Careers & VET News

University offers: Congratulations to a few of our Year 12 students who have already received offers from several universities after applying to early entry schemes. Many similar schemes offered by various universities will close this term on different dates.

HSC transition to life after school - further study or employment

Mrs Barrett and Mrs Balderston gave a presentation with links to all Year 12 and this was shared via Compass to the students and parents/carers.

Webinars: Many universities and other organisations are currently hosting many webinars on courses, scholarships and early entry schemes. I urge students to read emails and keep on eye on emails from universities they are interested in applying to attend.

There are also webinars on HSC subjects to assist with revision during the holidays before the HSC.

Scholarships: Many scholarships are currently available to students. Some come from universities, colleges and TAFE and some are from other organisations such as Teach NSW. Each year there are scholarships for the children and grandchildren of ex-serving veterans, a student who is the first in their family to attend university and many more.

These are listed in the career resources added to the Year 12 Google Classroom and in the Careers Newsletters that are posted each week on the Careers@McCarthy website on the Newsletters page accessible to both parents and students.

Work Experience

A number of our students have been engaging in work experience programs and we are grateful to the following employers for providing this opportunity and work environment experience:

Matt Marshall MG Marshall Builders, Westrac, Australian Defence Force, Darling Dental, Nutrien Ag Solutions, Complete Dental, Connected Electrical, Rodney Rolls Construction, Hutcheon & Pearce, Singles Builders, OBIECO, East Tamworth Dental, Taronga Zoo (Dubbo).

Exercise First Look: Indigenous Youth Placement - Soldier

Being a soldier in the Australian Army is one of the most challenging and rewarding careers in the world. Two students Erin Allan and Sebastian Lawler had the opportunity to have a first look and visit to ‘The Home of the Soldier’, Army Recruit Training Center at Kapooka and the Army Logistic Training Center at Bandiana, to get a taste of what soldier training is like.

Exercise First Look was a five-day residential program designed to give aspiring students a comprehensive overview of life in the Army. The activity highlighted the different roles, trades, experiences available as an Australian soldier. Skills that will set you up for life and other challenges you will face. During the placement, participants were exposed to the day-to-day activities of an Army Soldier in training, and had the opportunity to experience the Army lifestyle as a whole. Erin & Seb stayed within the Army Logistic Training Centre (ALTC); one of Army’s training centers that is responsible for providing soldiers their initial trade skills. They were involved in interactive activities such as obstacle courses, physical training activities, ceremonial drill training, weapon demonstrations and leadership challenges.

Regional Industry Education Partnerships

(RIEP), a NSW Government Program, connects local industry and secondary school communities.

The partnerships provide opportunities for:

sharing values and expectations for building our future workforce
helping employers engage with schools
supporting students to plan their future career pathways
improving students’ career prospects.

At McCarthy Catholic College we are fortunate to be able to work with our local project officer Ryan Hannrahan who links us into many opportunities. Often these programs are fully funded and we are grateful to Ryan for his promotion of the available courses and activities for our students. Some of the most recent experiences are highlighted below:

Sydney Flying School visit - Steps to becoming a Pilot

Students were able to view a presentation from a representative from Sydney Flying School. This opportunity to meet face to face and make enquiries was very rewarding. If becoming a Pilot is something that you are interested in please see the link to their brochure below:

White Card Certification

30 students have obtained their White Card Certification which is a Safe Work qualification required for workers who want to carry out construction work. This certification has led to students accessing work experience programs and apprenticeship opportunities within the construction industry. Thank you to Northern Inland Community College for delivering this course and RIEP for fully funding this learning for our students

Belmore Engineering - Industry Visit “Flash Starts Program”

10 students were provided the opportunity for an industry visit with Belmore Engineering. As part of the “Flash Starts Program” supported by RIEP, students were given a tour of the workshop, watched a presentation and engaged in supervised activities. Members of the Belmore Engineering team supervised the students manufacturing, assembling and welding their own fire pit project. The fire pits were scored and the winner of the Flash Starts program will receive a Welders Package and the opportunity for a work experience program with Belmore Engineering. This was a terrific opportunity for our students to be mentored by the qualified metal fabricators at Belmore Engineering.