabling you to take control of the creche and manage staff. You can learn all this by taking one of our creche management courses.

If you want to get into early childhood education without matric you can take one of our provider courses in childcare. Matric is not necessary for these programmes. Still, we do offer matric courses that you can do from home if you want to get your matric and keep your options open. 

First, get a qualification, you can do one of our childcare courses which can take a maximum of 12 months. Work on getting experience while you are studying. You can do volunteering or job-shadowing, offer to babysit or child mind kids from friends or family. After getting a qualification and some experience apply for jobs at reputable daycare centres.

A diploma in the childcare field is good to have but not necessary. You can do one of our daycare courses and be qualified to work at daycare centers within a year. How does that sound?

Starting a daycare can be a daunting process just like starting any other business. However, knowing the requirements for opening a daycare will help you speed up this process. Simply put, you need to submit an application to the relevant authorities to register your daycare with them. 

Last Updated: 14 October 2024

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