9-12 Community News
Students in the 9-12 Community have moved smoothly into Term 2 and have continued to embrace all that the school can offer.
Opportunities to explore careers and vocational pathways are a significant focus of the Term 2 programs for all students in the 9-12 Community.
Last week, the Year 12s attended the Victorian Careers Expo. This was a valuable opportunity for the students to explore many different career and study pathways as they look to life beyond school.
Our Year 10s had three days in Melbourne attending their Urban Experience Camp (more about that later).
Yesterday, Our Year 9’s attended the Careers Day Out in Shepparton.
The Year 11s have a similar opportunity to explore potential careers and pathways when they venture to Melbourne for the Victorian Careers Show next week on the 16th May.
And, in the coming weeks, Year 10 students will also be involved in another Careers and Vocations excursion when they attend the Tomorrow Bound Expo in Bendigo.
All of these events link perfectly with the Senior Secondary Pathways and Subject Selection information session which will be held in the Brigidine Centre on Wednesday 4th June.
All Years 8, 9 and 10 students and families/caregivers are invited to attend this session, where the various pathways - VCE, VCE VM, VET and subjects - 9/10 Electives and VCE subjects, and the subject selection process will be outlined. Students and parents/caregivers will have the opportunity to meet and speak with our Learning Leaders across all subject areas and VET providers from across the district.
Last year’s event was a great success, with over 200 9-12 Community members in attendance. We encourage all students and families to attend this event to take advantage of the opportunity to discuss pathways and subjects as they enter the 2026 subject selection phase.
For those beginning their journey into Years 10 and 11, there are a number of pathways for students to consider. To assist students and parents, the following links provide information from VCAA about the different VCE pathways that are available.
Pages - VCE and VCE Vocational Major
https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/sites/default/files/2025-04/Where-To-Now2026.pdf
Year 9 students will also be looking forward to the middle of the term when they head to Camp Jungai, at Rubicon, for camp. Details and permission forms will be shared with families in the coming weeks.
On Tuesday, 20th May, we have Subject Teacher Conversations. These provide an opportunity for students, families and teachers to meet to discuss the academic progress of students. We encourage all families to take up this opportunity to engage in these important conversations with TAs and subject teachers as we work together to support the students in the 9-12 Community. Please refer to the OPEROO communication that has been sent.
Michelle Downie Katelyn McIntyre
9-12 Community Leader 9-12 Community Leader
Wellbeing & Community Student Learning & Professional Practice
Year 10 Urban Camp - Reflection written by Olivia M, Ella C, Neve P, Melia C, Mia S and Ella H.
Wednesday
Our Urban Camp experience started early Wednesday morning, with a large cohort of enthusiastic students. We arrived at The Village in Melbourne CBD, unpacked the bus and got ready to make our first stop, William Angliss. Once there we split up into three groups and each got a tour of the impressive campus. We sat down for a picnic lunch in the park, reflecting on the tour and observing some interesting local people. Our quick walk down to RMIT ended with the start of our lecture and scavenger hunt around the huge campus. We learnt that the RMIT city campus was spread across 7% of the CBD. After waiting around watching people living their lives, we made our way across to Melbourne Central for dinner. We enjoyed our pre-ordered Grill’d dinner and ventured to our activity for the night, Strike Bowling. Everyone, including some of the teachers, had a great time, with some impressive wins all around. The students were very tired by the time we got back to the accommodation, we enjoyed a quick shower and early night, ready for another big day.
Thursday
We were awoken by teachers knocking on our door just after 6:30am and were instructed to get ready for the day and head down to breakfast. After breakfast we split up into groups for our chosen university/institutes, jumped on a tram with our teachers or walked to either The University of Melbourne, Victoria University, White House Institute of Design and Australian Catholic University. All our tours gave us an insight to the pathways of our futures and what Uni life may look like.
We once again headed back to Melbourne Central to buy lunch of our choice and do lots of shopping, some spending more than others. We headed off to our activity of choice, we could pick between The MCG tour, The National Gallery and ACMI. At The National Gallery we got to take a look at a previous St Augustine student, Laura Graetz’s, art folios. During our spare time we got to have a look around the State Library until it was time to head to dinner. We enjoyed a meal at Universal Cafe and even got to meet Sean Millis and get a photo. After dinner, we headed down Lygon Street to purchase some dessert. We all enjoyed either Yo-Chi or gelati or ice cream, and then walked back to the accommodation, in need of a good night's sleep.
Friday
After a long and stinky night (if you know, you know), we had breakfast at the accommodation, packed our bags and got on the bus, heading towards Bendigo. We stopped on the way to eat some food before visiting BRIT TAFE campuses, either City campus or Charleston Road campus. The tours gave us a good insight into what options and pathways are available to us. The accommodation provided us with a packed lunch, which we ate at the park in Bendigo. For our last stop of the trip, we visited La Trobe University Bendigo campus. People from the university told us about different programs that we are eligible for and different courses they offer. The cohort was then split into two groups and were taken on tours around the campus. We got to see the on-campus share houses and classrooms. After lots of walking and stairs for the three days, all the students were very tired. This wrapped up our trip as we all got back on the bus, excited to head home.
Overall, the Urban trip was a great experience and it gave us a great idea of what future pathways and opportunities are available to us.
Thank you to Mr Downie, Mrs Downie, Mrs McIntyre, Ms Norris, Mrs Moore, Mr Lane, Darcy and Kasey for taking us on camp.
Term 1 Work Placements – Years 10 to 12
During Term 1, many of our Years 10 to 12 students have been participating in work placements throughout our local region and beyond.
10A students – Work Experience week was held from 31st March to 4th April. Students have worked in an industry of interest to them covering retail, hospitality, health, physiotherapy, personal training, electrical, education and childcare, architecture, veterinary, hair dressing and manufacturing.
VCE VM & Year 10 PPC – Students have been working at businesses in the local area each Thursday to gain employability skills that will help them work towards gaining apprenticeships, employment or further TAFE training in future years. During Terms 2 to 4, students will continue to organise a variety of work placements to maximise their exposure to different industries and to broaden skills gained.
Gracie - Working part-time at Bakers Delight Kyabram as a result of the Work Experience program
Asha - Little Stars Early Learning & Kindergarten Shepparton
Declan - GV CNC Shepparton (Auto Cad Software Design & Manufacturing)
Katelyn & Shanikka - Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School Tatura
Peter Fawcett
VCE VM Learning Leader
Work Experience Coordinator
VCE VM
Formula One Excursion
During Term 1, the VCE VM students headed to the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Melbourne with Mrs Moore, Mr Niglia and Peter F.
Students started the day early, leaving St Augustine’s at 5.30am. After a pick-me-up hashbrown or two, we made it to Albert Park. Students experienced the busyness of such a global event, waiting in the massive line just to enter the grounds.
The Innovation Hub was the first stop, where students engaged in different hands-on activities run by various universities, TAFE’s and providers. From competitive squash to VR experiences and more, the students were spoilt for choice.
We then headed off to watch the Freestyle Motocross show, before finding ourselves a seat in the grandstand to watch the Porsche and F2 cars.
The students were well and truly exhausted after walking over 20,000 steps, with the bus ride back being very quiet!
The day was a fantastic experience to learn about various careers, whilst experiencing a global event and the organisation that goes into making sure things run smoothly.
PPC
Melbourne Zoo Excursion
On Tuesday 6th May, the PPC students, with Mrs Moore, Mr Niglia, and Kasey C, headed to the Melbourne Zoo. As part of our Term 2 Community Project, students are looking at the global ‘Save the Bees’ campaign. This term project will have students explore the importance of pollinators in our society and how we can make a difference. They’ll be creating different projects to build in PDS, and then sell to donate a portion of our profits.
Students started the day with a workshop with Zookeeper Francessa. They discussed the different careers the Zoo offers, from plumbers to animal trainers and hospitality staff at their various cafes. Students then explored the different types of conservation efforts Zoos Victoria supports, like Coffee for Wildlife, Seal the Loop and Totes for Wildlife. This supported students' thinking about the type of project they could complete in PDS. Students learnt about the stakeholders involved with these conservation efforts, and enjoyed a visit from Bella the Australian Fur Seal.
After our workshop, students had the opportunity to explore the rest of the Zoo, looking at enclosure design ready for their numeracy projects.
It was a fantastic experience, with students learning lots about conservation, careers and everything in between. Stay tuned to hear all about our Save The Bees campaign and the exciting things the students are creating.
Bianca Moore