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Certificate II · national qualification

Certificate II in Construction

This is the entry-level course for someone starting out on a construction site, most often as a builder's labourer.

Compare 9 providers
Illustration of a person working as builder's Labourer
How long it takes
6 to 12 months
typical for this level
Main job
Builder's Labourer
$65,000 (estimate) median pay, In demand
Taught by
9 providers
Every state and territory

Is this course right for you?

What the Certificate II in Construction asks of you, and what you might want to check first.

It helps to have

  • an interest in building and fixing things
  • a careful approach to safety on site
  • good communication skills for working in a team
  • comfort with measurements and basic calculations

Before you start

There are no entry requirements for this qualification.

Where this course can take you

Jobs this qualification is a recognised route into, and the study that can follow it.

Jobs you can do with it

  • Builder's Labourer

    Builder's labourers do the physical work that keeps a construction site moving, from preparing ground and mixing concrete to moving materials and clearing up after the trades.

    What else you need

    A white card is needed before entering a construction site, and many labourers start without this award. It also leads on to a trade apprenticeship.

    Median pay$65,000 (estimate)

    In demand

If you study further

Pay is the median for everyone in the job, and “In demand” means the job is on the national shortage list. Pay marked as an estimate is our own analysis, not a published figure.

Where you can study this course

There are 9 places you can study this course. When you compare them, check they teach it the way you want to study, how far you'd be from a campus, what it will cost you and what past students say about the teaching and support. They're listed by how often people search for them, and none of them pays to be here or to move up.

What you’ll learn

15 units: 10 that everyone takes and 5 you choose.

  • Using hand and power tools
  • Reading plans and specifications
  • Site measurements and calculations
  • Basic levelling procedures
  • Concreting to simple forms
  • Working safely at heights
See all 10 core units

Core units

Everyone completes these. Select a unit to see what it covers.

  • Loading the details for CPCCCM2005…

Questions to ask before you enrol

Providers run this course differently, so the answers change from one to the next.

  1. When is the next intake, and how many are there each year?
  2. What is the total cost, including materials, checks and any placement costs?
  3. Can I study part time or online, and how does that change the length?
  4. Do the units count towards a higher qualification if I go on to study further?

Questions people ask

Who is this qualification for?

This is the entry-level course for someone starting out on a construction site, most often as a builder's labourer. It provides a range of support tasks applicable to the majority of construction work sites. Roles it leads to include builder's labourer, civil construction labourer, packaging operator, pipelayer, plumber's assistant and steel fixer.

Do I need experience or other qualifications first?

There are no entry requirements for this qualification. Individual providers can set their own conditions, so check with the provider you choose.

Related courses

The national training register, training.gov.au. Google reviews. Pay and shortage status from Jobs and Skills Australia.