Diploma of Automotive Management

The Diploma of Automotive Management is a one-year qualification for people who want to run the business side of a workshop, dealership or parts operation rather than spend their days under a bonnet. You study how a repair business actually makes money, job costing, quoting, parts inventory, supplier relationships, staff rostering, workplace safety and the compliance side of running a registered automotive business in Australia.

As a diploma, this sits at the middle of the Australian Qualifications Framework, below a bachelor degree. It is delivered over one year, usually across two semesters or three trimesters depending on the provider's calendar, and is made up of units of study that each carry credit points. You need to pass the required units and accumulate the set credit points to graduate. Because diplomas are competency-based, assessment tends to be practical: case studies, simulated workshop scenarios, budgeting tasks and projects based on real business problems rather than long written exams.

Expect to cover financial management for a small business, customer service and complaint handling, marketing a workshop, leading a small team, and the record-keeping that state and territory regulators expect. Some providers build in a work placement or industry project so you spend time in an actual service centre or dealership office. If you want to keep studying afterwards, many Australian institutions give credit towards a bachelor degree in business, management or automotive management for units you have already completed, which shortens the degree.

This course suits people already working in the automotive trade who want to move into a service manager or workshop manager role, and people from a retail or administration background moving into the automotive sector. International students should check the official CRICOS listing for the exact tuition, intake dates and English requirements before applying. Student visa holders can work up to 48 hours per fortnight while their course is in session, and graduates may be eligible for the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream depending on their circumstances.

• Workshop or service manager in a mechanical repair business
• Service advisor or customer liaison at a dealership
• Parts and inventory manager
• Assistant manager in an automotive retail or tyre outlet
• Fleet maintenance coordinator for a logistics or government fleet
• Small business owner running an independent workshop

Hiring industries include automotive retail and repair, dealership groups, fleet operators, mining and transport maintenance, and aftermarket parts distribution.