Advanced Diploma of Event Management

The Advanced Diploma of Event Management is a two-year qualification for people who want to run events, conferences, festivals, exhibitions, weddings, corporate functions, community and sporting events. You learn how to plan an event from the first brief through to the pack-down: scoping what the client actually wants, building a budget that holds, sourcing and negotiating with venues and suppliers, coordinating staging, audio-visual, catering and security, marketing the event, managing risk and compliance, and leading a team on the day. Assessment is practical. You will build event proposals, run costings, write risk and safety plans, and work on live events rather than only writing essays about them.

How the qualification is structured

Australian vocational qualifications at this level are built from units of competency, each carrying credit points, and delivered across semesters or trimesters. You complete a set number of core units plus electives, and you need to pass every required unit to graduate. Many colleges include a work placement or industry project as part of the course, because event management is a field where employers want to see that you have actually worked an event, set up a registration desk, dealt with a supplier who cancelled, handled a crowd. Ask the college how many placement hours are included and whether they arrange the host organisation or you do. Credit for previous study or relevant work experience may be available; that is assessed unit by unit, so bring your transcripts and a record of your industry experience to the application.

What you come out able to do

By the end you should be able to write an event plan someone would actually fund, manage a budget and reconcile it afterwards, brief and supervise contractors, apply work health and safety and licensing requirements, and keep a program on schedule when something goes wrong. You also pick up the softer side: client communication, negotiation, and keeping a casual crew of staff and volunteers pointed in the same direction at 6am on event day. These are the skills that transfer across every kind of event work.

Who it suits

This suits school leavers who want a practical qualification rather than a three-year degree, career changers moving into events from hospitality, tourism, retail or marketing, and people already working in events who want a formal credential to move into coordination or supervisory roles. It also works as a pathway, on the AQF, an advanced diploma sits above a diploma and below a bachelor degree, and many Australian institutions give credit towards a bachelor degree in event, tourism or business management for units you have completed. If you are an international student, you can work up to 48 hours per fortnight while your course is in session, and the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream may be available after you finish, depending on your circumstances. Entry normally requires Year 12 or equivalent, and international applicants need to meet the college's English requirement. Tuition is published on the CRICOS register under course code 114047D. Confirm entry requirements, unit lists, placement arrangements and fees on the official page before you apply.

• Event coordinator, planning and delivering conferences, exhibitions and corporate functions for event management companies, hotels and venues.
• Conference and meetings organiser, working with professional associations, convention centres and business event bureaux.
• Festival or community events officer, local councils, arts organisations and community groups run public events year-round.
• Wedding coordinator, venues, wedding planners and styling businesses.
• Exhibition and trade show organiser, exhibition companies and industry associations.
• Sponsorship and promotions coordinator, sporting clubs, charities and marketing agencies.
• Venue operations coordinator, hotels, function centres, stadiums and entertainment venues.
• Event sales and client services, venues and destination management companies.

Event management employers in Australia range from small planning firms and regional councils to national event companies, hotels, convention centres and major sporting bodies. Many roles are project-based, so a portfolio of events you have worked on matters as much as the qualification. The advanced diploma can also lead into further study, with credit towards a bachelor degree in event management, tourism or business.