Skilled Occupation: Construction Manager

ANZSCO 133111 Construction Project Manager

The COVID19 pandemic continues to create challenges across the globe. The Australian Government has identified a range of occupations in critical supply. The Department of Home Affairs has placed 18 occupations on the Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List (PMSOL).

Visa applications with occupations on this list currently have priority processing (including employer sponsorship and General Skilled Migration).

All other skilled occupation lists remain active, but the PMSOL occupations take priority (and visa holders can enter Australia during the pandemic – although strict quarantine will be enforced).

The 18 occupations on the PMSOL are:

• Chief Executive or Managing Director (111111)
• Construction Project Manager (133111)
• Mechanical Engineer (233512)
• General Practitioner (253111)
• Resident Medical Officer (253112)
• Psychiatrist (253411)
• Medical Practitioner nec (253999)
• Midwife (254111)
• Registered Nurse (Aged Care) (254412)
• Registered Nurse (Critical Care and Emergency) (254415)
• Registered Nurse (Medical) (254418)
• Registered Nurse (Mental Health) (254422)
• Registered Nurse (Perioperative) (254423)
• Registered Nurses nec (254499)
• Developer Programmer (261312)
• Software Engineer (261313)
• Social Worker (272511)
• Maintenance Planner (312911)

These occupations reflect the significant focus on COVID19 recovery efforts. There are many opportunities available for applicants who have a positive skills assessment in one of these priority occupations.

As a way of highlighting these critical occupations, we will be creating a series of blogs outlining each of the PMSOL occupations. Today we are focusing on Construction Project Managers.

The significant focus from both Federal and State Government on new infrastructure investment has created a very high demand for Construction Project Managers in all states of Australia!

We have recently blogged about the VETASSESS (one of the most commonly used skills assessing bodies) here. VETASSESS is the assessing body for Construction Project Managers.

Getting your skills assessed is the first step in the General Skilled Migration process (and the most important!). VETASSESS has published instructions on this occupation here.

So…who are Construction Project Managers? What do they actually do? Can anyone working in the construction industry be a Project Manager?

Construction Project Managers are sometimes called Building and Construction managers. They are, however, not the same as Building inspectors or Builders. The main difference is that the tasks of a Construction Project Manager include some specific areas such as:

• Coordinating between the various processes of the Project (resources, procurement and delivery etc)
• Consulting with the different professionals working in the Project (architects, engineers, technical and trades workers)
• Negotiating with the parties involved in the project on the timelines and the budget
• Contract work and tenders
• Legislation and Standards of performance, quality, cost and safely
• Submission of plans to local authorities
• Overseeing the standard and progress of the work on the project.

A Construction Project Manager needs to have the equivalent of an AQF Bachelor degree or higher degree.

Highly relevant major fields of study include:

• Construction Project Management
• Building Technology or Science
• Civil Engineering (if civil project)
• Majors in other fields such as Architecture could be considered on a case-by-case basis if the course includes the core competencies and employment is considered to be in the relevant context.

Note: Project Management degrees without concentration in Built Environment / Construction would not generally be positively assessed for this occupation.

It is important to keep in mind that only those who have received a positive skills assessment are able to pursue a General Skilled Migration pathway. A skills assessment is also important for permanent employer sponsorship, and can be mandatory for some temporary employer sponsored options too (don’t worry, we can help with all of this, and help you select the best visa option).

Once your visa has been granted, you may begin searching for work in Australia. You can use this guideline to the career of Construction Project Manager.

To work as a Construction Project Manager in Australia, you need to register with the Australian Business Licence and Information Service (ABLIS). Registration must be renewed annually, and eligibility requires a mixture of practical industry experience and the completion of accredited qualifications. You must also be the holder of a White Card (this is a process not related to migration and needs to be done separately following your arrival).

If you have an occupation on the Priority Skilled Migration Occupation List, contact us today to get your skills assessment underway!

As a Construction Project Manager, you will be able to find employment in:•Construction Company•Property Development Company •Project Management Consultancy (construction) •Government AuthorityThis is an exciting, well paid career and many prospects of developing skills further.We at Regional Migration Australia, will be happy to help you in your journey to a fulfilling career as a Construction Project Manager in Australia and attend to the priority processing on your visa application in the General Skilled Migration Program.

We have discussed the process of skills assessment of a variety of occupations by an organization called VETASSESS here (insert link to the blog article on Vetassess). This organization also assesses this occupation.Having the skills assessed to make sure they comply with the Australian standard for this profession is the first step in the General Skilled Migration process. VETASSESS has published specific instructions on this occupation here:https://www.vetassess.com.au/Portals/0/Downloads/qualification_assessment/Construction_Project_Manager.pdfSo, who are Construction Project Managers? What do they actually do? Can anyone working in the construction industry be a Project Manager?Construction Project Managers are sometimes also called Building and Construction managers. They are, however, not the same as Building inspectors or Builders. The main difference is that the tasks of a Construction Project Manager include some specific areas such as Coordinatingbetween the various processes of the Project (resources, procurement and delivery etc), Consulting with the different professionals working in the Project (architects, engineers, technical and trades workers), Negotiating with the parties involved in the project on the timelines and the budget, Contractwork and tenders, Legislation and Standardsof performance, quality, cost and safely, Submissionof plans to local authorities and Overseeingthe standard and progress of the work on the project.Moreover, in order to be assessed as a Construction Project Manager, one needs to have completed a specialized qualificationas per the following requirements:Qualification AQF Bachelor degree or higher degree Highly relevant major fields of study include:•Construction Project Management •Building Technology or Science•Civil Engineering (if civil project) Majors in other fields such as Architecture could be considered on a case-by-case basis if the course includes the core competencies and employment is considered to be in the relevant context. Project Management degrees without concentration in Built Environment / Construction would not generally be positively assessed for this occupation.it is important to keep in mind that only those who have received a positive skills assessment would be able to continue to one of the Skilled Migration pathways, be it Employer Nominated Visas or General Skilled visas with or without State Nomination.Once your visa has been granted, you may begin searching for work locally following your arrival to Australia. You can use this guideline to the career of Construction Project Manager:https://www.seek.com.au/career-advice/role/construction-project-managerplease note, that to work as a Construction Project Manager in Australia, you need to register with the Australian Business Licence and Information Service (ABLIS). Registration must be renewed annually, and eligibility requires a mixture of practical industry experience and the completion of accredited qualifications. You must also be the holder of a White Card.This is a process not related to migration and needs to be done separately following your arrival.As a Construction Project Manager, you will be able to find employment in:•Construction Company•Property Development Company •Project Management Consultancy (construction) •Government AuthorityThis is an exciting, well paid career and many prospects of developing skills further.We at Regional Migration Australia, will be happy to help you in your journey to a fulfilling career as a Construction Project Manager in Australia and attend to the priority processing on your visa application in the General Skilled Migration Program