Year 10 students at Moama Anglican Grammar have been stepping into the workforce.
This opportunity is presented to students at the school each year, giving them a chance to take on responsibilities and explore career paths aligned with their interests.
Moama Grammar offers two weeks of work experience, which allows students not only the chance to complete their placement at multiple companies, but also gives them the opportunity to travel further than Echuca and Moama to explore their options.
At Billabong Ranch, Jorja Thompson is completing her work experience and has been doing tasks such as mucking out pens, grooming horses and washing dogs in order to build skills around animal care.
Jorja is currently doing a TAFE course in animal care in order to become a vet nurse, and she is very passionate about animals.
“I chose to do my placement here to further my skills in animals and to complete my TAFE course in animal care,” she said.
An important part of preparing for future careers, work experience helps students build on their abilities and gain knowledge in their chosen industry.
For Jorja, this has meant learning skills such as unsaddling and taking the bridle off a pony as well as assisting children with activities.
Her favourite part of this experience has been working with the horses; brushing them, leading them around and lining them up.
She is thoroughly enjoying her placement, and her experiences at Billabong Ranch have helped encourage her to pursue a career in animal care.
Making a choice
Alex Hehir is one of 39 students undergoing placement around Echuca, Deniliquin, Melbourne and other areas.
Alex is doing work experience at Foodmach, a company which designs, manufactures and delivers equipment and packaging lines.
Alex has been carrying out tasks such as designing with computer programs, sequencing for coding robots, and has also made improvements in different welding skills.
Foodmach was Alex’s choice for work experience because the company supports women in less traditional jobs and encourages on-the-job training through apprenticeships.
“I chose to do Foodmach as work experience because they endorse women in non-traditional trades,” Alex said.
Alex has felt encouraged to pursue a career driven by Foodmach’s purpose by hearing people’s stories and experiences in the industry.
Year 10 co-ordinator Amy Lane and careers adviser Curtis Townrow have worked together to make it possible for the students at Moama Grammar to participate in work experience and get the best out of their chosen industry.
“We’re off for two weeks at Moama Grammar, allowing them to go to more than one business or workplace,” Mr Townrow said.
Work experience for Moama Grammar students is proving to be a very rewarding and positive experience so far, with students learning new skills and gaining knowledge relevant to a career that aligns with their goals and interests.