At MLMC we have a team of Careers practitioners dedicated to supporting our students’ career development. Mrs Jo-Anne Hopkins-Goding (jhopkins@mlmc.vic.edu.au), Mrs Jennifer Morison (jmorison@mlmc.vic.edu.au) and myself, Mrs Tamara Rundle (trundle@mlmc.vic.edu.au), are available for career counselling, mock interviews and current careers information. 

Students can come down to visit the Careers department to request a booking time with Mrs Nives Gamble (or email careers@mlmc.vic.edu.au), during recess or lunchtime for McAuley students and during study periods for our senior students. If you are a parent or guardian wanting to support your child by, for instance, clarifying the requirements of tertiary courses or Work Experience, you are also more than welcome to attend with your child.

What’s new?

In Term 1 we were busy creating a Careers Resource Hub for the students (pictured below). This is a dedicated room in the Careers department where students can come and learn about current universities, TAFEs and private Institutions with access to course guides, pathway programs, scholarship opportunities and early entry pamphlets. Students can also access our hardcopy suite of Careers development GROW resources. These booklets are designed to aid students step by step through the Career Decision Wheel as they progress through the College.

Over the Term 1 holidays we updated our MLMC Careers website to be a more modern, student-centric platform. There are key resource links for opportunities in employment and study beyond school, such as our Careers Newsletter and Careers Event Calendar — a 'go to' for students in our senior years to keep on top of upcoming university and TAFE Open Days. Other areas such as the 'Student Secure Zone', where they can find tools such as the resume and cover letter builder, have been updated. We encourage students to register to the new Student Secure Zone and explore the website with their parents. For those that have used this resource on the older platform, follow the simple email re-verification of username process to re-access your saved documents.

A snapshot of MLMC’s holistic 7-12 Career Development Program

Year 7 Stepping Forward program

Every Year 7 student has attended a Careers introductory Lesson. A keystone of starting our career development at this age is to establish a foundation of understanding innate attributes and values so these remain the guiding force for future pathways decisions in the later years. We encourage parents to continue this dialogue at home throughout the junior years, using age appropriate prompts like do you think you prefer activities where you are with others or where you are by yourself? or, do you think you prefer being outside or inside more? Why? Students were also introduced to the concept of ‘career’ and postgraduate study through alumni stories of how they achieved their dream careers. And yes, there were some surprised faces when the realisation set in that accessing these occupations meant more school after high school.

Year 9 Future Me Program

All Year 9 students will undertake Careers Profiling using the Morrisby System and attend excursions to tertiary institutions such as RMIT, Deakin University and Holmesglen TAFE for campus tours. To learn more about the Morrisby psychometric surveying that our students will participate in on Friday 27 May, please read the Parent Info Fact Sheet or listen to the Morrisby parent information video. You can view the video by clicking HERE.

Year 10 Work Experience

All Year 10 students will participate in Work Experience in the final week of this term, from 20–24 June. This is an immersion experience where students decide on their own industry, identify an employer and apply for a position where they will observe how the workplace operates to get a sense of whether they are suited to that career. Authentic learning experiences such as this are priceless and memory making. It is always a pleasure hearing about our students’ adventures once they return to school in Term 3.

Year 10 parents are reminded that if your child is yet to return forms to please make it a priority over the coming week to finalise these. If you require assistance please contact the Careers department. Virtual Work Experience will take place on campus all week for those that do not organise a placement.

Micro-credentialing with white card qualifications

On Wednesday 4 May and Friday 6 May, Year 10 students undertook Work Experience in construction and worked very hard on day-long programs with Mr Tim Allchin from Ranges Tec to attain their white cards. This is an industry standard Occupational Health and Safety qualification that tradespeople require to enter a worksite. Students enjoyed the way Mr Allchin linked theory to practise using the Woodwork room (pictured below).

Year 11 Careers Expo Excursion — A Day all about Tomorrow

On Friday 29 April, Year 11 students (some of them pictured above and in the gallery below) went on an excursion to Australia’s largest annual Careers Expo at Caulfield Racecourse, armed with the brief to be inspired and informed about future possibilities. 

Students were wowed by over 200 stallholders. Victorian and many interstate tertiary institutions’ Future Students Teams were there to answer questions and explain what they have to offer our students as well as explain their entry requirements. 

In addition, there was a huge range of private institutions such as Carlton College of Sport, William Angliss and Endota Wellness College as well as volume employers offering apprenticeship and traineeships such as Sheen Panel Service and Peter Stevens Motorcycles. Industry bodies were also represented, with the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors keen to show off their drone skills to our students. 

Government industry representatives were available to discuss free TAFE schemes, for example in Nursing and Early Childhood Care. Emergency services such as Victoria Police, the Australian Defence Force and Ambulance Victoria were also present and eager to explain their unique career training pathways. 

Overall, the excursion was a success with exhausted students walking away with inspiration, information and showbags full of merchandise, leaflets and course guides.

Year 12 Preparing for Success Career Seminar

In Term 1, we held a seminar explaining the VTAC process for researching and preparing a shortlist for courses and how trends in the labour market should be used to understand future work environments. This was followed by intensive one-on-one careers counselling sessions. 

Many Year 12s require more than one session, and that is perfectly okay, we’ve seen some students three or four times. We encourage our Year 12s to come to Careers as often as they need to feel comfortable and confident with their career decisions.

Upcoming Careers event — ACU guest speaker David Plant 
Monday 23 May (12.45pm) 

To further support our senior students and their parents this year with the big questions about tertiary study, we will be hosting a number of informal dedicated lunchtime Careers sessions in the MLC building, and parents of Year 12 students are welcome to join us. 

Starting on Monday 23 May, at 12.45pm, we have invited David Plant from one of Australia’s leading universities, Australian Catholic University (ACU), to come along and speak to our Year 11 and 12 students and parents. Mr Plant will focus on how MLMC’s partnership with ACU affords our students a five-point preferential adjustment advantage for any ATAR when applying at ACU. Mr Plant is an expert on ACU course offerings, campus offerings and study abroad opportunities. This is an opportunity for Mr Plant to take the time, face to face, to explain the ACU Guarantee Early Entry Program, as well as where and when Campus and Faculty Open Sessions are taking place. We do hope to see some Year 12 Parents come along.

Parents must register for this informal lunchtime Careers session directly with Mrs Nives Gamble via email to careers@mlmc.vic.edu.au by Thursday 19 May, and then sign in and out on the day at College Reception.

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