ACM30321 is the nationally recognised Certificate III in Wildlife and Exhibited Animal Care. It prepares you for work as a zookeeper. It has been the current version on the national register since 2021, when it replaced ACM30317. Employers posted about 100 zookeeper jobs in June 2026, down 1.3% on a year earlier.
The independent signals behind the Certificate III in Wildlife and Exhibited Animal Care line up. Zookeepers are in national shortage and employment is projected to grow through 2035. These are official statistics, not a promise about your result.
Job ads for zookeepers are holding steady. About 100 zookeeper jobs were advertised online in June 2026, down 1.3% on a year earlier. Over the last 12 months there were about 1,400 job ads, while 930 people were training in the qualification nationally (2025). Ads show the market. Enrolments show the pipeline. Neither is a job promise.
Australia's official shortage list rates horse trainers as in shortage. The 2025 Occupation Shortage List rates Horse Trainer as in national shortage; Dog Handler or Trainer, Pet Groomer, Zookeeper, Kennel Hand, Track Rider and Animal Attendants and Trainers nec as not in shortage.
Zookeeper jobs are projected to grow. Jobs and Skills Australia projections put these occupations at 26,019 workers in May 2025, 27,347 by May 2030 (up 5.1%) and 28,881 by May 2035 (up 11%).
Certificate III in Wildlife and Exhibited Animal Care graduates do worse than is typical at Certificate III level. In the 2025 NCVER Student Outcomes survey, 89.2% were employed or in further study after training. The typical Certificate III result is 88%, across 105 qualifications. 84.5% were satisfied with the training, against 90.6% typical.
Enrolments in the Certificate III in Wildlife and Exhibited Animal Care are steady. Across Australia, 910 people enrolled in 2024. In 2025 it was 930, up 2.2% in a year. National data for ACM30321 starts in 2022.
The register and the national framework set some of this. Providers set the rest.
State funding for ACM30321 is being verified against official program lists.
Eligibility and student contributions vary by program and provider. The official state listing is the source of truth. In a subsidised place the government pays most of the tuition and you pay a co-contribution set by the program and provider.
The Certificate III in Wildlife and Exhibited Animal Care is 16 units: 12 core, plus 4 electives chosen from 30 options on the register.
No Get Course partner currently lists this qualification. Check the national register for organisations approved to deliver it, and remember that approval to deliver is a regulatory fact, not a recommendation. You can browse live courses from our partners and enquire today.
Browse coursesGet Course maps ACM30321 to its occupations using the register’s own outcome wording, shown with ANZSCO codes (here, 3611) so the mapping can be checked. Job advertisement counts come from the Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index and count online ads, not vacancies filled. Enrolment counts come from NCVER Total VET Activity and count people in training, not completions. Outcome benchmarks marked “typical” are medians computed by Get Course across all Certificate IIIs in the same NCVER collection; they are derived figures, not official NCVER benchmarks. Funding rows appear only after verification against the official state program list. Source vintages: register training.gov.au, synced 13 September 2026; NCVER Total VET Activity 2025 collection; Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index latest month June 2026; employment projections May 2025 to May 2035 release; Occupation Shortage List 2025 assessment; NCVER Student Outcomes survey 2025 survey; register synced 19 Sept 2026. Page last updated 19 Sept 2026.