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EnglishHow Tahatū Career Navigator Helps You Choose Study or Training and Work Out How to Pay
Updated
Tahatū Career Navigator (formerly Careers New Zealand) is a free New Zealand government career-planning site that helps you compare study and training options, understand how to apply, and see what it will cost before you commit. It is most useful if you are deciding what or where to study, or want a structured way to check affordability. It is a planning and information tool, not an enrolment portal — you still apply to providers directly.
What the site gives you for study decisions
The homepage states the site covers 800+ career ideas and 4000+ qualifications and courses. For study and training specifically, it groups content into four practical areas:
| Area | What it helps you do |
|---|---|
| Study and training providers | Understand what different provider types offer and compare them |
| How to apply for study or training | Work through the application steps one at a time |
| Ways to pay for study and training | See what a programme costs or what you might earn, and how to pay |
| Supporting topics | Apprenticeships, distance and online learning, learning support, finding and applying for scholarships |
The framing on the site is deliberately decision-first: before you sign up to a programme, be clear about what it will cost — or what you'll earn — and how you can pay for everything.
A practical way to use it
- Start with direction, not providers. If you have no clear field in mind, take the Interest quiz (Kairoro Kaingākau) to surface top interests and matching career ideas, or use Path Finder (Tiro Whetū). Expected result: a shortlist of career areas worth exploring.
- Check career ideas against reality. Open the career entries for your shortlist and look at what the work involves and what study typically leads into it. This is where you rule options in or out.
- Compare qualifications and courses. Use the 4000+ qualifications and courses to find programmes in your shortlisted field, then compare provider types using the providers guide. Expected result: a set of realistic programme options rather than an open-ended search.
- Read the application guide before you apply. The "How to apply for study or training" guide sets out the steps sequentially. Work through them one at a time; the site's own advice is that you'll get there step by step.
- Do the money check early. Read "Ways to pay for study and training" and the scholarships content before committing. Expected result: a clear picture of cost versus likely earnings, and the funding routes available to you.
- Check the edge cases if they apply to you. If you're considering earn-while-you-learn, distance study, or need learning support, read the dedicated pages on apprenticeships, distance and online learning, and learning support.
Where people get stuck
- Treating it as an application system. Tahatū explains and guides; the actual application goes to the provider. Use the guide to prepare, then apply where the programme is offered.
- Skipping the cost step. The site explicitly warns to be clear about costs before signing up. Do this before, not after, you shortlist.
- Ignoring provider type differences. The same qualification name can be delivered very differently by different provider types — use the comparison guide rather than assuming equivalence.
- Overlooking scholarships. Scholarship search and application is a separate topic on the site and is easy to miss if you go straight to the payment page.
Other tools worth knowing
The Job Hunters' Workbook (He Puka Rapu Mahi) offers practical tips and activities for next steps when job hunting, and the Career Practice Hub (Pokapū Tikanga Aramahi) holds activities, strategies, insights and reports — more relevant if you're supporting someone else's career decisions. A video library and Kaupapa Māori career ideas are also available from the homepage.
When this site is the right fit — and when it isn't
Use Tahatū if you want a structured, New Zealand-specific path from "I'm not sure" to a shortlist of programmes plus a funding plan. It suits school leavers, career changers, and anyone comparing provider types or checking affordability. It is less useful if you already know exactly which programme you want and only need to enrol — in that case go directly to the provider. The site does not publish its own pricing or login requirements in the material available, so treat any cost figures as coming from the providers and funding information it links to, and confirm current fees with the institution before you commit.