Rail Fundamentals (Pre-Vocational)

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Rail Fundamentals (Pre-Vocational)

This project will develop a nationally recognised Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals (Pre Vocational), creating a clear pathway for secondary school students to explore and enter rail industry careers.

Latest update Project Commencement Consultation and feedback
Anticipated completion 26 March 2027
Latest update DRAFT TRAINING PRODUCTS 20 August 2026
About the project

Project overview

Australia is experiencing significant workforce shortages across many sectors, including rail, a cornerstone of national transport and infrastructure. Contributing factors include limited skilled migration, an ageing workforce, and low public awareness of the diverse careers available in rail. Without strong talent attraction and development pathways, the industry faces growing challenges in delivering major projects, supporting supply chains and maintaining long-term productivity.

This project responds to these challenges by creating a new national qualification: Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals (Pre‑Vocational). The qualification will be informed by materials from the Victorian-accredited 22681VIC Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals and selected Units of Competency from the TLI Transport and Logistics Training Package. This ensures alignment with industry needs and provides students and others with the foundational skills required for entry-level rail roles.

Why this matters

What it means for industry

A nationally recognised Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals will strengthen the rail talent pipeline across Australia.

Students will be able to develop essential rail skills while completing secondary school, improving their career readiness and increasing their awareness of opportunities within the sector. The qualification will also help build stronger partnerships between schools, training providers and employers, supporting smoother transitions into employment.

This project aims to:

  • Provide qualification suitable for pre-vocational and school based training
  • Support industry-wide attraction and retention strategies
What the project will do

What this project will do

This project aims to:

  • Provide qualification suitable for pre-vocational and school based training
  • Support industry-wide attraction and retention strategies

This project will:

  • Develop a national Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals (Pre-Vocational) qualification.
  • Create the following for the qualification:
    • Learner guides
    • Assessments
    • Model answers
Project

What will be delivered

This project will:

  • Develop a national Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals (Pre-Vocational) qualification.
  • Create the following for the qualification:
    • Learner guides
    • Assessments
    • Model answers

How this will be achieved

A Technical Committee (TC) will guide the project, with membership drawn from industry, registered training organisations, schools and the Victorian Government.

Consultation Strategy

Industry Skills Australia (ISA) will engage with stakeholders throughout the life of the project and consider all ideas, opinions, and feedback to the revised training products to ensure they meet the needs of industry. A consultation log containing a high-level summary of all feedback and ISA’s response will be maintained and available on our website.

ISA will facilitate a webinar following endorsement of the training products to support stakeholders in understanding the changes and how they will affect them.

 

Latest updates

Project Commencement

Technical Committee Established

Industry Skills Australia has established a Technical Committee (TC) for this project. Comprising 15 subject matter experts from Industry, Peak Bodies, Registered Training Organisations, (RTOs) Commonwealth and State Representatives, and Unions, the committee will help shape a qualification that opens doors for secondary school students and supports the future capability of Australia’s rail workforce.

The first meeting of the Technical Committee was held on 11 June 2026.

Consultation and feedback

DRAFT TRAINING PRODUCTS

Draft training products have been developed to provide a pre-vocational pathway to entry-level roles in the rail industry and Industry Skills Australia would like your feedback. 

The products, drafted by a Technical Committee of subject matter experts, will enable secondary students and other young people to develop essential rail skills and knowledge, explore career opportunities and prepare for employment in the rail industry while strengthening connections between schools, training providers and industry.  

The following new units have been developed: 

  • TLIPC0008 Prepare for employment in the rail industry 
  • TLIF0035 Develop safety awareness for a rail environment 
  • TLII0009 Provide a service to rail customers 
  • TLIPC0009 Identify the functional areas of rail operations 
  • TLIPC0010 Identify rail network infrastructure 
  • TLIPC0011 Identify rolling stock 
  • TLIK0006 Identify new and emerging technologies in the rail industry
  • TLIPC0007 Identify elements of a rail network

The following new qualification has been developed: 

  • TLI20527 Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals 

To review draft products, click below:  

Qualification/s: TLI20527 Certificate II in Rail Fundamentals.pdf 

Unit/s of Competency: Units.zip 

To view additional documents, click below: 

Mapping Attachments Document: TLI Release 19.0 Companion Volume V0.1 (Mapping Attachments A-C).xlsx 

Companion Volume Implementation Guide: TLI Release 16.0 Companion Volume.zip 

Consultation Log: TLI Rail Fundamentals – Consultation Log.pdf 

Please submit your feedback by close of business 17 September 2026.  

Submit your feedback: TLI Rail Fundamentals (Pre-vocational) – Fill out form 

Feedback will be collated and discussed at the next Technical Committee meeting.