Healthcare AssistantCritical demand
$58k
Experienced
Level 4 HCA
$66k+
Senior
senior / pathway to RN
Healthcare assistants support patients with the essentials of daily living — mobility, hygiene, eating, comfort — and assist nurses and clinical teams in hospitals, aged residential care and the community. It's the most direct way into healthcare, hands-on and deeply people-focused, and the front line of an acute aged-care workforce shortage.
Career switchers. No prior qualifications needed — caring, reliable people from any background are welcomed and trained on the job. It's also a proven stepping stone: many HCAs go on to study nursing while working. Demand is critical across aged care and hospitals nationwide.
Entry: Entry-level. You're hired into a care role and complete a short certificate while you work; a caring attitude matters most.
How you get there
Get hired as a healthcare / caregiver assistant
Apply to hospitals, aged-residential-care providers and home-care services. Entry-level — attitude and reliability matter most. Paid while you train.
Paid while you train
NZ Certificate in Health and Wellbeing (Level 3–4)
Work-based study covering personal care, support, communication and infection control. Funded through your employer / Te Pūkenga.
1–2 yearsFree — work-based
Senior HCA → pathway to nursing
Step up to senior HCA, or use the role and study support to bridge into a Bachelor of Nursing — a common, well-trodden route.
stepping stone
Personal carePatient supportInfection controlCommunicationTeamwork
A door, not a dead end: many nurses started as healthcare assistants. It's the fastest way into healthcare and a proven bridge into a nursing degree while you earn.
Refrigeration MechanicHigh demand
$52k
Starting out
apprentice
$75k
5 years in
qualified mechanic
$95k+
Expert
specialist / self-employed
Air-conditioning and refrigeration mechanics install and maintain the climate-control and refrigeration systems that hospitals, labs and food facilities can't operate without — from infection-control ventilation and operating-theatre air to medical and vaccine refrigeration. A skilled trade with safety-critical applications across the health system.
Career switchers. A Green-List-adjacent shortage trade with broad demand — the skills cross between health, food, commercial and industrial settings. Electrical or mechanical backgrounds transfer well; you'll also gain a refrigerant-handling licence. Steady, well-paid and increasingly important as building services grow more complex.
Entry: Apprenticeship entry — hired by an HVAC/refrigeration firm and trained on the job, including a refrigerant-handling licence.
How you get there
Get hired as an HVAC / refrigeration apprentice
Apply to refrigeration and building-services firms and sign on to an apprenticeship. Paid from day one.
Paid from day one
NZ Certificate in Refrigeration & Air Conditioning (Level 4) + refrigerant licence
Work-based apprenticeship covering system install, maintenance, fault-finding and safe refrigerant handling.
3–4 yearsFree — apprenticeship
Qualified Mechanic → critical-systems specialist
Specialise in healthcare and critical climate systems, or run your own service business — strong, steady demand.
3–4 years to qualified
HVAC systemsRefrigerationFault diagnosisRefrigerant handlingBuilding services
Behind every hospital: theatre air, infection control and vaccine fridges all rely on this trade. A practical skill with safety-critical demand across the health system.
Emergency Medical TechnicianHigh demand
$68k
Experienced
experienced EMT
$78k+
Step up
→ paramedic study
Emergency medical technicians are front-line ambulance responders — assessing, stabilising and safely transporting patients in emergencies, working alongside paramedics. It's high-responsibility, people-facing work and the most accessible entry into the ambulance service, with a clear path up to paramedic.
Career switchers. A great entry to emergency care for calm, capable people — many start through volunteering or patient-transfer roles. The NZ Diploma in Ambulance Practice gets you operational, and most EMTs go on to study paramedicine. Recent ambulance workforce investment means strong demand.
Entry: Enter via the NZ Diploma in Ambulance Practice (Level 5). Some begin as volunteers or in patient-transfer roles first.
How you get there
NZ Diploma in Ambulance Practice (Level 5)
The entry qualification for ambulance work. Covers patient assessment, pre-hospital care and safe transport.
~1 yearstudy costs
Get hired as an EMT
Join Hato Hone St John or Wellington Free Ambulance as an Emergency Medical Technician. Ambulance workforce investment means strong recruitment.
Paid role
EMT → Paramedic pathway
Build experience and bridge into the paramedicine degree — the step up to registered paramedic.
stepping stone
Patient assessmentPre-hospital careEmergency responseSafe transportWorking under pressure
The accessible way into ambulance: EMT gets you on the road sooner than the degree, and it's the natural launchpad into registered paramedicine.
ParamedicCritical demand
$62k
Starting out
graduate paramedic
$80k
5 years in
registered paramedic
$100k+
Expert
intensive care paramedic
Paramedics deliver advanced pre-hospital emergency care — assessing, treating and transporting patients, making critical decisions under pressure. It's a registered profession requiring a degree, and an Immigration Green List role: the country needs more of them, and the work is as meaningful as it gets.
Career switchers. EMTs commonly bridge into the paramedicine degree. International paramedics register through Te Kaunihera Manapou Paramedic Council. With ambulance investment and Green List status, demand and progression (to Intensive Care Paramedic) are strong.
Entry: Bachelor of Health Science (Paramedicine) (Level 7) — a three-year degree — then registration with the Paramedic Council.
How you get there
Bachelor of Health Science (Paramedicine) (Level 7)
University, three years. Combines clinical study with ambulance placements. NCEA L3 / University Entrance required.
3 years~$22,000
Register with the Paramedic Council
Register with Te Kaunihera Manapou Paramedic Council to practise as a paramedic in New Zealand.
Registration
Registered Paramedic → Intensive Care Paramedic
Specialise into intensive care paramedicine and advanced practice — the senior, highest-paid clinical end of ambulance.
Green List role
Advanced clinical careEmergency decision-makingPatient assessmentPharmacologyResilience
Green List profession: paramedicine is on the Immigration Green List — degree-led, registered, and so needed it carries a residence pathway.
Registered NurseCritical demand
$75k
Graduate
new graduate RN
$90k
5 years in
experienced RN
$110k+
Senior
clinical nurse specialist
Registered nurses assess, plan and deliver patient care, administer medications and coordinate care teams across hospitals, clinics and the community. It's the backbone of the health system, a registered profession with strong and rising pay — and one of New Zealand's most acute, Green-List workforce shortages.
Career switchers. Healthcare assistants frequently bridge into nursing while working. Internationally qualified nurses register through the Nursing Council (often via a competence assessment programme). With critical shortages and Green List status, demand, pay and specialisation options are excellent.
Entry: Bachelor of Nursing (Level 7) — a three-year degree — then pass the State Final exam and register with the Nursing Council.
How you get there
Bachelor of Nursing (Level 7)
University, three years, with clinical placements. NCEA L3 / University Entrance required.
3 years~$22,000
Register with the Nursing Council
Pass the State Final examination and register with the Nursing Council of New Zealand to practise as an RN.
Registration
RN → specialise (ED, ICU, theatre…)
Specialise into areas like emergency, intensive care or theatre, or progress to Clinical Nurse Specialist — higher pay and responsibility.
Green List role
Clinical assessmentMedication managementCare planningPatient advocacyTeam coordination
Strong, rising pay: post pay-equity, NZ registered nurses start around $75k and senior/specialist roles reach well past $100k — and it's a Green List career.
Nurse PractitionerCritical demand
$135k
5 years in
experienced NP
$150k+
Expert
lead / specialist
Nurse practitioners are the most senior clinical nurses — they assess, diagnose, prescribe and lead complex care independently, often the primary provider for their patients. It's the top of the nursing career ladder, a master's-level registered role, and a Green List shortage profession.
Career switchers. The destination of the nursing pathway: registered nurses build experience and complete a master's to become NPs. It's degree-and-experience-led, not a direct entry — but it's where nursing pay and autonomy peak, and it's on the Immigration Green List.
Entry: Become a Registered Nurse first, then complete a Master of Nursing (Level 9) plus advanced clinical experience and gain NP registration.
How you get there
Register as a nurse + build experience
Complete a Bachelor of Nursing, register, and build several years of advanced clinical experience.
RN first
Master of Nursing (Level 9)
Postgraduate master's developing advanced assessment, diagnosis and prescribing, alongside clinical practice.
~2 yearspostgrad study
Nurse Practitioner registration
Gain NP registration with the Nursing Council — diagnose, prescribe and lead complex care independently. A Green List role at $120k+.
NP registration
Advanced assessmentDiagnosis & prescribingComplex care leadershipClinical autonomyMentoring
Top of the ladder: the NP role is where nursing pay and autonomy peak ($120k+), with the authority to diagnose and prescribe — and it's a Green List profession.