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 career under a hoist. You study how a repair business actually makes money: quoting and job costing, stock and parts control, staff rostering, workplace safety, customer service and the compliance that comes with running a licensed trade business in Australia.

Delivery is full time over one year, and the course is built from units of study with set credit points, the same way Australian diplomas and degrees are structured. Expect a mix of classroom work, workshop-based learning and assessment tasks drawn from real service-department scenarios. Confirm the semester or trimester pattern, the unit list and any credit arrangements on the official page before you apply, because providers can adjust these between intakes.

What you pick up is practical. Reading a profit-and-loss for a service department. Costing a job so the margin survives. Ordering parts without tying up cash. Handling a complaint from a customer whose car came back twice. Supervising apprentices and keeping the workshop compliant with work health and safety rules. These are the skills that get people promoted from technician to service advisor, and from service advisor to manager.

The course suits three groups: qualified mechanics and auto electricians who want to move into supervision or ownership, people already working in dealerships or fleet operations who need formal recognition of what they do, and international students who want an Australian qualification in a trade-adjacent business field. International applicants need to meet the college's English requirement, typically IELTS Academic 6.0–6.5 or an accepted equivalent such as TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic or Cambridge C1 Advanced. The Department of Home Affairs also sets its own English threshold for the Student visa, which is separate from the college's entry rule. On a Student visa you can work up to 48 hours per fortnight while your course is in session, and graduates may be able to apply for the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream, depending on the stream and the rules at the time. Tuition is published on the CRICOS register under course code 114279K.

• Service advisor or service manager, the front desk of a dealership or independent workshop, quoting jobs, managing bookings and keeping customers informed.
• Workshop supervisor, running the floor, allocating work to technicians and apprentices, and keeping jobs on schedule.
• Parts and inventory coordinator, ordering, storing and controlling stock for a dealership, parts distributor or repair chain.
• Fleet maintenance coordinator, looking after vehicles for councils, logistics companies, mining contractors and rental firms.
• Automotive business owner or operator, running your own workshop, mobile repair business or detailing and accessory operation.
• Warranty and claims administrator, handling manufacturer warranty claims and insurance repair paperwork.

Employers include new-car dealerships, independent repair workshops, national service chains, parts wholesalers, fleet operators, equipment hire companies and government vehicle pools. The Australian automotive sector is a service industry now that local manufacturing has wound down, so the demand sits in maintenance, repair and aftermarket parts rather than assembly lines.