Careers News

Rebecca Ambrose

Careers Counsellor | Teacher

Our Year 12s are getting ready for their next adventure, many are busily applying for jobs, universities, TAFE and other providers. The Federal Government has released a School Leavers Information Kit and it is a wonderful resource for any young person leaving school (or have left school recently). It can be found athttps://www.yourcareer.gov.au/school-leavers-support/school-leavers-information-kit-card. There are specific information kits for regional and rural school leavers, ATSIS school leavers, those with a disability and also a parent and guardian guide.

Melissa Tresidder our Pathways Officer has also put together a School Leavers Checklist that has been invaluable to our seniors as they move towards independence after school. This checklist has been sent to all Year 12s and their families this week.

Our Year 9s are starting their preparation for Year 10 Work Experience 2023 – It will be held, Week 10 Term 1 2023, 27th - 31st March 2023. This week we held an information session for our students and a Zoom for our families, to go over the program, paperwork and upcoming interviews. VPG has once again been engaged to support St Mary’s with this program. Year 9s will undertake “job interviews” at school, Mon 31st Oct and Tues 1st Nov (Week 5). Melissa Tresidder, our Pathways Officer, will be speaking with students about interview skills and developing a resume Tuesday 25th October, Week 4.

AusAppPathways mobile App

AusAppPathways is an App that can help you explore apprenticeship and traineeship pathway options. It is available for both Apple and Android devices. You can search over 3000 examples of apprenticeship and traineeship occupations. You can find information:

by filtering by State and Territory
about tips on how to find a job
jobs available
on exploring information and resources that can help you find career ideas that interest you
on how to begin career discussions with family, friends and career advisors

For more information about the App and to download it, visit the AusAppPathways website.

Key Apprenticeship and Traineeship resources to help you find that great opportunity

The Australian Apprenticeship Pathways website has free resources to help parents, students and employers navigate apprenticeships and traineeships pathways. This includes:

Job and Training Descriptions – sample descriptions for over 2500 job descriptions filtered by state, choice of industry or keyword
Job Pathways Charts – potential career pathways that can begin with an Apprenticeship
Pre-apprenticeship Finder – find a pre-apprenticeship in the industry of your choice by location
Practice Aptitude Quizzes – general industry-based literacy and numeracy quizzes illustrating the levels required when undertaking Australian Apprenticeship qualifications
Literacy and Numeracy Quizzes – Interactive quizzes to gauge if you are apprenticeship ready
Career Interest Explorer – A quiz to understand which type of career or work you are best suited for.
Co-branded resources – Resources such as fast fact sheets, steps to an Australian apprenticeship flowchart etc. which can be easily downloaded and customised for free.

Practice literacy and numeracy aptitude quizzes for future apprenticeship applications

When you are applying for an apprenticeship or traineeship you often are required to undertake a literacy and numeracy aptitude quiz. It is a good idea to have a practice before you need to do 'the real thing'. They are nothing like assignments at school and you will be far more successful if you practice before hand. Australian Apprenticeship Pathways website has a bank of quizzes for 17 industry areas so click here and select the industry area you are looking for an apprenticeship or traineeship in.

Queensland Government's incentives, costs and financial support for apprenticeships and traineeships

The Queensland Government has several funding programs to assist employers, apprentices and trainees to build their skills in Queensland. These include:

User Choice: This program provides a public funded contribution towards the cost of training and assessment services for eligible Queensland apprentices and trainees with funding aligned to the skills needs of industry.

Wages and conditions: Learn more about your wages, conditions of employment and your employer's workplace requirements, including safety at work and supervision in the workplace.

Free apprenticeships Funding to cover the full cost of training with a training provider when you choose a high priority apprenticeship or traineeship. Just choose the qualification you want, land an apprenticeship or traineeship with an employer and they will cover the cost of you training. Your employer will pay your wages but you might have to meet costs related to any uniform or other training resources.

Eligible qualifications under Free apprenticeships for under 25s

Here you will find a list of the eligible qualifications under the Free apprenticeships for under 25s program.

Skilling Queenslanders for Work Under Skilling Queenslanders for Work, you may be able to commence an apprenticeship or traineeship at a reduced or no cost.

Cost of training Training costs can include travel, accommodation, uniforms, equipment, text books, materials, tuition costs, parking or transport costs.

Financial support including Travel and accommodation subsidy, Youth Allowance, Austudy and ABSTUDY, Financial support and loans, living away from home allowance, disability support.

Training is a key part of an apprenticeship and traineeship

Apprenticeships and traineeships are competency based which is a combination of formal learning and workplace training which gives you the ability to apply skills and knowledge, even in new situations and environments. They gain experience and training on-the-job with their employer and complete formal training towards a nationally recognised qualification with a Registered Training Organisation. Click here to find an Australian Apprenticeship Support Network provider and to read more about:

training options
training in the workplace
what is a training organisation?
the training contract

Thinking about a trade in the ADF?

Some ADF trade jobs are similar to those found in the civilian world while others are unique to the military and will see you working with some of the most technically advanced equipment and systems in the world. All come with a great salary from the day you start, comprehensive training, travel and amazing experiences. Click here for more information about Trade opportunities in the Australian Defence Force.

Want a career in Music with a difference

Expand your musical repertoire across a variety of genres, playing with Defence Force bands at military, community and charity functions across Australia and potentially overseas. You can continue your love of music while being a member of the Army, Navy or Airforce.

Choosing a job that suits you

The Australian Government's jobactive site has information that will assist you in researching and planning your next career/job. You will find information on:

Your Future Career - Uses your interests, experience and qualifications to find jobs that could suit you.
Career Quiz - Suggests jobs based on the tasks that you enjoy most.
Job Jumpstart - Job Jumpstart can help you work out what jobs might suit you. It offers tailored advice based on your situation.
Starting a business - You can do some research and planning online.

Exploring careers in health

With the current high demand for health workers and the healthcare industry's strong future growth prospects, if you are considering careers in this industry you can look forward to an expanded number and range of opportunities. You can use myfuture to research different options including:

Industry insights – Fashion industry

Are you thinking of working in the fashion industry? Join myfuture's next webinar in conjunction with the Australian Business & Community Network to learn about the large range of careers on offer, skills required to succeed and pathways to gaining employment. This session will feature representatives from PVH, one of the world's largest fashion companies, whose brands include Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger. Find out more about these sessions and register now

Jobs Hub website

The Australian Government is supporting job seekers and employers to connect in a rapidly changing jobs market. Job Hub allows you to explore available job opportunities and can also help you identify similar jobs matching your skills for a broader range of options. Click here to find out more information on:

Occupations and jobs

‘Occupation’ is the name given to the type of work a person does. For example, a doctor, mechanic, project manager, physiotherapist or cabinet maker. You'll probably work in a number of different occupations over the course of your working life. The good news? Many of the skills and abilities developed working in one occupation are directly transferable and applicable to others. The Job Outlook website has information on hundreds of different occupations. They also offer job descriptions, average wages and main tasks. By exploring the website, you can get a sense of the kind of work that might suit you. The site can also help you understand the skills and roles that will be in demand in the future. You can also do a Career Quiz that will give you some ideas for further research.

Disabled Australian Apprentice Wage Support Program

Disabled Australian Apprentice Wage Support Program is a payment that assists employers of eligible Australian Apprentices with disabilities. For more information about this disability program or questions on employment help for job seekers with a disability, illness, or injury, call the People With Disability line or visit a service centre.

Employment Assistance Fund

Help is available through the Employment Assistance Fund (EAF) which gives financial aid to eligible people so they can buy work related modifications, equipment, help and services. It is good to tell prospective employers that they can access the EAF through Disability Employment Services or jobactive organisations.

Tertiary study applicants with a disability

If you have a disability, tertiary institutions have services and facilities available such as:

help with physical access needs
access to specialised technology and equipment
sign language interpreters
note-taking services.

The level of help available is assessed by the institution’s disability officer or similar. You should contact the relevant institution and discuss with them what you need. Click here to find out more along with a list of the institutions' disability support services.

A career in youth work

If you are interested in offering help and support to others and empowering young people to find their way in the world, a career in youth work could be for you. Youth workers build trust and understanding between young people and their families and young people and their community. They empower young people to make informed choices. These could be choices to do with education, work, health or relationships. They encourage them to build their skills and improve their wellbeing. If you feel that this could be a great job for you, click here to read more about:

What do youth workers do
Why become a youth worker
Education pathways
Tools and Resources

August Labour Force Data

The Australian Bureau of Statistics has released its Labour Force Data for August 2022:

Unemployment rate increased to 3.5%.
Employment increased to 13,592,100.
Underemployment rate decreased to 5.9%.
Participation rate increased to 66.6%.
Employment to population ratio increased to 64.3%.
Monthly hours worked increased 0.8% to 1,854 million

Top 20 Most In-Demand Jobs in Australia in 2022

You may be asking what the most in-demand jobs in Australia are now. Click here to find the most in demand jobs in Australian cities at the moment along with a job description, current average range, key employers and more:

Accounting and Finance
Teaching
Customer Service
Electrical Engineering
Civil Engineering
Project Management
Nursing
Mental Health Support
Sales
Software Development

Understanding full-time and part-time work

People work a wide variety of hours, from those working a few hours a week to people who work very long hours (e.g. over 60 hours a week). A useful and longstanding approach to summarising this spectrum of hours is to categorise people as either 'full-time' or 'part-time'. When interpreting employment and hours levels and movements in the context of full-time and part-time work it is important to be aware of:

how the headline estimates of full-time and part-time employment are derived, and
other approaches to understand full-time and part-time work that are also possible from Labour Force Survey data

Click here to find out what makes up full time employment, part time employment and more.

School leavers information eKit

Leaving school can sometimes be challenging. It’s completely normal to feel this way. The Australian Government's Your Career has developed a School Leavers Information eKit designed to help you understand the education, training and employment options available. There are lots of options for education, training and work in 2023 to help you further your career. This information kit has been designed to help you understand what those options might be and assist you to choose the right one for you. Check it out (Click on the School Leavers Resource eKit tab found on the top right hand corner of the screen) !

The Year13 website

Year13 is an online resource for post school options. It provides information on Culture, travel life, student life, money, growing up and wellbeing. Under each of these areas you will find articles that will provide you with more information to assist you in your job and life planning after school.

How to use music to boost your productivity at work

We’ve all had that feeling of being inspired, uplifted or motivated by music. Whether it’s a thumping beat, inspirational lyrics or a rousing chorus, music has the power to move us. But music also has the ability to help improve our productivity. And for many of us – whether we’re working remotely, working less or just working differently now – music can provide just the kind of simple motivation boost we need. An article from Seek suggests you should consider the following and click here to read the article in full:

The golden rule for listening while you work
How to choose the right music for your job
What if I'm working near others?

Staying positive!

Growing Leaders suggests that successful and happy living and effective leadership requires the ability to maintain a predictable mood. This in turn allows the people around you to approach you more often and when it is most crucial. Elmore sets out five steps to foster a good mood:

Practice self-awareness
Speak words of self-affirmation before you see people
Ask yourself who you are now and who you want to be
Ask yourself who and what you are grateful for
Identify a good target to work towards during the day

Read more about Elmore’s steps to a positive mood here.

Studying for exams? Here’s how to make your memory work for you

Have you ever thought about how your brain works when you study? Knowing this may improve your ability to retain and recall information. There are three main memory structures: sensory, working and long-term memory. Amina Youssef-Shalala from ACU says that using these tips, you can activate all three to enhance how you study. Click here to read more about:

learning the same content in different ways
learn easier parts first, then build on them
Link new information to things you already know

Why have a revision program?

Revising can be a little daunting, but keeping a revision program will help you keep track of what you need to do so you don't waste time going over some topics too often at the expense of others. Melbourne Uni have put together the following suggestions:

Working better under stress

Stress affects everyone. All the people you meet in life will have a certain task, situation or thought that causes them to experience stress. The way they experience and deal with that stress will be unique to them, and may be completely different to how you would experience and cope with the same situation. In these moments of stress, particularly in the context of study, we need to be able to continue to perform and meet deadlines, no matter the intensity of our stress levels or how we react to being under pressure. Click here to read an article from USQ' social hub that provides information on the following tips:

Change your space
Recognise your stress triggers
Test which skills function best when you’re stressed
Find the thing that helps you relax or regroup
Map out your assessment or study timelines to align with other life events

Writing essays in exams

The best way to do well in essay exams is to prepare and practice. Melbourne Uni has put together some ideas, tips and strategies to help you revise, organise your thoughts and write clearly during your exams. Click here to read more.

Certificate 3 Guarantee

The Certificate 3 Guarantee supports eligible people to complete a first, post-school Certificate III qualification. The program also supports school students to access training and Queensland's Year 12 graduates to transition to employment by providing free training in high priority qualifications. The Certificate 3 Guarantee is targeted at Certificate III qualifications because they are considered the entry-level qualification most often needed to gain employment in many industry sectors. The full list of subsidised qualifications is available on the Priority Skills List. Click here to find out about:

How does the program work?
How can RTO's participate
What level of subsidy is available?
Does the individual need to contribute to the cost of training?
What outcomes are expected?

Free TAFE for Year 12 graduates

To support Queensland's Year 12 graduates to successfully transition to employment, the Government is offering fee-free training in high priority qualifications. The training is available through a range of Certificate III level vocational education and training (VET) courses as well as apprenticeships and traineeships. View the courses offered by TAFE Queensland and the full list of high priority qualifications is available on the Department of Employment, Small Business and Training website.