Year 10 Work Experience
Year 10 Work Experience Program Student Reflections
Hannah Bexhan 10 CT - Woodleigh Water Dental
From the 29th of August to the 2nd of September, I was given the opportunity to do my work experience placement at a dental clinic. Throughout the week I learnt about all sorts of things in the dental industry such as the different types of dental treatments and what they are commonly used for. Even though in this particular industry you have to have a lot of experience and qualifications to understand how things work, I think I did a pretty good job understanding things. I got to do all sorts of things including watching the dentist do different dental treatments on patients, learning how to wash instruments, pack them away and put them in the steriliser, tracking tools, grouping them together in their packs and doing reception work! I also helped with assisting the dentist by giving her the tools required and performing mini procedures on patients. This experience was one I am very grateful for and one I will cherish forever!
Ream Khodr 10AN - Pillar Property Styling
If someone had told me I would learn so much in 5 days, which includes learning about my interests and passion in life, I would’ve laughed. However in the end I would’ve admitted to that person that this truly has been an exciting and educational experience.
For my work experience, I had chosen to do property styling. Honestly, I didn’t really believe that I was a creative person, as I usually use google for inspiration when it comes to making birthday cards. Yet, I had such an amazing time working at different sites and being able to think outside the box, that there is a part of me that will always be ready to go with this certain career choice. I was extremely lucky to have gotten the opportunity to travel to many different houses, designing and decorating multiple aspects of a home. Every design was different yet beautiful in it’s own way. From learning the different lighting in a room, to bringing the designs to life, I have learned that I am very much a creative person in my own way. I got to decorate kitchens, bedrooms, bathrooms, and even outdoor areas. I put in all my effort which taught me I can make something beautiful out of it. I may not be a perfectionist, but I am proud of myself for choosing to do a work experience that is out of my comfort zone. Definitely a 10/10 experience.
Georgina Vavladelis 10AN - Gabrielle Williams MP
My name is Georgina Vavladelis. For work experience, I was lucky enough to visit the office of Gabrielle Williams and Lee Tarlamis. Gabrielle Williams is the state minister for Mental Health, Treaty and First Peoples and is the state member for Dandenong. Lee Tarlamis is an Australian Politician who has represented the South Eastern Metropolitan for Melbourne since 2020. My experience in working at the office was absolutely amazing and I can’t wait to share it all with you guys. I learnt so much about parliament and about politics in general. My favourite part of the work experience was probably drafting different answers for a whole bunch of enquiries that we received from the people of Dandenong. I also got to make some posters for the office about the demographics in Dandenong focusing on different aspects such as languages spoken at home, marital status, the number of people in different age groups etc. The most tiring job that I had to do was to help make cards for everyone in Dandenong, who had recently moved into the suburb, to inform them about Gabrielle and how she can help the community. I also got to look into how the government advertises different things in Dandenong such as events, schools, new buildings, policies etc.
On Friday I met Gabrielle Williams herself and was invited to go to an event with her which was at a brewery. Of course, being under 18 and the responsible person I am, I did not drink anything, but I got to walk around the brewery with Gabrielle while being explained how the factory actually makes beer. From that experience, I was able to learn about some of the things that ministers do in their daily lives, which is to attend different events and take away all sorts of new information from them.
Even though the week was extremely tiring, I took away so much information and I strongly recommend it to those who are really interested in politics.
Jasmine Chhour 10AN - Hudson Institute of Medical Research
The Centre of Innate Immunity and Infectious Diseases at Hudson Institute of Medical Research provides an abundance of knowledge of day to day laboratory work, microbiology and immunology. The main bacteria of focus during this week is one that affects the lining of the stomach, helicobacter pylori or h.pylori. This infectious bacteria played an important role during the work experience placement as it contributed to further research.
For any new environment or workplace, a safety induction must be done; this requires to be in a bacterial laboratory environment so laboratory rules must be followed and PPE must be worn accordingly. Through the five days of work experience, a variety of laboratory techniques were practised and observed such as learning how to use mechanical pipettes, genomic DNA extraction (gDNA extraction), producing bacterial culture media, patching bacteria for strain maintenance and preparing glycerol stocks for long term minus 80° storage bacteria cells. When dealing with the bacteria it was vital to work aseptically in order to cultivate the h.pylori mutant healthily through the use of streak dilution and atmospheric controlled jars.
Three important techniques that were often used throughout the laboratory were the western blot, agarose gel electrophoresis and polymerase chain reaction (pcr). A lot of observing was required as they displayed change due to separating protein, dna or amplifying the original amount of dna. One of the highlights from the various new and different experiments was the chance to view the internal structure and anatomy of rats by observing dissections. Having no experience when it came to dissections, seeing others do it magnified my curiosity. A range of opportunities to experience new things were prepared through the help of kind and caring researchers, giving access to outstanding hands-on experience that expanded my knowledge when working in a bacterial laboratory and what it felt like to attend a lab meeting. My interest in microbiology has certainly increased along with my passion for science and medicine after hearing personal stories of others.
Airin Vinod 10MK - Change Life Australia
For my Year 10 Work Experience, I visited Change Life Australia, a mental health service and disability support organisation. I found the time there to be really rewarding as I was able to learn new information and understand the workplace environment. I gained knowledge of their company policies and fundamental office practices during my time there. I was even able to attend a meeting and they asked for my opinions on certain ideas which made me feel useful and part of the office. They also assigned me a number of tasks, including designing posters and forms for them, which was enjoyable. Overall, I had a really good time and learned a lot during my work experience week.
