Course Details
VET Logo

Certificate 4 in Celebrancy

Please note I am not taking any further enrolments for 2024. I am in the midst of overhauling the course and look forward to unveiling our new offering in early 2025! I hope to reopen enrolments by the end of January 2025.

Certificate IV in Celebrancy CHC41015 is a nationally accredited celebrant course offered by The Celebrant Institute RTO 22417 that is required for people looking to become an authorised marriage celebrant in Australia.

What are you looking for in your celebrant training? Are you looking for the best celebrancy course in Australia, a course that will provide you with professional and relevant celebrancy training, education and ongoing support? Look no further, for this is what The Celebrant Institute offers you.

Wedding Celebrant Course

With over 71% of Certificate IV in Celebrancy graduates feeling unprepared for their work as marriage celebrants, we have designed a course that tackles that problem head-on. Our wedding celebrant students will graduate with the confidence needed to stand in front of weddings and absolutely rock at what they do, while also being prepared to address the legal structures and requirements of becoming and being a Commonwealth Registered Marriage Celebrant.

As one of my valued students, you will receive support, information and inspiration all the way through. Our students always have direct access to us through email and phone. We’re all working celebrants and may not always be available to chat or answer an email straight away, but we’ll always get back to you.

I will continue to support you after your studies when you are facing the challenges of creating best practice ceremonies in the real world. You will be able to stay in touch with the other students you meet through the course. You will be encouraged to attend ceremonies (observing appropriate protocols), learn from your colleagues, and enrich each other by sharing experiences.

Your trainer

Your main trainer is me, Sarah Aird, CEO of The Celebrant Institute RTO, and I am widely regarded as the best celebrancy trainer in Australia. I have also commissioned videos from other celebrants and content experts around the country, with their tips and tricks for different aspects of celebrancy practice. I have a small team of trusted assessors who help me out with reviewing your assessment tasks, but they work to clear criteria that help them make consistent decisions the same way I would.

In addition to initial training, CIRTO offers Professional Development to registered celebrants, so you can feel confident that I am in touch with a wide range of practising celebrants on a regular basis, as well as keeping completely up to date with what’s going on in the world of celebrancy.

How to get started in the best celebrant course

Our online celebrant course is highly reviewed and our graduates go on to successful careers as marriage celebrants. Read through all the information below including intake dates, and follow the instructions to apply for enrolment.

About Sarah Aird
Sarah Aird civil celebrantI have been a Commonwealth Registered Marriage Celebrant and funeral celebrant since 2013, and in that time have earned a formidable reputation amongst Australian celebrants as the go-to person for all matters concerning marriage legalities and business. My knowledge of the Marriage Act, Regulations and Guidelines is thorough and current, and I work hard to keep up to date with any changes to the way Australian celebrants work.

My ceremony clients are just as impressed with my work as my colleagues are; I provide a warm and compassionate service to my wedding and funeral clients, and they are always quick to recommend me to others.

I not only know all of the things, I’m also adept at teaching them to new and experienced celebrants in a way that is friendly and approachable. With expertise spanning all aspects of a celebrant’s work, from the legalities to writing ceremonies to performing ceremonies to running a successful, process-oriented business, I have so much to give to the next generation of Australian celebrants, and I am delighted to have the opportunity to pass on my skills and knowledge.

If you’d like to hear me speak on all things celebrant-related, have a listen to my podcast with Josh Withers, The Celebrant Talk Show, available in your podcast app or at celebrant.fm. My collaboration with Josh Withers, The Celebrant Institute, provides a membership platform for celebrants and aspiring celebrants to ask questions of both of us, recognised experts in the industry. You will receive a free 12-month membership to The Celebrant Institute as part of your Certificate IV in Celebrant enrolment; read more about us at celebrant.institute

Structure

Study options

Online courses are delivered completely online entirely from your own home, starting on the first course intake date after your enrolment is processed (see intake dates in the Enrolments section below). You have 12 months to review the written and video content and complete the assessment tasks. There are no organised face-to-face sessions involved in online courses, however there are fortnightly Zoom sessions for students to ask questions. Course fee: $3080 

(Please note I am no longer offering face to face training for the Certificate IV in Celebrancy.)

Content and assessments

We look at ceremonies in general in Australian culture, then take a deeper look at marriages and funerals. We also look at what is required to set up a sustainable celebrant business, and to care for and develop the business in the long-term.

Content provided

All content is provided via our eLearning platform, aXcelerate. There are 20 separate modules, each including multiple sections of written content for you to work through at your own pace; this written content is also provided as a PDF manual in case you want to print it out.

Many sections include videos alongside the written content: there are more than 70 core content videos in which I deliver the content to you just the way I would in a classroom, and there are more than 50 additional content videos in which my celebrant colleagues and other content experts provide extra tips and tricks for you to make your celebrant practice the best it can be.

There are opportunities to check your knowledge throughout the content delivery; these are not assessment tasks, just chances for you to check you’re on the right track and jot down some initial thoughts about your business.

As well as the required legal marriage documents and completed examples, I provide you with more than 20 document templates I have designed throughout my years as a celebrant; you can edit them as you wish and use them for your assessment tasks, and you’ll be able to use them when you’re out in the world working as a celebrant.

Finally, my assessor Tania Marsh has created 30 ceremony certificate samples for non-marriage ceremonies that you are welcome to use in your assessment tasks and when you’re a practising celebrant.

You will receive a free 12-month Celebrant Institute membership so that you can access the more than 400 blog posts Josh and I have written over the years, many of which will be relevant to your studies.

You will also qualify for 10% off celebrant professional development sessions run by The Celebrant Institute RTO if you are interested in further training during the time of your enrolment.

Assessment

Assessment is extensive and involves everything from written assignments through to simulated interviews, rehearsals and ceremony performances (all of which must be videoed for submission); at least one ceremony must be performed in front of at least 20 people, and at least two ceremonies must be performed using PA equipment (which can be hired from audiovisual suppliers).

Time investment

You should be prepared to allow at least 20 hours per week over a 12-month period to complete the course on time. Of course, if you have more time to devote to your studies you may be able to complete the course in less than 12 months. I offer you a maximum of 12 months to complete the required assessment work, with extensions available for a small fee.

 

 

Prerequisites
There are no formal entry requirements for the Cert IV in Celebrancy, however, the professional nature of the celebrant’s role requires that the celebrant has at least Year 10 level proficiency in spoken and written English, and other literacy and numeracy skills as outlined below.

  • Writing: The nature of the role is that the celebrant is totally responsible for all aspects of the client interaction, from completing legal documentation to writing cohesive and grammatically correct ceremonies, and everything in between. Difficulty with writing clearly and cohesively in English may mean the celebrant is unable to appropriately communicate with their clients, accurately complete legal documentation, or create meaningful written ceremonies.
  • Speaking: The celebrant is required to deliver a ceremony to audience numbers that range from five people to several hundred. Someone who has difficulty speaking English would not be appropriate for this course.
  • Listening: The celebrant is required to gather and interpret information from clients in relation to their legal status and the content of their ceremony. Someone who has hearing difficulties may find it difficult to discuss these requirements unless both the celebrant and the client are fluent in sign language.
  • Reading: The celebrant is required to read and understand marriage law and other legislation, regulations and guidelines, and present written ceremonies. Difficulty with reading may mean that the celebrant misinterprets legal requirements, or struggles with appropriately presenting ceremony inclusions.
  • Numeracy: The celebrant operates a small business, providing invoices and recording details of expenses. Difficulty in this regard may mean the celebrant will not effectively be able to maintain their small business in the long term.
  • Digital: The celebrant runs a small business in the 21st century, requiring them to be able to communicate with their clients and stakeholders digitally. Difficulty working at an intermediate level of computer proficiency, with the ability to create and edit Microsoft Word documents and Microsoft Excel spreadsheets, complete Adobe Reader documents, send and receive emails, manage electronic documents, and interact with online databases and software systems, and/or lack of access to an internet-connected computer and printer, would make it extremely difficult to work as a celebrant.

You will be required to undertake a Language, Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) test and an interview prior to enrolment, and these will assist me to assess whether you will require any training before starting or ongoing assistance during the course.

The minimum age for commencing this course is 18 years.

 

Podcast Episodes With Graduates
Hear from past students on how they studied and became celebrants on our podcast, the Celebrant Talk Show.

Listen to all the episodes at the Celebrant Talk Show online or search for “celebrant talk show” in your podcast app.

Units
There are six compulsory units and seven elective units (including three units that must be completed to apply for registration as a marriage celebrant); I have selected the units I feel will best set you up for starting and running a sustainable celebrancy practice.

A. 6 core units

CHCCEL001: Develop sustainable celebrancy practice
CHCCEL002: Establish client celebrancy needs
CHCCEL003: Research, design and organise ceremonies
CHCCEL004: Prepare for, present and evaluate ceremonies
CHCDIV001: Work with diverse people
CHCLEG001: Work legally and ethically

B. 3 units required for registration as an authorised marriage celebrant

CHCCEL005: Establish and maintain marriage celebrancy practice
CHCCEL006: Interview clients and plan marriage ceremonies
CHCCEL007: Prepare for, present and evaluate marriage ceremonies

C. 4 elective units

BSBCMM411: Make presentations
BSBTWK401: Build and maintain business relationships
BSBESB401: Research and develop business plans
CHCCEL008: Plan, present and evaluate funeral and memorial ceremonies

Many students ask me if they MUST complete the funeral celebrancy unit. In a word, yes. I want all of my celebrancy graduates to walk out into the world fully confident and able to perform a wide range of ceremonies, including funerals. Every marriage celebrant will be asked to perform a funeral at some point during their career, and I want my graduates to be prepared so that when that phone call comes, they don’t feel the need to impose on an experienced funeral celebrant and ask if they can copy one of their scripts. It’s unprofessional and unfair, so I insist that all of my students complete this unit.

 

 

 

Becoming a Marriage Celebrant
Once you have completed the Certificate IV in Celebrancy, you will be required to apply for registration as a Commonwealth Registered Marriage Celebrant. The Attorney General’s Department will assess your suitability for registration based on the information you provide in your application. The application fee is currently $400 and the review process takes 3-6 months.

Completing this course does not guarantee that you will attain registration as a Commonwealth Registered Marriage Celebrant.

Creating a successful and sustainable celebrancy business can be difficult. It’s important that you know it may be tough to earn a full-time living from celebrancy. It is also crucial that aspiring marriage celebrants are aware they are not allowed to advertise their services or take bookings from marrying couples until after they have received their registration as a celebrant from the Attorney-General’s Department.

Please ensure you have read the information on the Attorney General’s Department’s website about Becoming a Marriage Celebrant before you enrol for this course.

Another resource is becomeacelebrant.au

Thinking about becoming a celebrant to marry a friend or family member? Read this first.

Fees and Refunds

Course Fees

Total fees of $3080 are payable as follows:

  • Non-refundable enrolment deposit (prior to being granted access to the learning and assessment materials): $440
  • Remainder to be paid in monthly instalments after intake start date: $440 per month for six months (first payment due one month after intake start date)

Fees and Refunds Policy

  1. Information about fees and charges

The Celebrant Institute RTO protects the fees that are paid in advance by students by not requiring a student to ever pay more than $1,500 in advance for services not yet provided, either prior to course commencement or at any stage during their course. Fees will be paid off during the course in instalments according to a set payment schedule that meets these requirements

Fee information relevant to a course is outlined in detailed in the Student Agreement and summarised on the Course Outline as well as the RTO’s website. In compliance with Clause 5.3 of the Standards, detailed fee information is provided prior to enrolment or commencement of training, whichever is first.

Fee information includes:

  • All costs for the course including any materials fees
  • Any other costs payable to the RTO including costs for recognition of prior learning if applicable
  • Payment terms and conditions including deposits, refunds and payment schedules if applicable

The Student Agreement and the Student Handbook which are provided prior to enrolment, includes this Fees and Refunds Policy and informs the student of their consumer rights. Students are asked to sign the Student Agreement in acknowledgement of the terms and conditions of the enrolment and this policy.

No cooling-off period applies as The Celebrant Institute RTO does not use unsolicited consumer agreements (such as telemarketing, door-to-door selling or direct approach marketing in a public places).

  1. Course fee inclusions

Course fees as applicable to each course are detailed on the Student Agreement and include:

  • All of the training and assessment as well as basic educational support services required for students to achieve the qualification or course in which they are enrolling within the attempts allowed. Where a student fails to achieve a satisfactory outcome after three attempts at an assessment task, reassessment fees may apply.
  • Issuance of one set of electronic certification documents including the testamur (certificate) and record of results and/or a Statement of Attainment (in the case of withdrawal or partial completion).

Course fees do not include:

  • Any optional textbooks and materials that may be recommended but not required to complete a course.
  • Stationery such as paper and pens or other personal use items such as computers or internet access that may be required to complete homework tasks.
  • Printing costs (if required).
  • Re-issuance or printing of AQF certification documents. Re-issuance or printed copies of these documents will attract a fee of $50 per document plus the cost of postage if required.

The Celebrant Institute RTO cannot guarantee that students will successfully complete the course in which they enrol regardless of whether all fees due have been paid.

  1. Payments

Payments can be accepted by electronic transfer only.

Students who are experiencing difficulty in paying their fees are invited to call our office to make alternative arrangements for payment during their period of difficulty.

Debts may be referred to a debt collection agency where fees are more than 40 days past due.

The Celebrant Institute RTO reserves the right to suspend the provision of training and/or other services until fees are brought up to date. Students with long term outstanding accounts may be withdrawn from their course if payments have not been received and no alternative arrangements for payment have been made.

  1. Transfer of enrolment

Fees paid are transferrable to a different online intake if the original start date is no longer suitable for the student, at no charge to the student.

Only one transfer is allowed per enrolment; additional transfers will attract an administration fee.

  1. Deferral of enrolment

Students may defer their enrolment for up to 12 months and recommence their training program at a later date and occur no additional fees. Students wishing to defer their enrolment for more than 12 months will need to cancel their enrolment and re-enrol when they are ready to recommence the training program.

Only one deferral is allowed per enrolment; additional deferrals will attract an administration fee.

During the period of deferral, students will not have access to course resources.

  1. Withdrawal/cancellation of enrolment

Students may withdraw from/cancel their enrolment in writing at any time, but if their training program has already commenced, they will not be entitled to a refund of any fees paid.

Students wishing to withdraw from/cancel their enrolment can do so by completing the Withdrawal Form and submitting it to [email protected].

  1. Extensions

Students who are unable to complete the training and assessment program within 12 months may apply to extend their enrolment for three months at a time, at an additional cost of $500 per extension. Only two extensions are available; if the course is not finished after 18 months, the student will need to re-enrol and start again.

Extensions after the initial 12 months are only available to those students who have completed a substantial amount of work (i.e. at least the first submission of full written Tasks 1-15) at the time of their first application for extension. Second extensions are only available to those students who have submitted at least six practical assessment tasks during the period of their first extension.

Applications for extension must be made in writing via the Application for Extension Form, which must be emailed to [email protected] no less than two weeks before the student’s enrolment end date.

Applications for extension are the responsibility of the student. The Celebrant Institute RTO will not be responsible for following up students coming close to their enrolment end date. Students who have not completed their first submission of all tasks by their enrolment end date will have their enrolment cancelled with no notice, and they will not be entitled to a refund of any fees paid.

  1. Refunds

All course fees include an Enrolment Fee (or non-refundable deposit) which will only be refunded where The Celebrant Institute RTO is required to cancel a course before it commences due to insufficient numbers or for other unforeseen circumstances.

A student not achieving the qualification or unit/s in which they enrolled due to exhausting their attempts at assessment does not entitle the student to a refund.

RPL application fees are non-refundable.

In the unlikely event that The Celebrant Institute RTO, or any third parties responsible for delivering training and assessment on its behalf, is unable to deliver the course or any portion of the course as promised, the student will be issued with a refund for the course or portion of course that was not provided. This includes the following situations:

  • Where The Celebrant Institute RTO or any third parties delivering training and assessment on its behalf ceases to operate.
  • Where The Celebrant Institute RTO ceases to deliver the course in which a student is enrolled, and the agreement is terminated.
  • Where The Celebrant Institute RTO needs to make a change to the terms of the student agreement (such as the way the course is delivered or conditions of enrolment) and a new agreement cannot be reached with the student to account for changes.’

In any of the above situations, The Celebrant Institute RTO will automatically conduct a refund assessment of all affected students and issue the refunds due to the Fee Payer accordingly. In these cases, there is no need for a student to make an individual application for a refund. Refunds will be issued within 28 business days.

The refund assessment will be based on reviewing the services and/or materials provided to the student and the costs incurred by The Celebrant Institute RTO in the provision such as:

  • Textbooks or other materials provided
  • Training provided and received (i.e. amount of online content accessed)
  • Individual support provided by the trainer/assessor
  • Assessments marked or feedback provided (including RPL).

The outcome of the refund assessment will be provided in writing to the student’s registered address within 28 business days, outlining the decision and reasons for the decision along with any applicable refund or adjustment note. Refund decisions can be appealed following our Complaints and Appeals Policy & Procedure.

  1. Recording and payment of refunds

Refunds will be paid to the person or organisation that made the original payment.

Refund assessments can be appealed following our Complaints and Appeals Policy & Procedure.

Records of refund assessments and issuance of refunds will be stored securely on the student’s file and in our accounts keeping system.

  1. Publication

The Celebrant Institute RTO will publish in a prominent place on its website the following:

  • Costs for fee for service programs.
  • This Fees and Refunds Policy.

Additional Fees and Charges

The Celebrant Institute RTO has the following additional charges which may apply in some circumstances.

Non-Tuition Fees – all students Charge
Re-issuance or printed copies of testamur and statements of results
All course fees include the cost for issuing of one copy of the AQF testamur and Record of Results and/or a Statement of Attainment. This fee applies to each additional copy of a certification document if required.
$50 per document plus the cost of postage if required
Printing
Printing costs required if students require a copy of any records that The Celebrant Institute RTO holds about them.
20c per page
Tuition Fees Charge
Reassessment fee (per assessment task)
Where a student fails to achieve a satisfactory outcome after three attempts at an assessment task, reassessment fees may apply for additional attempts.
$250 per attempt
Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) application fee (per unit)
Total course fees may be reduced to account for the number of units undertaken via RPL or where Course Credit has been granted.
$500 per unit
Extension fee
A three-month extension may be applied for by students who have completed a substantial amount of work (i.e. at least first submission of written Tasks 1-15) but will be unable to complete their training program within 12 months. A second three-month extension may be applied for by students who have submitted at least six practical assessment tasks during the period of their first extension.
A maximum of two three-month extensions are available before a student will need to re-enrol and recommence their training program.
$500 per extension
Administration fee for transfers and/or deferrals
One transfer to a different online intake is allowed per enrolment.
One deferral of up to 12 months is allowed per enrolment.
Additional transfers or enrolments will attract an administration fee.
$250 per transfer or deferral
One-on-one training
Students requiring additional one-on-one training should contact the office with details of the training required. This training will be delivered by Zoom.
On application

 

 

Only Interested in Funeral Celebrancy?

If you’re only interested in conducting funerals, there’s no need to complete the Certificate IV in Celebrancy. In fact, there’s no need to complete any training or qualification at all – anyone can be a funeral celebrant! 

However we strongly recommend you do consider some training, starting with our funeral professional development course. This is the same content my Certificate IV in Celebrancy students undertake in their funeral unit, but there is no assessment; you just read the information and watch the videos as often as you like. You can purchase the brief funeral course here!

Enrolments

Please note I am not taking any further enrolments for 2024. I am in the midst of overhauling the course and look forward to unveiling our new offering in early 2025! I hope to reopen enrolments by the end of January 2025.

How to enrol:

  1. Download and read the Course Outline
  2. Download and read the Student Handbook
  3. Download and complete in full the Language, Literacy and Numeracy assessment. You must download this form and complete it using Adobe (see below); do not complete it in your browser window. THIS IS NOT OPTIONAL, REGARDLESS OF YOUR PREVIOUS EDUCATION OR EMPLOYMENT
  4. If you are wishing to apply for a Credit Transfer, download and complete in full the Credit Application Form. You must download this form and complete it using Adobe (see below); do not complete it in your browser window.
  5. Prepare a photo/scan of one form of photo ID, e.g. a driver’s licence or passport.
  6. Choose the intake you would like to apply for from the list below, click on the button and complete the form, uploading the appropriate documents as required.
  7. Full and complete applications must be received no later than the Monday before you are hoping to begin your course.
  8. After completing your application, I will invite you to a pre-enrolment interview via Zoom; this must take place no later than the Wednesday before you are hoping to begin your course. Please check your spam folder for your invitation if it doesn’t land in your inbox.
  9. Once your enrolment has been approved I will send you a Letter of Offer, a Student Agreement, and an invoice for your first payment.
  10. Your studies will begin on the next intake start date after you return your Student Agreement and make your first payment.
There are currently no openings available for this course.NB: the LLN assessment and Credit application form are built as fancy Adobe forms that can be fully completed electronically (although handwriting and scanning them are also acceptable). You will need the latest version of Adobe Reader to complete them, which you can download here: https://get.adobe.com/reader/For information about creating digital signatures for use with Adobe forms, please click here: https://helpx.adobe.com/content/dam/help/en/document-cloud/Adobe_DC_eSign_Best_Practices_Digital_Signatures.PDF.

Further Questions / Information

Please note I am not taking any further enrolments for 2024. I am in the midst of overhauling the course and look forward to unveiling our new offering in early 2025! I hope to reopen enrolments by the end of January 2025.

If after reading all the information and documents published on this page you still have questions about the Cert IV in Celebrancy, please make a 15-minute appointment to speak to Sarah by phone.

Please don’t make an appointment to ask me what date I will be reopening enrolments. I don’t know yet. As soon as I know, I’ll post the details in the Enrolments tab 🙂