Podiatrists

ANZSCO ID 2526

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
2,700
Future Growth
31.8%
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
59%
Female Share
60%
Average age
36

Summary

Podiatrists prevent, diagnose and treat disorders of the feet.

Specialisations: Podiatric Surgeon.

A bachelor degree in podiatry is needed to work as a Podiatrist.

Tasks

  • examining patients' feet to determine the nature and extent of conditions, deformities and injuries

  • examining and treating foot disabilities caused by diseases such as diabetes, peripheral vascular disorders, rheumatoid arthritis and other neuropathies

  • prescribing and arranging the fabrication of footwear to correct foot abnormalities

  • performing minor surgery to remove and improve abnormal conditions

  • prescribing and fitting replaceable pads, palliative and functional supports and other devices for the protection and correction of foot abnormalities

  • advising patients about continued treatment and foot care

  • may provide rehabilitation services to the physically handicapped

  • may refer patients to or have patients referred from Medical Practitioners

Characteristics

Job Type
Professionals
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
Unemployment Rate
Below average
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
Interests
  • Practical
  • Analytical
  • Helping
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary
  • Light

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. The latest data are for the five years from November 2021 to November 2026. Over this period, the number of workers:

  • is expected to grow very strongly
  • is likely to reach 8,500 by 2026.
  • Source: Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.

    Notes: The number employed includes people who work in this occupation as their main job. People who work in more than one job are counted against the occupation they work the most hours in.

    Employment projections figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Calculations based on these rounded figures may result in differences to the numbers that are displayed on this page. Employment projections data (including occupations) can be downloaded from the Employment Projections page.

Projected Change
31.8%
(or 2,100 jobs)
From
6,400
in 2021
To
8,500
in 2026

Number of Workers

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.
Year Employment
2011 4,500
2012 3,200
2013 4,700
2014 3,800
2015 4,400
2016 3,400
2017 4,500
2018 3,600
2019 8,100
2020 4,900
2021 6,400
2026 8,500

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 64% of people employed as Podiatrists work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is similar to the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 43 hours per week in their main job. This is similar to the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    Sources:Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average.


Industries

Main industries

1
Health Care and Social Assistance
100.0%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

28.2% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

31.1% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

17.4% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

9.1% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

10.1% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

2.4% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.5% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

1.4% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Podiatrists All Jobs Average
NSW 28.2 31.6
VIC 31.1 25.6
QLD 17.4 20.0
SA 9.1 7.0
WA 10.1 10.8
TAS 2.4 2.0
NT 0.5 1.0
ACT 1.4 1.9



Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
36
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
60%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Podiatrists is 36 years. This is younger than the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 25 to 34 years.

    Females make up 60% of the workforce. This is 12 percentage points above the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Podiatrists All Jobs Average
15-19 0.0 5.0
20-24 8.8 9.3
25-34 38.3 22.9
35-44 25.4 22.0
45-54 17.9 21.6
55-59 5.4 9.0
60-64 2.5 6.0
65 and Over 1.7 4.2
Median Age 36 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in podiatry is needed to work as a Podiatrist.

Registration with the Podiatry Board of Australia and the Australian Health Practitioner Registration Agency is required.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Podiatrists All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 17.9 10.1
Bachelor degree 70.5 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 10.6 11.6
Certificate III/IV 0.4 21.1
Year 12 0.7 18.1
Year 11 0.0 4.8
Year 10 and below 0.0 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Podiatrists who are caring, compassionate, empathetic and work well in a team.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 77%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 68%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 66%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 61%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 61%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 59%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 57%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 57%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 55%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 54%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 54%

    Science

    Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.

  • 54%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 54%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 52%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 52%

    Learning strategies

    Figuring out the best way to teach or learn something new.

  • 50%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

  • 48%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 46%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 45%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 45%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 82%

    Medicine and dentistry

    Diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities, including preventive health-care measures.

  • 75%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 69%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 66%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 62%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 59%

    Therapy and counselling

    Diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and career counselling and guidance.

  • 56%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 56%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 55%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 54%

    Biology

    Plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, how they rely on and work with each other and the environment.

  • 54%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 50%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 46%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 43%

    Chemistry

    Chemical composition, structure, and properties. How chemicals are made, used, mixed, and can change.

  • 43%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 41%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.

  • 40%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.

  • 35%

    Physics

    The physical laws of matter, motion and energy, and how they interact through space and time.

  • 32%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 24%

    Telecommunications

    Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 77%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 73%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 71%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 71%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 71%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 68%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 57%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 57%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 57%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 55%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 54%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 52%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 50%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 50%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 48%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 48%

    Visualization

    Imagine how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

  • 45%

    Finger dexterity

    Put together small parts with your fingers.

  • 45%

    Speed of recognition

    Quickly make sense of and organize things you can see like letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

  • 43%

    Arm-hand steadiness

    Keep your hand or arm steady.

  • 43%

    Perceptual speed

    Use your eyes to quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 90%

    Helping and caring for others

    Providing personal assistance, medical attention, or emotional support.

  • 77%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 75%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 73%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 73%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 73%

    Documenting or recording information

    Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.

  • 71%

    Monitoring people, processes and things

    Checking objects, actions, or events, and keeping an eye out for problems.

  • 68%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 67%

    Providing office support

    Doing day-to-day office work such as filing and processing paperwork.

  • 66%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 64%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 61%

    Guiding and directing staff

    Guiding and directing staff, including setting and monitoring performance standards.

  • 61%

    Training and teaching others

    Understanding the needs of others, developing training programs, and teaching or instructing.

  • 59%

    Giving expert advice

    Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups.

  • 59%

    Making sense of information and ideas

    Looking at, working with, and understanding data or information.

  • 55%

    Checking compliance with standards

    Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

  • 55%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 53%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

  • 51%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 47%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 100%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 86%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 62%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

  • 38%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 29%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 29%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 86%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 86%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 86%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 81%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.

  • 79%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

  • 67%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 98%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 96%

    Physically close to people

    Work physically close to other people.

  • 95%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 94%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 94%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 93%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 92%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 91%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 90%

    Disease or infection

    Be exposed to disease or infections.

  • 89%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 89%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 87%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 87%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 86%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 85%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 85%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 85%

    Health and safety of others

    Take responsibility for the health and safety of others.

  • 83%

    Using your hands to handle, control, or feel

    Spend time using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls.

  • 82%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 79%

    Wear common protective or safety equipment

    Wear equipment like safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 29-1081.00 - Podiatrists.


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