Student Counsellor (ANZSCO 272115)
On the Short-term Skilled Occupation List and Core Skills Occupation List
From the official Home Affairs skilled occupation lists, as at 2026-08-12. Lists change at each government update — always confirm on the official page before acting.
Which lists is Student Counsellor on?
STSOL — Short-term Skilled Occupation List. Occupations on the STSOL can access state-nominated and regional skilled visas (190/491), but not the Skilled Independent 189.
CSOL — Core Skills Occupation List. The employer-sponsorship list — occupations on the CSOL can be nominated for the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) and the Employer Nomination Scheme 186.
Visas this occupation can access
Being on a list makes the occupation nominatable for these visas — each visa still has its own requirements (points, age, English, a positive skills assessment, and for sponsored visas a willing employer or state).
- Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) — Permanent, state or territory nominated · all occupations for the 190
- Skilled Work Regional visa (subclass 491) — Provisional, regional, points-tested · all occupations for the 491
- Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) — Temporary, employer sponsored · all occupations for the 482
- Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186) — Permanent, employer sponsored · all occupations for the 186
- Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional visa (subclass 494) — Provisional, regional employer sponsored · all occupations for the 494
- Training visa (subclass 407) — Temporary, workplace training · all occupations for the 407
Processing priority
Student Counsellor is a healthcare occupation under Directions 121 and 122 (ANZSCO Unit Group 2721, Counsellors). Since 19 September 2026, skilled visa applications by a primary applicant in this occupation are in the first group processed: for the 482 under Direction 121, and for the permanent and provisional skilled visas, including the 186, 189, 190, 491 and 494, under Direction 122.
Priority changes the order in which lodged applications are looked at, not whether they are granted. Who is invited to apply through SkillSelect is decided separately. See all 202 occupations in the priority sectors.
Skills assessment
A positive skills assessment for Student Counsellor comes from:
- Vocational Education and Training Assessment Services (VETASSESS) (official site) · our guide to the VETASSESS process
What the assessment actually involves
VETASSESS assesses Student Counsellor as a Group A occupation: an AQF Bachelor degree or higher in Counselling or Psychotherapy, or a related field paired with "an additional qualification in the field of Counselling or Psychotherapy at AQF Graduate Diploma level only" — VETASSESS's own page is specific that a lower-level graduate certificate will not substitute for it — plus at least one year of highly relevant post-qualification employment in the last five years at an appropriate skill level. Its own exclusion list closes, like most of this unit group, by directing psychologist-adjacent applicants to APS instead of continuing with a VETASSESS application.
Where these applications come unstuck
VETASSESS's own exclusion list for Student Counsellor is written as: Careers Counsellor, Drug and Alcohol Counsellor, "Family and Marriage," Rehabilitation Counsellor and Counsellors nec. The word "Counsellor" is missing after "Family and Marriage" in VETASSESS's own bullet list — verified directly in the page's markup, not a fetching artefact — a minor but real inconsistency worth knowing about if you're trying to match the exclusion wording literally against a sibling's actual occupation name. The substance of the exclusion is unaffected: Family and Marriage Counsellor is still excluded from this code either way it's written.
An honest read on this pathway
Student Counsellor carries STSOL plus CSOL, reaching six visas — 186, 190, 407, 482, 491 and 494 — the same tier as Drug and Alcohol Counsellor, Rehabilitation Counsellor and Psychotherapist, and genuinely wider than Careers Counsellor, Family and Marriage Counsellor or Counsellors nec, all three of which have no CSOL and no employer-sponsored route at all. School, university and vocational-education counselling roles that fit this code's evidence requirements carry real 186 and 482 potential that the narrower three-code group simply does not have.
VETASSESS assesses qualifications and employment separately. Both need documentation that agrees with itself. The Employment History Builder and Document Vault organise each trail before you lodge.
Talk it through with a registered agent
Whether nominating Student Counsellor is your best route depends on your points, experience evidence and timing — exactly what a MARA-registered agent works through in an initial consultation. Describe your situation once through Migratio and compare real consultation quotes from registered agents, free.
Related occupations
- Careers Counsellor (272111)
- Counsellors nec (272199)
- Drug and Alcohol Counsellor (272112)
- Family and Marriage Counsellor (272113)
- Rehabilitation Counsellor (272114)
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