Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning)

The Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning) is a one-year qualification for people who already have some industry or teaching experience and want to move into leading learning and development in an organisation. It sits at graduate diploma level on the Australian Qualifications Framework, which puts it above a bachelor degree and below a master's. At the Institute of Culinary Education the focus is on the business side of learning: how to plan training that meets an organisation's needs, how to design and assess programs, how to lead a team of trainers or educators, and how to make sure what is taught actually improves performance on the job.

Australian graduate diplomas are usually made up of units of study, each worth a set number of credit points, and a full-time load is typically spread across two semesters or trimesters in a year. You will study core units in adult learning, curriculum and instructional design, assessment and evaluation, and managing a learning function, and some institutions allow electives so you can tilt the qualification towards your industry. Where a course includes a capstone, it is often a work-based project rather than a traditional thesis, you might analyse a real training gap in a hospitality or commercial kitchen setting, propose a program to fix it, and present your findings. Many graduate diplomas also build in a professional placement or project with an employer, which is how you get evidence for your portfolio before you finish.

Skills you pick up include writing learning outcomes that can be measured, choosing assessment methods that stand up to scrutiny, using data to judge whether training worked, managing budgets and compliance for a registered training organisation, and leading people who deliver training. You also learn to speak the language of both educators and managers, which matters when you are the person translating a business problem into a learning solution.

This course suits trainers, chefs, team leaders and coordinators who have been delivering training and now want to design it, manage it or teach it at a higher level. It also works for people moving into corporate learning and development, or into roles with registered training organisations where knowledge of the Australian vocational education and training system is an advantage. International students should check the official CRICOS listing and the Institute of Culinary Education's page for the exact units, entry requirements and English conditions, because these can vary between intakes.

• Learning and development manager, leading training strategy for hospitality groups, hotels, aged care providers and retail chains.
• Training coordinator or RTO manager, running compliance, scheduling and quality for a registered training organisation.
• Instructional designer, building courses and assessment tools for corporate, government or education providers.
• VET teacher or trainer, delivering and assessing vocational programs, often after adding the required teaching qualification.
• Curriculum developer, writing units of competency and learning resources for training packages.
• Workplace assessor, judging whether staff meet industry standards in commercial kitchens and food operations.
• Education consultant, advising organisations on training needs, funding and program evaluation.

Australian employers in hospitality, tourism, health and community services, retail and government hire for these roles. The qualification also gives you a pathway into a master's degree with credit for your studies, if you want to keep going. International graduates may be eligible for the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream, and while you study your visa generally allows up to 48 hours of work per fortnight. Confirm visa conditions with the Department of Home Affairs and course details with the Institute of Culinary Education.