There's a whole industry built around selling tickets and tickets to workers, and it's easy to convince yourself you need to collect every certificate going before anyone will hire you. The truth is more useful and a lot cheaper: a small number of tickets genuinely move the needle when you're chasing an apprenticeship or your first jobs, and the rest are best done later, when a specific job actually calls for them.
This guide sorts the credentials that reliably get apprentices hired from the ones that can wait. The exact mix depends on your trade and state, but the principles hold across the board. And remember — an employer hiring an apprentice cares far more about attitude and reliability than a stack of certificates, so treat tickets as a helpful edge, not a substitute for showing up ready to work.
The one ticket almost everyone needs: the White Card
If you're going anywhere near a construction site, you need a White Card (the General Construction Induction card). It's the baseline safety induction, it's cheap, it's quick, and most sites and employers treat it as non-negotiable. Get it first. It's the single best return on your money as a new apprentice — full details in the White Card guide.
Without it, you literally can't be inducted onto most sites, so no White Card can mean no job. With it, you've removed a barrier and shown you're serious. If you only do one thing before applying, do this.
The high-value early tickets worth considering
After the White Card, a few tickets punch above their weight for the money — especially if they suit your trade:
- First aid and CPR. Cheap, quick, widely valued, and useful for life. Employers like knowing you can respond if a workmate is hurt. See first aid and CPR certificates.
- Driver's licence. Not a "ticket" as such, but often the quiet dealbreaker. Many jobs assume you can drive to site and run supplier errands — read driver's licence tips for apprentices.
- Forklift licence. Portable across warehouses, yards and sites, and easy casual work between jobs. Worth it if your trade shifts a lot of materials — see the forklift licence guide.
These are the ones that make you a lower-hassle, more flexible hire without costing a fortune.
Trade-specific tickets — get them when the work needs them
Some tickets are genuinely valuable, but only if your trade actually uses them. Doing them too early wastes money and they can expire before you get to use them. Match the ticket to the work:
- Working at heights — for roofing, structural, electrical, air conditioning and anything above head height. See the working at heights ticket guide.
- EWP (boom and scissor lifts) — for platform work, especially the WP high risk work licence for boom lifts over 11 metres. See EWP tickets.
- Confined space entry — for plumbing, civil, water/sewer and industrial maintenance. See confined space entry tickets.
- Asbestos awareness — for anyone working on buildings from before 2004, which is a lot of renovation and maintenance work. See asbestos awareness training.
- High risk work licences — forklifts, cranes, rigging, scaffolding and more, added as your career grows. See high risk work licences explained.
The smart move is to hold off on these until you've landed a role, then let your employer guide (and often fund) which ones you need next.
Let the employer pay where you can
Here's the bit that saves you money. A lot of these tickets directly enable the work an employer needs done, so plenty of employers and Group Training Organisations will pay for them once you're on board. They can't legally use you on certain jobs without the ticket, so it's in their interest.
So before you spend hundreds of your own dollars stacking up certificates, land the job with the basics, then ask what tickets they want you to get and whether they'll fund them. It's a completely normal conversation, and asking shows initiative — see how to show initiative without overstepping.
Tickets don't beat attitude
This is the part the ticket-selling industry won't tell you. Certificates get your foot in the door, but they don't keep the job. Employers consistently rank reliability, attitude and willingness to learn above experience and paperwork — read why attitude matters more than experience and what employers expect from a first year apprentice.
A ute full of tickets and a bad attitude will lose to a keen, punctual apprentice with just a White Card every time. If your resume looks thin, the fix isn't more tickets — it's showing you're dependable, teachable and genuinely interested in the trade. Our guide on what employers want to see in an apprentice resume helps you present what you've got.
A simple game plan
If you're starting from scratch, here's a sensible order:
- Step 1: Get your White Card. It's the entry ticket to most sites.
- Step 2: Sort your driver's licence if you can — it removes a common barrier.
- Step 3: Consider first aid and CPR — cheap, quick, and a nice edge.
- Step 4: Land the apprenticeship or job with these basics and a strong attitude.
- Step 5: Ask your employer which trade-specific tickets they want, and whether they'll pay.
- Step 6: Add high risk work and specialist tickets as the work — and your career — calls for them.
Don't overspend chasing paper. Spend on the basics, then let real jobs guide the rest. When you're ready, browse apprenticeship jobs or create a free profile so employers can find you.
Key takeaways
- The White Card is the near-universal must-have — get it first, it's cheap and often required for site access.
- High-value early extras: first aid and CPR, a driver's licence, and (if relevant) a forklift licence.
- Trade-specific tickets (heights, EWP, confined space, asbestos, cranes) are worth it only when the work needs them.
- Many employers and GTOs will pay for tickets once you're hired — ask before funding them yourself.
- Attitude, reliability and willingness to learn beat a stack of certificates every time.
- Land the job with the basics, then let real work guide which tickets to add next.