Senior School

My Passion is to Help You Find Your Passion

Welcome back to a new school year! I look forward to another productive year working with the students at St Patrick’s College, Strathfield to help them find their passion and a pathway to that passion.

“Setting goals is the first step to turning the invisible into the visible.”

Goals provide a sense of direction and boost motivation. Often, it is beneficial coming up with a career goal and then working back from there to determine academic goals. Academic goals and career goals are inextricably tied. Achieving academic goals may allow an individual to reach their career goals. Although academic goals are more finite in nature, while career goals are broader, with long-term objectives in mind.

In preparation for their pathway interviews last year, the 2022 Year 12 cohort were required to come up with career goals. Many of the students had more than one career they were considering and were undecided as to what specific career they wished to pursue or what course they wanted to undertake post-secondary education. Once they had established their career goals, we worked backwards to set academic goals – subject specific goals and ATAR goals (if they wished to attain an ATAR) - that would allow them to achieve their career goals.

“Education shows the path to the door of opportunity. It gives confidence and hope to open it.”

The aim of each boy should be to maximise their opportunities, and this can be done through education. Upon analysis of the 2022 HSC results, it was encouraging to see that many of the students had achieved their academic goals which allowed them to gain entry into the course they had as a first preference. While a large percentage of the cohort did achieve early entry into university prior to the HSC examinations commencing, they still pursued their academic goals and didn’t give up on these. This provided them with more choice as they gained entry into other university courses during the main round of offers and the second round of offers which are based on ATAR results. At the same time this also led to confusion as some students with multiple offers were uncertain as to which course to enrol into. This is a nice problem to have! One specific student received an offer into a Bachelor of Speech Pathology, Bachelor of Occupational Therapy and Bachelor of Health Science. He then had to do some further research into each course and make a decision on which course to enrol into. Therefore, it is important that all students work to their potential to maximise their opportunities.

At the same time, we celebrate those students that managed to secure an apprenticeship immediately after graduating from the College. I often get calls from employers looking for students that are interested in applying for an apprenticeship with their company. I do advertise these positions but unfortunately many of them are not filled by our students as by this stage, the students have already found jobs. Employers contact the College directly as they know that with a graduate from St Patrick’s College, they are bound to find a quality employee with an impressive work ethic.

“What you get by achieving your goal is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.”

This year, as I meet with the 2023 Year 12 cohort, I will be asking them to set their career goals and academic goals, much like the Year 12 group did last year. However, this year I will also be asking them to provide me with information on their involvement in sport, leadership community/voluntary work, social justice, performing arts and other extra-curricular activities. Involvement in these activities not only allows students to achieve balance in life but also provides them with further opportunities. Our Proxime Accessit, Matthew Vucic, managed to secure a Co-op Scholarship with the University of NSW (UNSW) where he will receive a tax-free cash payment of $19,600 per year for four years. He was awarded this scholarship after a long and rigorous application and interview process where the judges looked at more than his academic abilities. The qualities that led to Matthew attaining this competitive scholarship was his contribution to the school community, involvement in social justice and care for the community at large, leadership skills and communication skills. Therefore, the important message here is to get involved in extra-curricular activities as you will gain many transferable skills that will help you secure employment after study.

I encourage parents and carers to have a discussion with their sons about their career goals. Whether your son is in Year 5 or in Year 12, it is beneficial to start the discussion and get them to start thinking about this. Even in Year 11 or 12, some boys may not have a definite career and may have a few options they are considering. This is not anything to be concerned about. I am happy to meet with any boy and/or their parents/carers to discuss career and course options, particularly if this means that it will assist with putting goals in place.

What is on the Agenda in Careers For 2023?

Throughout the year, I will be attending the Year 10, 11 and 12 Pastoral Care Periods (PCPs) to disseminate important information to students. Students in these Year groups also have access to the Careers Canvas Course which consists of information on post school options, including course and career information.

For guidance and advice that will take longer than a few minutes, all students can make an online careers appointment through CANVAS Careers by clicking on the tile ‘Book an Appointment’. A schedule with my availability will pop up. The student can then select a time that suits them. There are 10-minute, 15-minute or 20-minute time slots. Year 10 should only book appointments during either Recess or Lunch. Years 11 and 12 need to make appointments during their study periods, Recess, or Lunch. Students are more than welcome to come into the Careers Office at any time if they have a quick question. As mentioned earlier, often having a career goal will motivate students to develop academic goals. So please encourage your sons to see me if they would like to know about their career pathway options. Remember no dream is too big if you are willing to work hard.

Students in Years 10, 11 and 12 will be emailed the Careers Newsletter on a regular basis. Parents/carers will also receive a copy via the Especean. I encourage all students and parents/carers to browse through the newsletter as you may find something that will be of interest.

As the Careers Advisor at the College, other services that I will provide to the students throughout the year include:

Careers education lessons to Year 10 students
Individual careers counselling appointments on school and post-school options available for any student in Years 10, 11 and 12. Students from other Year groups are also welcome to schedule a careers appointment during their Recess or Lunch
Information and guidance for HSC subject selection to Year 10, and any student in Years 11 and 12 that are thinking of dropping a subject or changing subjects
Work experience opportunities for students who are thinking of leaving school at the end of Year 10
Pathway interviews with Year 12 in Term 2 and Term 3
Careers Expo at the College for Years 10, 11 and 12 to attend where there will be representatives from industry, universities, colleges, and TAFE. These events will provide students with an opportunity to source information on post school options.

If any parent/carer has any questions or would like to book a meeting, please feel free to contact me on 8705 9255 or email me at joanne.cupac@spc.nsw.edu.au.

In the year ahead, I look forward to getting to know each of the boys so I can mentor and guide them to make future course and/or career choices.

Joanne Cupac

Careers Advisor