What is the Advanced Diploma of Community Sector Management (CHC62015)? A complete guide
-A-complete-guide)
Most people who ask about the Advanced Diploma of Community Sector Management are already doing parts of the job. They coordinate a program, they supervise a team, they sign off a roster and a budget, and they have no formal management qualification to point at.
This guide covers what the qualification actually is, who it is built for, and how to tell whether it or the Diploma of Community Services is the right one.
What is the Advanced Diploma of Community Sector Management?
The Advanced Diploma of Community Sector Management (CHC62015) is a nationally recognised management qualification for the community and social services sector. It is our only Advanced Diploma, and it sits above the Diploma of Community Services.
The clue is in the word management. This is not more training in supporting clients. It is training in running the service that supports them: programs, budgets, compliance, quality, risk and the team doing the work.
What you study
There are 13 units, and they split into three groups.
- Leading the work: lead the work team, develop workplace communication strategies, lead and manage organisational change, manage innovation and continuous improvement.
- Running the service: manage finances, manage risk, develop and implement service programs, develop, implement and review a quality framework, implement community development strategies.
- Practice and compliance: manage legal and ethical compliance, manage and promote diversity, coordinate complex case requirements, provide case management supervision.
Those last two are worth noticing. Coordinating complex cases and supervising other people's case management are the bridge between senior practice and management, and they are usually where people find out whether they want the manager role at all.
Advanced Diploma or Diploma of Community Services?
This is the question we are asked most, so here they are side by side.
| What changes | Diploma of Community Services (CHC52025) | Advanced Diploma of Community Sector Management (CHC62015) |
|---|---|---|
| What you are responsible for | Clients and cases: assessment, person centred support, crisis response, case management | Services and people: programs, budgets, quality, risk, compliance and the team |
| Who it is built for | People moving from frontline support into case management and coordination | People already leading, or about to lead, who need the management side formalised |
| Entry | No formal entry requirements, plus a short language, literacy and numeracy assessment at enrolment | A guide rather than a rule: 2 to 3 years servicing the community, or a Diploma in a related discipline, or an interview to confirm the fit. You also need to be at least 18 |
| Units | 20 units | 13 units |
| Work placement | Yes: 100 hours, or up to 20 hours more if you do not currently work in the sector | Not stated on the course page. Check with an education consultant before you assume either way |
The short version: if the hardest part of your week is a client's situation, the Diploma is your qualification. If the hardest part is a budget, a roster or a funding report, it is the Advanced Diploma.
Who it is really for
- Managers and team leaders already working in community services with no formal qualification behind them
- Diploma graduates stepping up into coordination and management
- People part way through a management qualification elsewhere who want to finish
One thing it is not: an administration course. People sometimes find it while searching for aged care administration, and it is a different thing entirely. This is about managing services and the people who deliver them.
Where it can take you
The course page names roles including community care manager, community development manager, community education manager, community services coordinator, community work coordinator, coordinator of volunteer work, neighbourhood centre manager and project manager in community services.
They sit across community organisations, government agencies, not for profit organisations and social enterprises.
How it runs
It is studied online and self-paced with no exams, so it fits around a management job rather than competing with one. As a general guide it takes 12 to 24 months, and people who already do much of this work often move faster.
If you have been managing for years, or hold a related Diploma, ask about Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfer before you enrol. Bring evidence: position descriptions, budgets you own, programs you have run, and any units you have already completed. A trainer assesses what carries across.
Payment plans are available. For current pricing, speak with one of our education consultants, who can also tell you whether any government funding applies in your state.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a Diploma before the Advanced Diploma?
Not necessarily. The entry guide accepts 2 to 3 years of experience servicing the community, or a Diploma in a related discipline, or an interview to check the course fits your experience. If you are earlier in your career, the Diploma of Community Services is usually the better starting point.
Is there a work placement?
No placement is stated on the course page, unlike the Diploma, which sets out 100 hours. Because people compare the two, check the current requirement with an education consultant rather than assuming.
Can I transfer units I completed with another provider?
Often yes, through Credit Transfer, with evidence of what you completed. Raise it before you enrol so your plan is built around it.
Is this an aged care administration qualification?
No. It is a management qualification for the community sector as a whole. Aged care providers are part of that sector, but the course is about managing services, not administering them.
Where Upskilled fits in
The Advanced Diploma of Community Sector Management (CHC62015) is nationally recognised, studied online and self-paced, with no exams and dedicated community services trainers. You can see it alongside the other diploma community services courses.
If your management future is broader than the community sector, the Diploma of Leadership and Management covers the same leadership ground in a general business setting. And if you are still working out which part of the sector suits you, our post on what a community services worker actually does is a good place to start.
Career information is general and indicative. Study does not guarantee a job, a promotion or a particular salary.
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