CDERP College

CDERP College is where we translate our research and evidence driven focus into practice. Where Person-Centred Practice is real and not just a buzzword. Customised Employment, Discovery and Individual Place and Support knowledge and skills to support meaningful employment outcomes. Evidence based, practice informed real world guidance and skills development.

Our Courses

Training and Professional Development Courses for Disability Employment Professionals, Advocates and Families focused on practical person-centred services in real-world settings. Developed locally and supported by our technical partners, Customised Employment pioneers, Griffin Hammis Associates, and practice leading service providers globally. Developed for Australia using local evidence, ideal for Open and Supported Employment Staff and Families who want to deliver employment support on their terms. The source for Customised Employment and Disability Employment Professionals who value experience and practice.

$400
Young hispanic woman discovery family foundations

Customised Employment – Foundations & Discovery Stage 1

Our foundation credential provides a detailed understanding of Discovery and Customised Employment stage 1. This course is a great way for anyone who wishes to deliver or support a person with a disability on the employment journey to develop the foundation skills required to pursue employment.
You will develop an understanding of the origins of Customised Employment and Stage One of Discovery – Getting to Know the Client. The knowledge obtained leads to greater and more meaningful client engagement.

$400

Customised Employment – The Person and their Career, Discovery Stage 2

This credential builds on the knowledge and skills acquired in Discovery and Customised Employment stage 1. The focus is on identifying skills in the workplace and the use of work experience to underpin skill development and focus on identifying vocational pathways. During work experience, we capture skills in action to develop visual resumes. We also explore career design and pathways underpinned by Self-Determination. This course provides the next steps to ensuring job development is undertaken in a focused person-centred manner.

$2,000.00
customised employment professional leaning up against a window

Customised Employment – CDERP Certified Professional (CCEP) ©

This certificate provides 120 hours of comprehensive training in Customised Employment and Discovery designed to meet the needs of employment professionals delivering employment services with fidelity to practice evidence. The program is detailed and provides an understanding of Customised Employment practices using the contextualised version of Discovery developed specifically for the Australian setting. The program has been developed and extensively used in Australia to ensure that it meets our funding settings for disability employment practice.

$400

Customised Employment – Support Funding, Activating Families and Self-Employment Stage 4

This credential builds on the knowledge and skills acquired in Customised Employment stage 3. The focus is on understanding how to fund the employment journey, the various supports to consider, the role of benefits planning, along with how to engage families in the employment process. Families are crucial to employment success.

The course can be taken as a stand-alone program.

$400

Customised Employment – Job Development, Employer Engagement and Career Support Stage 3

In this credential, you will build on the knowledge and skills acquired in Customised Employment stage 2. The focus is on unmet needs in the workplace, matching the participant’s skills and interests to the business culture and setting. By understanding the unmet needs and culture of the business you can create conditions of mutuality in the workplace that meets the participant's ideal conditions of employment while addressing an identified business need.

$30
Down syndrome woman at home using computer laptop exploring customised employment and discovery with a happy face standing and smiling with a confident smile showing teeth

Customised Employment and Discovery Overview

This short course provides a brief introduction to Customised Employment and Discovery, a taste of what is available within our Micro-Credentials. This includes what is Customised Employment, what is Discovery, fundamental principles, key characteristics, links with NDIS employment strategy and pricing guide and information about what our programs deliver.

Important for anyone considering employment using innovative person-centred methods.

$250
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Person-Centred Employment Practice

This course is designed for individuals looking to develop a basic understanding of person-centred practice as it is applied in disability employment at both an individual and service provider level. The course provides a comprehensive look at Person-Centred Practice and Organisations, along with employment consultants/employer interface and the individual practice models of Customised Employment (CE) and Individual Place and Support (IPS).

$800

Individual Place and Support for Non-Mental Health Staff

This course has been designed to give employment consultants the knowledge to deliver IPS in non-clinical settings. IPS is an evidence-based practice method that was originally developed for use with clients with mental illness with a focus on rapid employer engagement. Today it has application across a wider cohort of clients with barriers to employment and is a perfect complementary skillset for anyone looking to deliver person-centred practice.

$800

Discovery – CDERP Certified Professional

The Basic Certificate in Discovery is a 40-hour self-paced foundation course.
Key concepts covered include:
* Introduction to Customised Employment,
* Understanding Discovery and the Person,
* Understanding Discovery and Social Capital,
* Arranging Informational Interviews,
* Promoting Work Experience,
* Undertaking Job Development & Engaging Employers.
Ideal for Planners, LACs, NDIS employment practitioners and active families.

$250

Engaging with Employers – Building an Alliance of Mutuality

In this short course, we offer insight into employment consultant skills and knowledge, along with examing employer engagement from the perspective of employers and what they need from employment services. We also examine the latest research into employer concerns and challenges, providing you with the knowledge to engage employers on a personal level. This course will provide you with the essential information and skills needed to work with employers in your environment. The insights gained will allow you to reflect and engage with employers on a different level.

$250
job developer hands across a table holding a piece of a job development jigsaw finding job openings

Job Development – Disability Employment

Job Development is an essential skill set for everyone working in employment services. This course will take you through the six stages of job development covering: understanding the client, understanding the employer, job analysis, task analysis, job carving/creation, and workplace accommodations. The course will provide insight into working with families, and employers and a basic understanding of systematic instruction. On completion, you will have developed the essential skills and knowledge built on evidence from practice and research. All course materials are downloadable.

$800
autumn coloured leaves lined up from dark to light

Glide In (School to Work Transition)

Glide In is an innovative transition from school to work program that focuses on building the participant's capacity to self-determine and self-advocate, known elements in a successful transition to employment or further study. Glide In focuses on the five elements that support a successful transition including work experience and job development, with participants finishing the program with a Blueprint for employment and further study. Glide In is a natural program for employment services looking to deliver individualised employment outcomes. Available for families and licenced to service providers/schools.

$50

Job Analysis

Job Analysis, sometimes described as a systematic study of a job is a critical skillset essential for job development. The changing and challenging employment landscape will require employment professionals to develop real skills in job analysis that meet the needs of clients and employers. This course will take you through the knowledge and steps that underpin good job analysis supported by video resources and exercises to ensure that you understand and retain the skill. As part of the development of this skill, you will undertake a job analysis of a real job and break it down. Step into the future!

$50

Job Carving

Job Carving is an employment strategy, developed to create employment opportunities for people with barriers to employment, or who lack the full range of skills or abilities to undertake a specific job in full. Job carving involves creating, modifying, or customising a job so that it can be successfully performed by an individual with disabilities, while simultaneously meeting the needs of an employer. In this short course, you will also be introduced to the skill of building a business case for creating a new job, essential for successful job creation/carving.

$50
blocks with words step by step stacked on top of each other representing task analysis

Task Analysis

Task Analysis (TA) is the breaking down of complex or "chained" skills into smaller components to teach a skill. The person can be taught to perform individual steps of the chain progressively until the entire skill is mastered (also called “forward chaining”) or maybe trained to perform particular actions beginning with the final step and gradually moving back through the chain of skills until the whole task is mastered from the beginning (backward chaining). This is an essential skill for every job developer who seeks to successfully create new employment opportunities.

$50

Individual Employment Practice Models

This short course will examine the rationale for individualised approaches to employment. The course looks at the two accepted approaches to individualised employment support; Individual Place and Support, and Customised Employment. Both practice models will be compared and contrasted to provide participants with a basic understanding of the approaches, their strengths and weaknesses and target groups.
Course participants will develop an understanding that will allow them to make an informed choice on which model to use when supporting clients.

$250

Work Experience

Work experience is an opportunity to explore and confirm the job seekers' strengths, interests, and emerging abilities. It enhances our ability to correctly identify vocational themes and pathways for the clients. In this course, you will learn about the purpose of work experience, the different types of work experience, the benefits of work experience, how to arrange work experience, how to support work experience, the role of families and the post-experience benefits. This course builds essential skills and knowledge to support professional employment practice.

Certified Disability Employment Specialist

This course is designed to meet the needs of the modern Disability Employment Professional who works across multiple disability employment areas. The CDERP Certified Disability Employment Specialist has the knowledge and capacity to meet the demanding needs of a multi-focused disability employment system that demands an understanding of DES, ADE and NDIS disability employment systems. In short, you are a true professional focused on meeting client needs in a person-centred way, whether the client is an individual, an employer or the system itself.

Full Course details will be available shortly. Available for enrolment second quarter of 2023. To discuss this course, email: peter.smith@cderp.com.au

Coming Soon

The Job Coach

Job Coaching is an essential ingredient to successful long-term employment.

The Job Coach assists neurodivergent individuals and persons with disabilities to find suitable employment by partnering with employers and clients to ensure suitable adjustments and ongoing support. The role of the Job Coach is varied and takes on different support aspects based on organisational structure and need.

This course builds skills essential for the anyone support a person into employment or the Disability Employment Professional looking to improve employment practice and outcomes.

Coming Soon

Employment Counselling

This course will equip employment staff with a basic understanding of the essential counselling skills for employment support.

These skills and knowledge will be invaluable for employment staff working across the broad spectrum of clients that utilise employment support. It will also facilitate a closer working alliance with mental health specialists where that opportunity exists, particularly in these challenging times. It provides valuable skills and education for employment staff looking to add value to their role in supporting people with barriers to employment.

Actionable Training

Evidence-based - Practice Informed training that works everyday. We don't simply write and teach, we deliver it everyday through our Work First Employment program.

Learning that Builds Skills

Our training isn't about just passing a course to get some letters after your name. It's about building your knowledge and skills for the real world.

Mentoring

It's not just about theory, on demand mentoring and our Community of Practice ensure that you get real life support and timely mentoring from experts and peers alike.

Professional Development and Training For Disability Employment Advocates, Families and Consultants

Our training is evidence-based, practice informed and developed to meet the needs of the evolving disability employment paradigm. It continues to evolve in response to our changing employment setting and funding arrangements to ensure that it meets your needs. DES, NDIS, Social Entreprise / Firm or ADE, our training responds to your setting and needs. Modern, effective disability employment systems demand up to date knowledge and skills to ensure that you meet the needs of clients who are undertaking a journey of discovery to personally meaningful employment and careers. Our focus for decades has been on evolving the evidence for Customised Employment and improving practice methods. With the NDIS supporting Discovery, now more than ever there is an urgent need for real training with fidelity to the evidence and practice model. CDERP College is dedicated to achieving just that. Congratulations on chosing CDERP College, an acknowledgement that you value experience and substance over style and quick fixes!

Our programs allow you to build the skills necessary to deliver meaningful employment services, particularly for people interested in delivering person-centred services with an emphasis on Customised Employment and Discovery. Based on the best available evidence for practice.

We offer you the opportunity to engage with up to date material and resources to make your learning journey easy and accessible. Our LMS is intuitive and well supported. Courses are complete with downable resources and video materials.

Our staff don’t just teach you new skills, they use them daily with clients, service providers, business and government.    Learn from people locally and internationally who have global experience and support  to nuance the training to our culture and context.

What Our Students Have to Say

I just finished the latest CDERP podcast and wanted to check in to let you know how much I’ve enjoyed the recent training sessions with Jon and Lauren. It’s reinvigorated my interest in employment outcomes for people living with disability and reminded me why I started working in this field in the first place. Redefining purpose seems to benefit from these accidental moments, and while my current role only briefly scratches the surface, it has me thinking about the future again through a changed lens.
Chris
From Tasmania
I really enjoyed the CDERP course because of its person-centred approach to employment, which really aligns with my values. It looks at the person as a whole and aims to create a role with longevity and career development based on their particular skills and attributes. The course gives you a great understanding of the structure and steps involved in the customised employment process, but also allows for the flexibility and fluidity needed when dealing with individuals with complex needs. It was helpful to use real examples and being able to access the course facilitators for mentoring throughout the course has been really valuable.
Ally
From Perth
I am really enjoying the Customised Employment Course. It is easy to study, interesting and practical. If we go by the responses of the people I told about the Customised Employment, there is a demand for it in Kenya. I have so many questions about how this can be contextualised for a low income country with high unemployment rate, no disability benefits, difficulty finding jobs even for people with minor disabilities.
Jane
From Kenya
I just think that the impact of this first part of Discovery on you is quite significant and I would be right in saying that the outcomes that you would assume for clients would be so different to what you might have considered in the past.
Provider Staff Participant
From Canberra
I guess I never really appreciated how much a job means to guys like Billy. I just took it for granted and looked at it from a perspective of paying the bills and making an impact in small ways when I am allowed to. With this training I feel inspired and motivated to work on a different level and have a bigger impact at empowering people with a disability. Before Covid one night at soccer Billy comes up to me and tells me that he might have a job in a recycling yard. He seemed so proud and happy. I gave it some thought and felt a little flattered that he would share this good news with me and then well you know the story. On my informational interview with him I asked him how many friends he had apart from Tom at the soccer and he said "no one really" and that felt so sad. So to have the experience and training to be able to help him it almost brings a tear to me eye and I feel very blessed.
Gerry
From Perth

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