Careers Corner

How can parents be career supporters to their children

Are you wondering how to best support your teenagers to make career related decisions? As parents and guardians, you play such a big influence when it comes to your child’s career choices and navigating the ‘world of work’. Below are some fantastic strategies to assist your teenager in their career choices. Keep in mind that the workplace that children will enter may be very different from when their parents started working. 

 

Remain positive 

No matter how complex and confusing the changes in employment and training may seem, the majority of school leavers now have access to a number of education and vocational pathway opportunities. Try to avoid the “What are you going to do/be when you leave school?” type questions. These questions are often very confronting. Instead take the opportunity to talk about career options whenever possible, for example when a news item appears on a current affairs program or when a University/TAFE Open Days are approaching. 

 

Encourage your child to develop positive self-esteem 

Focus on their achievements – but not just at school. Acknowledge their efforts in all their activities – keeping their room tidy, participating in sport, community activities, setting goals and achieving them. Show them you believe in them! 

 

Allow for a change in direction 

It is very unusual for a student to choose a career at a very early age and never waiver in their choice. Be prepared for changes in direction and encourage your teenager to continue to explore a variety of options. 

 

Encourage them to learn from their mistakes 

Even if you feel uncertain about their choice, remain positive as they make their first steps towards their career. It isn’t the end of the world if they choose the wrong work experience or subject. Discovering that a previous career interest is not for them is a positive step in the decision-making process as it gives them the time to re-assess their interests and to broaden their options.

 

Encourage them to find an industry contact 

When a teenager begins to express an interest in a particular career, if it is possible, help them to establish links with someone in that field. This person can then provide a direct, first-hand information link with that particular occupation or industry. 

 

Networking 

Students should be actively encouraged to develop an information network themselves. This network could well be friends, neighbours, part-time work employers, work experience employers and your family’s builder/car repairer/plumber/accountant (depending on their career interests) and other contacts made by the student. The network serves two purposes – it allows students to gain realistic insights into their chosen career and it broadens their chances of finding jobs as a large number of vacancies are only advertised by word-of-mouth. 

 

Share your experiences 

Talk to your teenagers about your own experiences of work and study and your reasons for making particular career decisions. Discuss the problems you have faced and how you dealt with them. Speak openly of the positive and negative aspects of the jobs you have done.

 

Respect their feelings and their privacy 

Do they have someone special, perhaps not always you, to confide in? A relative, family or professional friend or someone who is interested in young people like a church or sports group leader can provide a sympathetic ear. Each student is special and needs someone to listen in a special way. No matter how strongly you may feel about what your teenagers are doing, there may be times when you need to be able to step back from the situation.

 

Resources: Careers WeekGEC Careers

 

UCAT ANZ

Applications are now open for students to register for the University Clinical Aptitude Test for Australian and New Zealand (UCAT ANZ.) The UCAT is an admissions test used for university entry into select medical, dental, and clinical science degree courses. 

 

The test helps universities to select applicants with the most appropriate abilities and professional behaviours required for new doctors and dentists to be successful in their clinical careers. It is used in collaboration with other admissions processes such as interviews and academic qualifications. 

 

Please note that some pathways into medicine / dentistry / clinical sciences will not require the UCAT ANZ. For some applications, a different test may be required, these details will be available direct on the university websites.

 

A UCAT ANZ preparation plan video is available to watch here. Further details regarding dates and fees are available here.  A free UCAT practice exam is available for download here.

For UCAT sample questions, as well as additional advice on where to start and information on choosing a university, you can find further information here.

 

Year 10

All Year 10 students have recently been emailed information about the Work Experience Program for 2022. This year, students will have the opportunity to choose between attending camp or participating in work experience during the week of 17th – 21st October 2022. 

 

If anyone within the school community knows of an organisation that would be willing to take on Year 10 students who are passionate and excited about participating in work experience this year, please feel free to call me at the school, or alternatively you can email me at heather.palm@education.vic.gov.au

 

Careers in Focus

Biomedical Engineer

Average weekly salary: $2,155

Education/Training: A Bachelor of Biomedical Engineering or a Bachelor of Engineering (majoring in Biomedical Engineering) or related Postgraduate qualifications

 

Subject prerequisite/assumed knowledge: English, Math Methods and/or Specialist Maths, Chemistry and Physics. Specific prerequisites will vary between different Universities/Institutes.

Biomedical Engineers apply engineering and scientific methodology of physics, mathematics, computing, physical chemistry, and materials science to find solutions to problems in medicine and life sciences. Most Biomedical Engineers are employed in hospital/health care related industries, as well as professional/scientific/technical services industries, 

 

Tasks include: 

  • Designing new medical monitoring, diagnostic and therapeutic equipment, as well as surgical equipment and tools
  • Analysing and designing prosthetic and orthotic devices and technology to assist people with disabilities
  • Setting up and maintaining medical equipment and testing the safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of equipment
  • Diagnosing and interpreting bioelectric data using signal processing techniques
  • Measuring and monitoring physiological systems

Personal attributes:

  • Good Communication skills
  • Able to observe and take accurate measurements
  • Patient and imaginative
  • Aptitude for design
  • Analytical and problem-solving skills

Related Careers/Specialisations: Bioengineer, Clinical Engineer, Rehabilitation Engineer, Medical Engineer

Resources: Labour Market Insights, The Good Careers Guide, JobOutlook

 

Emerging Occupations

Data Scientist

Average weekly salary: $2,139

Education/Training: Data Scientists usually require a bachelor’s degree and/or Postgraduate qualifications in related fields such as: applied data science, statistics, data programming or computer science.

 

Subject prerequisite/assumed knowledge: English, Maths Methods and/or Specialist Maths, 

Data scientists find and interpret rich data sources, manage large amounts of data, merge data sources, ensure consistency of datasets, and create visualisations to aid in understanding data. They build mathematical models, present, and communicate data insights and findings, and recommend ways to apply data. Data Scientists are usually employed in a variety of industries, including public services, private sector, scientific and professional research and financial services.

 

Tasks Include:

  • Organising complex and large amounts of data into spreadsheets, charts, and graphs
  • Making business decisions and solving business problems through undirected research
  • Discovering new algorithms to solve data and business problems while creating automatic future approaches to sorting through data
  • Manipulating data sets to help make decisions for businesses on future costs/expenditure
  • Extracting and cleaning large amounts of ‘messy’ or unstructured data and formulate it into presentable pieces of information

Personal attributes:

  • Meticulous and extremely organised
  • Good communication, written comprehension, and presentation skills 
  • Measured judgement and decision-making skills
  • Strong problem-solving skills and logic

Related careers: Data Analyst, Big Data Analyst, Information Security Analyst, Data Architect, 

 

Resources: National Skills Commission, Good Universities Guide

What are the jobs of the future? 100 Jobs of the Future

 

Heather Palm

Careers and Pathways Coordinator