How to become an actor in Australia
Actors, Dancers and Other Entertainers entertain by portraying roles in productions, performing and composing dances, and performing a variety of other acts.
The all-jobs median is $1,852 a week. Jobs in the actors, dancers and other entertainers group are projected to grow 11.7% between May 2025 and May 2035, slower than the 13.3% projected for all jobs. Projections are indicative, not forecasts, and JSA says they don't yet reflect generative AI.
What the job involves
- Reading scripts and undertaking research to gain understanding of parts, themes and characterisations
- Learning lines and cues, rehearsing parts, and applying vocal and movement skills to the development of characterisation
- Preparing for performances through rehearsals under the instruction and guidance of production directors
- Acting parts and portraying roles as developed in rehearsals in film, television, radio and stage productions
- Practising dance routines and interpreting the choreographic content of the production
- Performing dances for audience entertainment, coordinating body movements and facial expression, usually with musical accompaniment
How to get there
What it usually takes. A bachelor degree or higher. This is the skill level Jobs and Skills Australia gives the actors, dancers and other entertainers group, and some roles differ.
What people in the job have. Highest qualification held: 37% a degree or higher, 15% a diploma, 11% a Certificate III or IV.
Many jobs also need registration, a licence or a specific accredited course. Check the professional body or regulator before you choose.
Courses that can lead here
Estimate your ATAR and this page shows the gap to each course. Your marks stay on your device.
Victoria14 matches
VTAC lowest selection ranks, December 2025 offer round.
Creative Arts (Theatre major) · Deakin, Melbourne Burwood66.95Diplomas and other ways in
Showing 9 of 14 matches. Search every course.
NSW and ACT12 matches
UAC lowest selection ranks, December Round 2, 2025-26 admissions.
Bachelor of Creative Arts (Performance and Theatre) · Wollongong65.05Diplomas and other ways in
Diploma in Creative and Performing Arts · Newcastle66.75Showing 8 of 12 matches. Search every course.
Queensland14 matches
QTAC course pages, ATAR/Selection Rank profile for semester 1, 2026.
Bachelor of Creative Arts (Drama) · QUT, Kelvin Grove70.15 Bachelor of Theatre · UniSQ, Toowoomba64.75Diplomas and other ways in
Showing 10 of 14 matches. Search every course.
Western Australia4 matches
TISC Course Search: lowest ATAR offered for 2026 entry and guaranteed offer ATARs.
Bachelor of Creative Arts (Theatre Arts) · Curtin, Perth63.85 Bachelor of Education (Secondary Education) - The Arts Education in Drama · Curtin, Perth63.20 Bachelor of Education (Secondary) - Drama Education · ECU, Joondalup60.50 Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Creative Production · Murdoch, Perth60.00Matched on course names, 44 across four admissions centres. A lowest selection rank includes adjustment points and moves every year. Check prerequisites and whether the course is accredited for this job.
Graduate outcomes, national
Undergraduates surveyed about four to six months after finishing, in 2025, across all providers. Full-time work is among those available for it. All graduates: 75.4% and $77,000. These are national figures for the study area, not for this course or uni, and a first-year salary says little about later pay. Source: QILT Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025.
Does it fit your interests?
Strongest interest areas for this kind of work: Artistic, Social, Enterprising.
From O*NET ratings for "Actors", the closest US occupation in JSA's correspondence (a acceptable match). US ratings are a guide to Australian jobs, not a measurement of them.
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Share your storyJob data: © Commonwealth of Australia, Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profiles, February 2026 and Employment Projections, May 2025 to May 2035 (Victoria University), CC BY 4.0. Jobs and Skills Australia, ANZSCO 2013 Version 1.2 to O*NET-SOC 2019 Taxonomy correspondence.
Graduate outcomes: QILT Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025, National Report Tables (Social Research Centre, for the Australian Government).
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Curve ATAR has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.