Teaching & Learning

Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL)

The Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) is a hands-on option for students in Years 11 and 12. The VCAL gives you practical work-related experience, as well as literacy and numeracy skills and the opportunity to build personal skills that are important for life and work. Like the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE), VCAL is an accredited secondary certificate.

Click image to view VCAL guide book

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About VCAL

The Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) is a ‘hands-on’ option for students in Years 11 and 12.

Like the VCE, the VCAL is a recognised senior secondary qualification. Unlike the VCE, which is widely used by students as a pathway to university, the VCAL focuses on ‘hands-on learning’. Students who do the VCAL are more likely to be interested in going on to training at TAFE, doing an apprenticeship, or getting a job after completing Year 12.

The VCAL’s flexibility enables students to design a study program that suits their interests and learning needs. Students select accredited curriculum components from VCE studies, Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualifications, and Further Education (FE) and VCAL units. There are four compulsory strands in VCAL:

Literacy and Numeracy Skills

Work Related Skills

Industry Specific Skills

Personal Development Skills

Students who start their VCAL and then decide they would like to complete their VCE, are able to transfer between certificates. Any VCE studies successfully completed as part of the VCAL program will count towards the VCE.

A certificate and Statement of Results will be issued to students who successfully complete their VCAL.

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