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VCE is not necessary for university entrance (see university entry) but if you do want to do VCE, you can enter a regular school in order to complete it, or these options are worth considering:
VCE via Virtual School Victoria (formerly known as Distance Education Centre Victoria/DECV). Home educated teenagers who have been registered for home education with the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) for at least 12 months are eligible to undertake year 10 and/or VCE via Virtual School Victoria without meeting any of the usual criteria. To enrol under this category students must:
Contact details:
Virtual School Victoria
Web: https://vsv.vic.edu.au/
Phone: 03 8480 0000
Toll Free: 1800 133 511
Fax: 03 9416 8493
Email: feedback@vsv.vic.edu.au
VCE via the AYCE programme – on campus attendance is required once a week with work completed at home.
VCE via Council of Adult Education (CAE) CAE offers over 80 VCE subjects that can be done either full time or part time. Students have to be 17 or over.
Other VCE providers. Many TAFEs and other Adult Community Centres and even neighbourhood houses offer VCE. Age requirements vary but when enrolment numbers are down, institutions are sometimes more flexible. In some instances, these institutions run the course themselves, others are facilitators of Distance Ed in which case students attend a couple of times a week and complete work at home. Experiences with neighbourhood houses vary a lot depending on the particular staff and student group you get in with.
OTEN is the NSW version of distance ed and offers HSC. They do accept students from interstate as long as they have a year 10 certificate and are at least 15 years old. As Victorian schools don’t have a year 10 certificate, if you’ve left school at that level ask if your year 10 school is sufficient. See their website for eligibility criteria.
TAFE Digital is part of TAFE NSW. TAFE Digitial is the largest online provider of education in Australia. TAFE Digital combines previous TAFE NSW online platforms (such as OTEN, TAFEnow and TAFE online) and currently offers over 250 courses. They offer HSC online if you have a year 10 certificate or a Certificate II.
Open Access College based in Adelaide accepts South Australian Education Department approved home educated students for the SACE including VET. See their website for details or ask your homeschooling moderator.
Templestowe College welcome former home-ed students for year 11 and 12
In 2014 the school gained a considerable amount of media attention for allowing students to vary the times they attended school to suit their learning preferences and lifestyle. This was only one of the many innovations @TC that include each student having their own individualised learning plan, no year level structure from 2015, students select their whole course load from over 120 electives, no bells, phones are encouraged to be used responsibly in class, no bullying, students and staff are treated as equals, many students are also employees of the school, students help select new staff and there is also student representation on the school’s leadership team and curriculum committee.
Source: TedX Melbourne
VCAL online is now available at Box Hill Tafe at foundation, intermediate and senior levels. Courses are self paced and can be completed online or with a combination of online and face to face classes (Box Hill or Melbourne city campus).
VCAL is also offered by Hester Hombrook as a youth re-engagement program
Consider also that you may not need VCE. See TAFE & Adult Education Providers and University Entry (with or without VCE) for more alternatives.
