Law

Overview

Being a lawyer isn’t about yelling ‘objection!’ and pointing aggressively. It’s a varied field, with specialisations focussed on maintaining principles of fairness�

You could be a consumer law specialist helping clients navigate their rights and defend them against violations, or a family lawyer helping couples negotiate marital disputes� Perhaps you’d like to become an expert in property law and help facilitate commercial transactions� Maybe even help banks navigate a complex merger, or help a film studio with copyright claims� You could even work for an NGO helping draft human rights agreements, or resolve personal conflicts as a civil litigator. Whenever there’s a contract to draft, a law to uphold or deal to be brokered, lawyers are usually involved�

What’s involved?

Common to all legal specialisations is staying on top of relevant legislation� This means researching and interpreting massive amounts of information quickly� For instance, consumer law specialists must be intimately familiar with Australian Consumer Law, and stay up to date with changes� All lawyers must have excellent attention to detail, as their daily work often entails using precise language to file or evaluate documents and communicate findings or advice with clients and stakeholders�

Where do legal professionals work?

Lawyers can be found throughout both the private and public sectors around the world� Banks and large corporations need them to navigate heavily regulated financial transactions, mergers, acquisitions and contracts as much as think tanks, governments and NGOs utilise them to advise on policy�

Entering the legal industry

Even the sharpest students face stiff competition� In addition to a law degree, it’s important to take on numerous clerkships early, and involve yourself in competitions like moot court sessions or join relevant student societies to stand out� But in doing so, it helps to begin forming an idea of where you’d like to specialise� For example, knowing you’re interested in mergers and acquisitions can inform your decision to take clerkships at firms specialising in this, and therefore make you a more attractive candidate to similar firms on graduation.

Career prospects

Complementing a STEM degree with one in law can open doors, not only to advancement within a

Allens encourages people from across the firm to work on the development of new technologies and processes.

Herbert Smith Freehills has an ‘innovation open day’ where STEM students are welcome.

Pairing a law and STEM degree, you could be the one working on that next technology to shake up the sector, or applying your quantitative reasoning to the interdisciplinary legal problems law firms, governments and businesses face in an increasingly technological world.

particular legal specialisation or sector, but entirely different disciplines altogether� This is primarily due to the breadth of transferable skills law graduates possess� For instance, strong verbal communication could translate to a career in sales or management� Proficiency with written communication can lead to a career in journalism or public policy� Strong reasoning skills could lead to a career in accounting or finance. The opportunities are numerous for multi-faceted graduates�

How can I take advantage of my STEM degree?

STEM graduates are sought-after in the sector as a direct result of technology-based legal services� With the advent of alternative law practices, big data analytics and cloud storage, all manner of legal services can be tracked, streamlined and automated� Pairing a law and STEM degree, you could be the one working on that next technology to shake up the sector, or applying your quantitative reasoning to the interdisciplinary legal problems law firms, governments and businesses face in an increasingly technological world�

Average salary

GradAustralia employer partners pay graduates roughly $72,000 pa on average, with 37% paying more than $75,000 pa� However, the median pay for junior solicitors among all Australian employers is roughly $50,000 pa according to PayScale data�

Choose this if you:

■ Excel at written and verbal communication ■ Are calm under pressure ■ Aren’t afraid to do a lot of reading

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Cybersecurity

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Mathematics

Statistics

Data science

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Chemical engineering

Civil engineering

Electrical engineering

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Day in the life

Raymond Sun

6.30 AM

I am playing Quidditch, but just before I catch the golden snitch the jarring noise of my bed alarm wakes me out of my dream� I roll out of bed, wash up and make breakfast� My go-to breakfast is steamed millet with smashed avocado, perfect for fueling my body for a productive day ahead�

8.23 AM

I am on the train to work� It usually takes me 30 minutes to get to work so I make use of my commute time by catching up on any exciting tech or legal news updates�

9.00 AM

I enter the Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) lift lobby and bump into a fellow solicitor who I work with in the digital law group (DLG)� The DLG is the firm’s exciting new global, multi-disciplinary team of lawyers and technical experts who assist clients through the legal and technical challenges of digital transformation� Another mission of the DLG is to drive the creation of smart legal contracts, but more on that later� I love working in the DLG because it allows me to apply my dual passions for law and programming to create value for clients and the legal industry in general�

9.05 AM

Now at my desk I run through my emails from other DLG colleagues of our international offices. The emails are diverse, ranging from internal updates from our lead partner, to coding tutorials, to inside memes! But one particular email catches my attention� It is an invitation to a video call with developers of a global technology giant in relation to our joint

Raymond Sun studied a Bachelor of Laws and is a paralegal at Herbert Smith Freehills.

nationwide project on smart legal contracts� Smart legal contracts are self-executing digital contracts that combine natural language and computer code to automate business transactions� As one of the coders in the DLG, I have been working closely with industry developers to build these smart legal contracts, which will be a game-changer in the future of Australian business�

9.45 AM

I fire up Visual Studio Code on my laptop and join the video call with the developers� They are interested to see my progress on a particular algorithm for the smart legal contract, so I share my screen and walk through my code line by line� I receive some feedback and we wrap up the call with a plan for next steps, including an in-person meeting this afternoon�

10.15 AM

With the video call still fresh in mind, I immediately start implementing the developers’ feedback to my code� After an hour of debugging I finally update the algorithm� It runs well, although there are still some minor errors to polish� I’ll work on them later�

12.00 PM

It’s lunch time! And because it’s Wednesday there’s a staff lunch at the firm’s dining area on level 33! After serving myself a full plate of pasta and salads, I join a table with colleagues who I clerked with last year� The clerkship program at HSF has been one of the most memorable highlights of my early career and it was through this program I grew to love the firm’s amazing culture and people�

1.00 PM

I have my weekly phone catch up with my DLG supervisor based in Perth� One of the perks of working at a global law firm is the opportunity to work with colleagues from all over the world and be exposed to different corporate cultures� This also means travel opportunities and in fact, last year I flew to Perth for the DLG’s induction training�

My supervisor invites me to do some quick and interesting legal technology research, which I eagerly accept� It’s time to turn on my legal cap so I press Alt + Tab to switch from Visual Studio Code to Office Word.

2.00 PM

After smashing out the one-page research memo, I pack up and head out to catch the light rail to the office of the technology giant. At their office, I team up with the developers to code side by side and achieve progress on our smart legal contracts project�

5.30 PM

I return to the HSF office and respond to some quick emails� To keep myself organised, I make a file note of today’s progress and upload my work on the firm’s secure cloud storage. I

then change into active wear for tonight’s dance practice�

6.00 PM

I meet up with my crew at the nearby dance studio and we continuously drill intense choreography for our upcoming stage performance� After sitting at a desk all day it is always good to exercise and refresh the brain�

8.00 PM

I return home, shower and have dinner� I play some online chess and watch David Attenborough’s nature documentaries on YouTube� Did you know beavers share their burrow with other river animals in exchange for food (e�g� rent)?

10.00 PM

It’s nearly bedtime! I pack my bag and grab my phone to set the alarm to 6�30 am, but then procrastinate and end up scrolling through memes and dance videos on Instagram�

10.30 PM

Tonight’s meme feed has been solid, however the combination of full screen brightness and incessant scrolling has depleted my phone battery to three per cent� My phone needs to recharge and so should I�

Management Consulting

Overview

Management consultants are the business world’s professional problem solvers� Management consultants come from a broad range of disciplines, including science, maths, the humanities, law and engineering� They are united by the common drive to solve complex problems, which is exactly what they do for their clients – a mixed bag of local businesses, government organisations, law firms and large multinational companies�

What does a consultant do?

Drawing on expertise from a range of disciplines, management consultants, either individually or in teams, work alongside other organisations to address their most pressing challenges, from maximising the profitability of a new product launch to navigating a complex merger�

Generally, these tasks see management consultants adopt one of two roles: an advisory role (such as developing a business strategy, improving HR processes or analysing the market) or an implementation role (such as executing a business strategy, introducing a technological solution or overseeing the adoption of new internal processes)�

There are four main categories of consulting� Management and strategy consultants help businesses improve their structure, management, efficiency and profits. Financial consultants focus on issues related to budgeting, project valuation, risk management and insurance� Information technology consultants provide advice on IT systems and practices, also helping staff understand and use new technologies� Finally, human resources consultants aim to improve organisational efficiency and performance by solving problems related to staffing, benefits programs, recruitment, training and a range of other HR activities�

Where do management consultants work?

Management consultants can work at a management consulting firm, practice independently (on a freelance or contractual basis), or work in-house� Some of the better known management consulting firms in Australia include BCG, Bain & Co. and McKinsey� As a management consultant, you are likely to find yourself on the road, or even in the air, quite frequently, travelling to meet and work alongside stakeholders at your client companies� For some management consultants, this is an exciting part of the job – you get to see new places and network widely, while embracing the life of a ‘nomadic worker’� However, the constant travel can be taxing too and is worth taking into account if you’d prefer to be employed at a fixed location�

Entering the consulting industry

Jobs in top-tier management consulting firms are extremely competitive, and the process whereby successful graduates secure a role is rigorous� For example, McKinsey requires applicants to complete several rounds of interviews, as well as a qualitative reasoning test and a face-to-face case study in which they are expected to work through business problems aloud� Of course, there are many satisfying careers to be found at smaller boutique and medium-sized management consulting firms as well – these too are likely to attract accomplished graduates�

It’s a good idea to research the industry and decide which branch of the consulting sector you find most appealing� Some approaches to consider include using company websites, social media, professional associations, networking events and university services�

Alternatively, if you’re lucky enough to have a contact in consulting, you can ask them for advice on how to approach a similar career. You might find it helpful to send them a list of questions related to topics such as what a typical day of work looks like, what they like (or dislike) about their job and what type of advice they can offer on applying for jobs in the consulting industry�

Career prospects

Management consultants are in high demand when other industries are flourishing and seek advice on, say, how to maintain their growth or acquire new assets� However, management consulting can also be countercyclical – when times get tough, companies under pressure often look to management consultants for help making tough decisions intended to make the business more efficient or competitive.

Capgemini believes diversity sparks innovation and allows it to better service a global marketplace.

Most consulting firms are hierarchical organisations that offer numerous opportunities for upwards advancement.

Consequently, the management consulting industry is relatively stable, with the growth of industries such as construction, healthcare, retail, leisure, hospitality and education likely to translate into new job opportunities for management consultants�

Most management consulting firms are hierarchical organisations that offer numerous opportunities for upwards advancement� The long-term goal is usually to secure partnership – a position that combines a large amount of responsibility with significant remuneration�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

The diversity of responsibilities facing the modern consultant make this an appealing career choice for STEM graduates, who have been trained to think through the minutiae of various problems before generating appropriate solutions�

Indeed, many of the larger management consulting firms – such as BCG, Bain & Co. and McKinsey – seek out STEM graduates specifically because they are possessed of problem-solving skills and have an ability to apply known ideas in novel contexts�

Average salary

In Australia, graduate management consultants earn an average of $61,000 per annum while working approximately 47 hours a week�

Choose this if you:

■ Enjoy complex problem solving, especially when it requires you to quickly master new information� Feel excited by the prospect of working in a multidisciplinary team alongside colleagues with various academic and professional backgrounds� Are happy to travel frequently and often far for your work� Can communicate effectively and build strong professional relationships� Like to consider a problem with a unique perspective and trigger an idea that is practical but provocative�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Computer systems and networks

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Electrical engineering

Mechanical engineering

Environmental engineering

Environmental science

Chemical engineering

Earth science

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On the job

What is your job title?

I am an associate consultant�

What drew you towards consulting?

Consulting was a career path that interested me as it provides industry experience in a variety of projects and fields.

How have your studies helped you in this position?

Having studied information systems and innovation at university, I have been able to adapt to the insights and data capability to learn the tools for data visualisations and analytics�

What are you passionate about?

Learning new skills that will help me develop personally and from a career perspective� I want to learn exciting technologies and their applications in the real world�

What does a typical day look like?

Currently I am on the bench, so my days consist of self-directed learning� I am currently working on getting certifications in Qlik Sense and Automation Anywhere, while also training in languages SQL and Python, and even tools such as Jira�

How would you describe the culture at Capgemini?

Open and very down to earth� All of the staff including senior leadership are approachable, which has created a very welcoming environment� Capgemini is also very flexible as far as a work/life balance goes�

What makes you feel empowered at work?

Being asked for my opinion on how to approach a task, and then having my advice used in the organisation to help the company improve and grow�

How does Capgemini help support your sense of purpose in your career?

Capgemini has given me the opportunity and framework with which I can build my career trajectory and this has helped with a sense of control and purpose� Capgemini has given me the support required to develop my skill set and effectively start my career� The entire graduate program has been designed to help me grow and develop�

What three words would you use to describe Capgemini?

Accepting, supportive and friendly�

What advice would you give to students as they prepare for job applications and interviews?

Apply to a lot of positions, don’t be discouraged by the process and learn how to sell yourself in the right lingo�

Tully O’Leary

Tully O’Leary studied a Bachelor of Information Technology (Information Systems, Project Management)/Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation, and is an associate consultant at Capgemini.

Study

Bachelor of Information Technology (Information Systems, Project Management)/Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation, University of Technology Sydney, 2018

ROLE

Associate consultant, Capgemini

Capgemini has given me the opportunity and framework with which I can build my career trajectory and this has helped with a sense of control and purpose.

On the job

What’s your name and job title?

Rhys Kilian, analytics analyst�

What does your employer do?

Management consultancy with offices across the globe working in all industries�

What are your areas of responsibility?

I work in the advanced analytics team� My responsibilities include working closely with the client to understand the intricacies of the problem, then applying analytics techniques such as statistical modelling and machine learning to develop a proof-of-concept solution�

Can you describe a typical work day?

The first thing on most days is to have a stand-up meeting with the Kearney team and client to plan the day ahead� Once I have a plan, my day will include working with various analytics tools and software to develop my statistical or machine learning model� The great thing about working in the analytics team is that I often leave my model behind, which is implemented by the business� More often than not, I also have regular check-ins with the client during the development phase to ensure they understand how to use the model�

Currently, I am working on an inventory management project with a large Australian company� I am working to improve their supply chain practices by applying analytics techniques on their customer demand forecasts and inventory optimisation�

Where could you or others in your position go from here?

One thing the world is not running out of, is data� There is great demand from clients within all industries to better understand the data they are creating� I could pursue a technical mastery path within Kearney to become a true expert in the analytics field, or continue to improve my consulting skills to move into management on technical projects�

What do you love about your job?

I love learning every day� There is only so much you can learn through a university degree� What is exciting about my job is that I can take cutting-edge research and apply it to real business problems� One of the great things about working at Kearney is that I can continue to improve my technical skills but directly see the impact of my work on clients� I will be here for many years to come, as there are plenty of problems still unsolved�

What’s the biggest challenge of your job?

As consultants, we often work on tight deadlines� There are often hundreds of sub-problems to be solved and it takes quite a bit of planning to ensure that I prioritise the tasks that will have the highest impact� However, I always feel supported by my team and they always help me to be successful�

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student?

■ Focus on learning – if you’re not learning, find a way you can. ■ Exercise and eat healthy – it’s easy to fall into bad habits when you start working� ■ Try and meet new people – you never know where opportunities will come from�

Rhys Kilian

Rhys Kilian studied a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Hons)/Bachelor of Commerce (Business Analytics) and is an analytics analyst at Kearney.

Study

Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Hons)/ Bachelor of Commerce (Business Analytics), University of Sydney, 2018

ROLE

Analytics analyst, Kearney

One of the great things about working at Kearney is that I can continue to improve my technical skills but directly see the impact of my work on clients.

On the job

Vincent Chan

How did you get to your current position?

Engineering students need to complete a mandatory period of work experience prior to graduation� I completed mine in Brisbane where I was a process engineer at a wastewater treatment plant� I also interned at an intellectual property law firm, working on medical device patents. In my final year I travelled to Nepal with Engineers Without Borders to learn about humancentred design in humanitarian engineering�

After graduating, I moved to Sydney to take a job at a cleantech start-up, designing and manufacturing next generation semiconductor materials� After two years in a highly specialised and technical role, I decided it was time to broaden my experience� I came across consulting briefly while I was at university and felt now was the time to try it� I applied for a consulting role at Nous and have worked here for six months�

What does your employer do?

Nous is a management consulting firm that partners with governments and organisations across sectors to improve their performance and solve their challenges� As a consultant, my focus is on delivering project work for our clients� This includes everything from conducting research, data analysis, stakeholder consultation and engagement, workshop facilitation, project management and anything else the client requires�

The last thing I worked on was conducting geo-spatial analysis on a portfolio of retail stores to inform the implementation of a new logistics model�

What are the career prospects?

Consultants at Nous are encouraged to develop their professional skills both on the job and through training� Twice a year our performance is reviewed and promotions to senior consultant and beyond are considered at this time� Consultants also build a wide network both within Nous and externally with clients, which can provide career opportunities in the future�

What do you love about your job?

The people and the culture at Nous are the highlights for me� It’s a place where you can do great work with people who want to make a difference� Nous has a growing data analytics capability and I enjoy using these tools to uncover insights for clients�

Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Do you have to work on weekends?

Nous’ self-management culture means you have a lot of responsibility to yourself and your project teams� The work is fast-paced and the cyclical nature of consulting means there can be periods that require late nights or weekend work� However, these are balanced by quieter times� We are empowered to manage our workloads flexibly.

What advice would you give to a student?

■ It takes a bit of effort to keep in touch with your uni friends who move away for jobs and life, but it’s worth it� ■ Identify early what you value in a workplace� For example, money, your colleagues, interesting work, work-life balance� These are all valid and everyone has a different set of motivations� Find yours and stay true to them�

Vincent Chan studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical Engineering)/ Bachelor of Science (Physics) and is a consultant at Nous.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical Engineering)/ Bachelor of Science (Physics), University of Queensland, 2016

ROLE

Consultant, Nous

It’s a place where you can do great work with people who want to make a difference.

On the job

Can you tell us about Oliver Wyman?

Oliver Wyman works with large, prominent companies and organisations around the world to solve difficult problems that lack a clear answer� We create lasting impact by assigning teams of experts to understand and breakdown problems, then collaborate with our clients to develop solutions that change what’s possible for them, their industries and society�

While the financial services industry makes up a large chunk of our client portfolio, we also work across the telecommunications, energy, retail and health life science industries� In addition, we dedicate a proportion of our time to social impact projects, in which we support organisations committed to improving communities and lives across the globe�

What is the interview process like?

Both graduate and experienced hires can expect five interviews, made up of CV, case and presentation interviews� As I joined the Oliver Wyman digital practice of the firm, I also completed a technical interview that included coding questions�

What does your role involve?

As an engagement manager for the data, technology and analytics practice, I would typically be the most senior person on the ground for a technology-based project� I am the person who clients reach out to if they have any concerns and am responsible for making sure the project team has what they need to deliver results�

What was the last thing you worked on?

I recently worked on a project where the client wanted to launch a digital bank� Within a matter of weeks, we had to determine the functional requirements for the project, the level of effort it would take to implement each requirement, the sequence the implementation should take, the headcount and skill sets required, and the high-level costings for a 24-month project�

What are the challenges of your work? Do you work on weekends?

There is always a lot to do, so I need to be very savvy on how to manage my time� It helps a lot to understand where efforts spent produce the highest returns�

Oliver Wyman is committed to having a sustainable work-life quality for their consultants and we are very much against working on weekends� Having said that, it’s natural for stress levels to rise during crunch periods and we try to minimise this by respecting each other’s working styles and preferences, and pitching in to get the job done�

What are the career prospects?

If consultants stay at the firm and have the desire to work their way through, it’s more of a matter of when, not if, they become a partner� However, not everyone wants to be a career consultant� For some, it is a great way to get exposure to multiple industries and work out what they want to specialise in� If consultants do leave the firm, their acquired skill sets are very favourably looked upon and they tend to end up in more senior positions than their counterparts who went directly into the industry�

Malina Koo

Malina Koo studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Software) (Hons) and is an engagement manager at Oliver Wyman.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Software) (Hons), University of New South Wales, 2004

ROLE

Engagement manager, Oliver Wyman

We create lasting impact by assigning teams of experts to understand and breakdown problems, then collaborate with our clients to develop solutions…

Manufacturing

Overview

Australia has a long industry of involvement in the manufacturing industry, which, at its peak in the 1960s, contributed about a quarter of Australia’s gross domestic product� Over recent years, much of the attention has been on high-profile closures, with domestic automobile manufacturing facilities set to disappear by the end of this decade�

However, it’s not all bad news: the CSIRO has argued that the manufacturing industry is in a state of transformation, not decline� Some of the new major manufacturing areas include advanced materials, sensors and smart robotics� Australian manufacturers also produce textiles, metal products, chemicals and printed media�

What’s involved?

The shared objective of most manufacturing organisations is the conversion of a raw material into a new product that can be sold on to retailers, other organisations or consumers�

Manufacturing businesses cover every step in the process, working closely with transport and logistics companies to ensure an efficient supply chain� For example, businesses in the textile manufacturing space are responsible for sourcing the raw materials (such as cotton and polyester used to create apparel and textile products; processing it to create fibers and threads; weaving and knitting them to create fabrics; and using them to produce apparel, as well as non-apparel products such as carpets, towels, sheets and curtains� Similarly, chemical manufacturing companies turn raw chemicals into paints, synthetic materials (like plastics and polystyrene), cleaning preparations, agricultural chemicals and a range of other products�

Given the complexity of manufacturing, many large organisations in this space rely heavily on professionals who have specific technical skills, such as chemists and engineers. They often find themselves in roles related to machine maintenance, product inspection and quality assurance, materials analysis, research and development, equipment operation and a range of other technical, administrative, managerial and support areas�

Where do manufacturing professionals work?

Manufacturing jobs are located primarily in factories, with research and development professionals more likely to work in quiet laboratories and professionals involved in product creation or assembly more likely to work in production environments� Most Australian manufacturing organisations are found in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland� There you’ll find industry leaders such as DuluxGroup (paints and pigments), BHP (smelted metals) and Rosella (foodstuffs)�

Entering the manufacturing industry

There are several companies in the Australian manufacturing sector that offer graduate entry programs� These include Prysmian Group (cable manufacturing), Cochlear (speciality medical equipment), Orica (mining materials) and Nestle (food and beverages)� More often, roles in the manufacturing industry are filled via direct application, with engineers, programmers and people with CAD drawing skills in particularly high demand�

Career prospects

As mentioned, the overall prospects of the Australian manufacturing industry has been a controversial topic over the past ten years or so� However, recent research has revealed encouraging signs of growth, with 4�1 per cent growth since 2013 and projected growth expected to continue until 2023 at a rate of 0�9 per cent� Areas with higher full-time employment rates include food product manufacturing and machinery and equipment manufacturing�

Your own career in the manufacturing sector could see you pursue supervisory engineering or technical roles; senior managerial, business and financial occupations; or team leader positions in research and development or product testing�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

An engineering degree is indispensable if you wish to pursue competitive technical graduate roles in this sector� Having said that, the value of your STEM degree will shift based on the field of manufacturing in which your prospective employer is involved�

For example, a background in chemistry might be very appealing to a paint manufacturer but considered

Cochlear develops a range of products including cochlear implants, bone conduction implants and acoustic implants, which address different types of hearing loss.

An engineering degree is indispensable if you wish to pursue competitive technical graduate roles in this sector.

non-essential in a textiles-focused organisation� Similarly, acquisition of a degree in metallurgy or materials engineering is a surefire way to apply competitively for graduate metal or machinery manufacturing jobs� However, it may be of limited use in food manufacturing�

If there is but a tenuous link between your STEM degree and your target job, you may benefit from drawing attention to any desirable generic skills you’ve developed� These could include attributes related to communication, problem solving, patience, teamwork and critical thinking skills�

Average salary

Salaries in the manufacturing sector change based on the branch of manufacturing (for example, pharmaceuticals or plastics), your position and employer� As a general guide, graduates can expect to earn a salary of between $50,000 and $70,000 during their first few years of employment.

Choose this if you:

■ Have studied metallurgy, process engineering, mechanical engineering or another topic related to manufacturing� ■ Are open to working in a factory setting (though this may be only occasionally required)� ■ Your STEM skills correspond to the position at hand�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Chemical engineering

Mechanical engineering

Electrical engineering

Manufacturing engineering

Civil engineering

Robotics and mechatronics engineering

Chemistry

Mathematics

Statistics

Data science

Environmental engineering

Biochemistry

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On the job

What does your employer do?

Cochlear provides hearing solutions to those with hearing impairments� Primarily, we provide implantable solutions for people who are profoundly deaf, through the cochlear implant� We implant an electrical solution to overcome the physical limitations for individuals with profound deafness� It overcomes the biological incapacity with an electrical solution and gives people their sense of hearing back� We also provide acoustic solutions for individuals who experience profound deafness due to a mechanical defect in their hearing system� Cochlear’s vision is emotive, powerful and motivational, which aligned with what I was seeking�

Can you describe a typical day?

A typical day as a graduate engineer can vary depending on what you’re working on� I have worked as part of both the implant, and sound processors and connectivity mechanical teams, as well as in production engineering, marketing, professional education and engagement, and business development (venture capital)�

Typical days in mechanical teams are very hands on� Usually I’d be working on CAD design or making things in the lab (and occasionally breaking things as well!)� In production engineering, it’s all about getting ahead of potential problems and fixing the problems that come up day to day� Typical days in the marketing and professional education and engagement teams center on how we can get Cochlear’s amazing and life-changing products to more people! Whilst working in the business development team, I experienced the forefront of new technologies, and my work centered around evaluating the feasibility of these new ideas and technologies from a commercial perspective�

Currently, I’m working as a systems engineer� Here, I get to be the champion for our customers and be their voice in product design� Part of my role is to make sure our customers’ experience is seamless� The last thing I worked on was making sure a recent change in one product would not adversely affect the user’s experience across all of our other products, which is important given how interconnected are products are�

What are the career prospects with your job?

The great thing about Cochlear is you can jump into various specialisations without having specific formal qualifications in those disciplines� If you can demonstrate the technical and behavioral capabilities of a role, then you might have a good shot at securing it�

What do you love about your job?

The great thing about systems engineering is that I am challenged to seek out expertise� I also enjoy the challenge of bringing a crossfunctional team together to deliver customer centric solutions� I am much closer with the customer than I ever have been in my career and I love championing the customer experience!

What’s the biggest limitation?

At times it can ask a lot of you and sometimes it can be draining, as any job can be, but what pulls me back every time is the customer� It’s such a motivational goal to help people hear again and hear better�

Shahana Moon

Shahana Moon studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Material Engineering) and Master of Engineering in Biomedical Engineering. Shahana is a systems engineer at Cochlear.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Material), Master of Engineering in Biomedical Engineering, University of New South Wales, 2018

ROLE

Systems engineer, CLTD – R&D System Engineering, Cochlear

It’s such a motivational goal to help people hear again and hear better.

On the job

Adela Annamalay

What’s your full name?

Adela Annamalay�

What’s your job title?

Product development engineer�

What did you study? When did you graduate?

Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical)/ Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting), Curtin University, 2017�

Where did you grow up? Important stages of your life?

I was born in Singapore and lived there until I was five years old when my family migrated to Perth� I then grew up in Perth and went on to study at Curtin University� In the third year of my course, I did a summer exchange program on sustainable development in Madrid, Spain�

How did you get to your current job position?

I joined Prysmian Group at the beginning of 2017 on the graduate program� It allowed me to spend my first year in Prysmian Australia doing rotations in R&D, operations and commercial� Following this first year I chose to pursue a role in R&D and took on an international assignment in France for two years�

What was your interview process like?

After having done several online assessments, I was invited to a group interview� During this process we participated in a business case simulation� I was then invited to an individual interview to get to know my experience and career goals with STAR (situation, task, action, and result) style questions�

What are your areas of responsibility?

I work within the R&D department in South Europe, based in France, as a project leader and product development engineer� This requires me to manage and execute projects for specialty industrial cables�

Can you describe a typical work day?

My typical day could involve being in the factory to produce prototypes or in the laboratory performing tests� I could then be attending meetings with clients, raw material suppliers or other internal departments� The remainder of my time involves being in my office researching new developments, reviewing international standards and doing various other project management tasks�

What are the career prospects with your job?

I feel this role has opened many doors for me, having gained technical as well as commercial experience� I could move into a production role, a sales type role or management within R&D�

What do you love the most about your job?

I love the variety of my role� I enjoy both the technical aspects (of working within a factory) as well as the management aspects (with suppliers, clients and project management)�

What’s the biggest limitation of your job?

It can be stressful at times working to meet client deadlines and achieving qualifications of new products�

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student?

■ Allow yourself to have as many diverse and challenging experiences as you can� ■ Have empathy� Everyone is different! ■ Have patience and see the positives in everything�

Adela Annamalay studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical)/Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) and is a product development engineer at Prysmian Group.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical)/ Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting), Curtin University, 2017

ROLE

Product Development Engineer, Prysmian Group

I feel this role has opened many doors for me, having gained technical as well as commercial experience.

Maritime

Overview

As its name suggests, the maritime industry involves shipbuilding and boatbuilding, as well as maintenance, repairs, upgrades and refits for private, commercial and government clients� This industry employs 31,000 people nationally and contributes $9 billion to the Australian economy, generating $575 million in exports each year� There is some overlap between the maritime industry and the marina industry, which employs more than 23,000 people who oversee the berthing, mooring and storage of boats� With 95 per cent of Australia’s imports arriving by sea, the maritime industry is of significant economic importance�

While many maritime industry workers are involved in large-scale public projects (especially for the military), approximately one third work on civil projects� The industry includes relevant engineering, design and consulting services, as well as people who work with radio and radar equipment, pumps and pumping machinery, hoists, scaffolding and within research and development�

What’s involved?

The primary activity of those in the maritime manufacturing sector is shipbuilding and boatbuilding and associated repair services� These are complex operations that involve many sub-specialities and discrete processes, including drydock operation, hull cleaning, shipwrecking, submarine construction and the manufacturing of canoes, dinghies, jet boats, yachts and powerboats� To achieve its goals, the maritime industry brings together engineers, electricians, motor mechanics, project administrators, draftspeople, technicians and many other types of professionals�

Other activities in the maritime industry include the operation of cruise lines and recreational vessels, domestic sea freighting and the provision of support to Australia’s offshore oil and gas industries�

Where do people in this sector work?

There are approximately 2,000 businesses in the Australian maritime manufacturing sector and 32 per cent of them are found in Queensland, with 28 per cent in NSW and 18 per cent in Victoria� Major sites of shipbuilding and boatbuilding activity include the Greater Perth, Greater Queensland, Gold Coast, Adelaide, Sydney and Melbourne regions� The day-to-day environment of a maritime manufacturing worker depends on their specific role and ranges from office work for designers and engineers, to dock work for painters and technicians�

With 95 per cent of Australia’s imports arriving by sea, the maritime industry is of significant economic importance.

While the defence force is a major employer in this industry, there are also several significant private employers, such as Arctic Steel, Austal, Incat, Rivergate and Steber International�

Entering the maritime manufacturing sector

There are a limited number of dedicated academic pathways for students who wish to work in the maritime industry� One can complete a maritime qualification at TAFE, or undergo training at the Australian Maritime College, Australian Maritime & Fisheries Academy or other private education provider�

Alternatively, many roles in this sector are filled via direct application by graduates who possess relevant skills� These include mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, technicians, project managers and administrators� For most of these roles on-the-job training is provided�

Career prospects

The Australian maritime industry faces uncertainty in some of its major operations� For example, domestic shipping companies face fierce competition from foreign operators and the location of major defence shipbuilding activities remains an object of controversy� However, Maritime Industry Australia – a commercial member’s body that represents the interests of maritime workers – believes that legislative changes can protect the industry and increase its GDP contribution by around 50 per cent�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

Engineers are highly valued in the maritime industry and large ships – including cruise liners and freighters – will often have one on board� Outside of such specialist technical roles, you will likely find that your STEM background is beneficial insofar as it demonstrates that you possess a strong attention to detail and the ability to engage patiently with complex problems�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Mechanical engineering

Learn more

page 36

Marine engineering

Environmental science

Earth science

Civil engineering

Environmental engineering

Electrical engineering

Software engineering

Mining engineering

Petroleum engineering

Mathematics

Agriculture page 32

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page 28

page 26

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Mining, oil and gas

Overview

Since the gold rushes of the 1850s, which attracted droves of hopeful prospectors from across the world, mining has played a central role in the development of Australia’s economy while also motivating many early explorers to map inland regions of the country� Recent booms in the production of iron ore, nickel and coal cemented Australia’s place as a major supplier of essential commodities to the global economy� Australia is the world’s largest exporter of coal and a significant producer of tin, aluminum, copper, gold, iron, diamond, opal and zinc� Its mining sector directly employs over 200,000 people, whose roles range from prospecting and maintenance supervision to driving and physical labour�

What’s involved?

Jobs in the mining industry fit roughly within four categories�

The first includes people in professional occupations. Often, they are responsible for the work that begins long before any minerals are actually extracted from the earth� For example, geologists or petroleum technicians might analyse seismic data and core samples to identify areas of potential commercial interest. Engineers then work to figure out how best to extract the mineral, addressing issues such as mine design and the infrastructure required to transport minerals to processing plants or distribution centres�

The second category involves roles associated with the extraction and transportation of minerals� This includes machine operators, engineers, drivers and labourers� Many employees within this category work with specialised equipment, such as the large rock-dust machines used to spray mine surfaces to hold down dust�

The third category involves people in roles related to the construction and maintenance of both the mines themselves and all related machinery� Mines rely on engineers, mechanics, builders and other trade professionals to keep equipment running, even when it’s expected to function under conditions of extreme stress (such as high temperatures or large loads)� Finally, the fourth category involves professionals in administrative and business-related roles� For example, many larger mining companies retain significant in-house legal and financial teams.

Where do people in this sector work?

Due to the breadth of the mining sector, it employs people across Australia in both metropolitan and regional areas� Some of the more prominent mining organisations include Alcoa, BHP, Bluescope Steel, Hancock Prospecting, Newcrest and Rio Tinto�

The regional centres of Australian mining are Kalgoorlie, the Hunter Valley and the Bowen Basin� Australia’s largest active mines are overwhelmingly concentrated in South Australia and Western Australia, which produce iron ore, coal and gold� There are also significant mining centres in the Hunter Valley (New South Wales) and the Bowen Basin (Queensland)� While many mining sector personnel are based in remote towns, others have a ‘fly in, fly out’ lifestyle that allows them to spend weekends and off-time in the more densely populated areas of Australia’s cities and towns�

However, you won’t only find the mining sector’s employees in the field. This industry provides jobs to some 600,000 people in support industries, including those who provide mining software and manage supply chains� Many of these employees are situated in major cities�

Entering the mining sector

As a STEM graduate, you will find that many of the careers best suited to your skills begin with entry to a graduate program� For example, larger engineering firms usually start their graduate recruitment process in March� They aim to attract, identify and hire standout employees by offering a range of structured programs� Due to the nature of the mining industry, many of these programs involve one or more rotations to regional areas of Australia�

Career prospects

After a sharp slowdown in the mining sector, industry analysts are once more optimistic� This is due to renewed demand for traditional commodities, such as copper, lithium, nickel and gold, as well as an emerging market for certain rare earth metals� These

metals, which include neodymium and vanadium, are present in large quantities in Australia and have many uses in electronics�

As a result, the outlook for the mining industry at large seems bright, and this bodes well for the people who work within it� In Western Australia, the industry is predicted to increase by 4000 jobs between 2018–2023, with many of these positions going to engineers, technicians and other STEM professionals�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

Many mining roles require a STEM degree� Jobs in this category including mining engineer, electrical engineer, chemical and materials engineer, geologist, geophysicist and hydrogeologist�

However, the sector is also replete with roles for which a STEM background isn’t necessarily mandatory� If you are applying for such a job – for example, as a project manager, equipment operator or production manager – you will find it beneficial to take stock of your transferable skills and emphasise whichever ones are most relevant to the position for which you are applying� If you studied biology and conducted studies that required a strong attention to detail, you would do well to mention this when applying for a role (such as safety inspector) that demands vigilance and the ability to detect small changes in real-time�

Average salary

The average entry-level package can range from $60,000 for truck drivers and machine operators, through to $86,000 for petroleum engineers�

Choose this if you:

■ Are open to working in regional areas of Australia and possibly abroad� ■ Feel comfortable working around large machinery� ■ Have a background in geology, engineering or maths�

Popular degrees sought by this industry Learn more

Mechanical engineering page 36

Electrical engineering

Civil engineering

Mining engineering

Environmental engineering

Chemical engineering

Computer systems and networks

Robotics and mechatronics engineering page 26

page 24

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Recent booms in the production of iron ore, nickel and coal cemented Australia’s place as a major supplier of essential commodities to the global economy.

Newmont encourages all staff to discuss their career goals with their manager and develop an action plan to achieve those goals.

On the job

Dannielle MacKenzie

What’s your job title?

Graduate chemical engineer, Alcoa’s Kwinana Alumina Refinery.

Why did you choose Alcoa?

Alcoa aligned with my values and provided a structured graduate program with plenty of opportunities for professional development� The role of chemical engineer in the refinery meant that I would be hands on, in the field, with direct access to a multitude of people and specialties� In other words, it ticked all the boxes� I have been with Alcoa for a year and two months�

What are your areas of responsibility?

I am responsible for a specialty product at Kwinana referred to as bright hydrate� Bright hydrate is a brighter, more refined hydrated alumina that contains less impurities� My role is to optimise the process to get the most out of it� I look at daily metrics to ensure we are hitting our process conditions – temperature, liquor concentrations, solids loading – and I look forward to ways of improving or adding to the circuit to maximise production� I am part of a greater team of technical, operations and maintenance personnel and the collaborations between this team are paramount for success�

One of our latest improvement projects saw us install an additional pump to an area to allow adequate duty/standby configurations to cover us during planned maintenance and unplanned breakdowns�

What are the career prospects with your job?

There are a number of different avenues that can be taken as a chemical engineer on the refinery. There is the option to stay technical and advance your career to a higher level in the engineering space, whether that be day to day area chemical engineering or moving into project work� Alternatively, it is common for some of the engineers to venture into more of a production line management role, where responsibilities shift from the technical to more people and operations management� On the refinery it is apparent how many different roles and opportunities there are� Career progression might not be strictly linear but there is definitely room for growth.

What do you love the most about your job?

The dynamic aspect of my job is super fun, sometimes exhausting but ever challenging� You are thrown so many different problems and changing conditions that you constantly have to be on your toes and ready to respond� There is never a dull moment and I am always learning new things�

What advice would you give to a current university student?

Networking may be scary but it’ll help you in ways you’d never expect� Attending events, talking to industry representatives or even just asking someone a question on LinkedIn can all help you to develop your career� You don’t have to treat the conversation like an interview; get to know the person, find out if they have any tips or a contact that might be able to help you� Keep in mind that they’ve been in your shoes too�

Dannielle MacKenzie studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical) (Hons)/Bachelor of Science (Extractive Metallurgy) and is a graduate chemical engineer at Alcoa’s Kwinana Alumina Refinery.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical) (Hons)/ Bachelor of Science (Extractive Metallurgy), Curtin University, 2018

ROLE

Graduate chemical engineer, Alcoa’s Kwinana Alumina Refinery

I am part of a greater team of technical, operations and maintenance personnel and the collaborations between this team are paramount for success.

On the job

What’s your full name?

Alexandra Kate Sunderman�

What’s your job title?

Graduate mining engineer�

What did you study?

Bachelor of Engineering Science and a Master of Professional Engineering (Mining), both at the University of Western Australia�

Where did you grow up? Important stages of your life (school, education, experience abroad, jobs etc.)

I was born and raised in Perth� Before graduating I was able to complete three summers of vacation work� I was given the opportunity, through AusIMM, to travel around Australia, the USA and England to participate in the Mining Games� This gave me amazing opportunities to network� I was also given the opportunity to attend a summer school in China, where we learnt about some of their mining practices and culture�

What was your interview process like?

My first vacation work interview was at the company’s head office. I ended up only talking about one of the responses I had prepared! My second interview for vacation work went a lot differently� It was a phone interview with my superintendent� When the phone call came, I was asked if I was prepared to go onto the blast crew� Slightly shocked at how quick the interview was, I later found out that my superintendent had reached out to my previous vacation work site to see what I was like!

What does your employer do?

AngloGold Ashanti is a global gold mining company� We are the third largest producer of gold in the world by production�

Can you describe a typical work day? What was the last thing you worked on?

My day starts off with meetings about our performance for the last 24 hours and plans for the next 24� After this meeting I will start designing any drill plans required and issue any charge plans for the day� In the afternoon we generally head underground to inspect our drill and blast areas�

What do you love the most about your job? Which kind of task do you enjoy the most?

The best thing about my job is being able to see the designs I create come to life… and then get blown up!

What’s the biggest limitation of your job?

I would say the biggest limitation, yet also perk, to my job is the roster and working hours� However, when you get back home you get a week to travel, undertake projects and spend quality time with your family and friends�

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student?

■ Networking isn’t always about talking to company representatives; it is also about networking with your peers who might one day be your co-workers� ■ Treat every job as if it’s your interview for the next one� ■ Find a hobby, sport or area of interest that you are passionate about�

Alex Sunderman

Alex Sunderman studied a Bachelor of Engineering Science and Master of Professional Engineering (Mining). Alex is a graduate mining engineer at AngloGold Ashanti.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering Science, University of Western Australia, 2016; Master of Professional Engineering (Mining), University of Western Australia, 2018

ROLE

Graduate mining engineer, AngloGold Ashanti

The best thing about my job is being able to see the designs I create come to life… and then get blown up!

On the job

Larissa Cortez Bran

Can you tell us about your background?

I was born in El Salvador, Central America� I came to Australia with my family post-Civil War to try for a better life� Life after the move was challenging, as we were in a new environment, new culture and had to learn a new language�

Education had always been important to my family and was always encouraged in our home� Both my parents had to start their careers from scratch and learn a new language, so they showed us we could do it too�

How did you get to your current position?

I applied for a job at Caltex by chance� I had made some friends/ contacts at Caltex while at my previous job� I had built a friendship with some of the Caltex personnel, so when a role popped up, they recommended I apply� I was offered a role as regional project engineer and I was in that role for six years� I am currently the terminal operations manager at Lytton Terminal and have been in this role for six months�

What are your areas of responsibility?

My team and I look after the day to day running of Lytton terminal� We ensure that fuel is loaded into tanker trucks safely to the market� As a regional project engineer, I was project managing infrastructure construction projects across our network in QLD�

Can you describe a typical workday?

As a project engineer, my days were varied� They ranged from writing proposals to writing commissioning plans (I always found these exciting)� I would be travelling to sites, meeting with contractors and ensuring construction jobs were progressing well� The last project I worked on involved the upgrade of a terminal’s firefighting system and the procurement and implementation of hydrant dispensers for airport refuelling activities�

As a terminal manager, I deal with many of our internal stakeholders, as well as external drivers� Ensuring the safety of my team is my number one priority� I ensure reliable operation is performed by my team, which covers budget control, some stock accounting, maintenance and training�

What would your career be if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now?

I wanted to be a science teacher when I was a child� I think I’d be trying to encourage young girls to get into science!

Do you have to work on weekends?

As a project engineer, I was required to work weekends, depending on the progress of construction� I won’t deny some days were stressful to try and meet deadlines, but these are the moments when I learned the most�

What advice would you give to a student?

Don’t think you need to know everything when you start a job� Be patient with yourself and find your voice� It is hard speaking up when you are learning something new, but if you feel you need to stop and say something, do it�

Larissa Cortez Bran studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) and is the terminal operations manager at Lytton Terminal, Caltex.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical), Queensland University of Technology, 2008

ROLE

Terminal operations manager, Lytton Terminal, Caltex

Ensuring the safety of my team is my number one priority.

On the job

How did you land at Glencore?

I applied for the Glencore graduate program in my final year of university� Upon successful selection I began my first year at the Newlands open cut coal mine in central Queensland, 250 kilometres north west of Mackay� This was the first rotation of a two-year program. Six months later I gained exposure at Oaky Creek North underground coal mine� It was here I spent the rest of my graduate program and have remained up until now�

What does your employer do?

Glencore is one of the world’s largest globally diversified natural resource companies and a major producer and marketer of more than 90 commodities. Specifically, my area of responsibility is the safe, efficient and day-to-day extraction of high-quality export coking coal in an underground environment�

Can you describe a typical day?

A typical day is challenging and rewarding� It involves interdepartmental planning, whilst allocating equipment and labour� I must always plan with reference to timeframes and schedules� Each day, efficient resourcing works to create clear lines of communication notwithstanding an open and honest attitude� I am also responsible for concise data collation to comply with regulations�

Suppose a student was considering your career. What would you advise them to study?

Studying mining engineering with an economics or finance based double degree would provide a well balanced set of skills� Much of mining engineering is based on cost down, margin up ideas to drive production� The mining aspect would drive the production and scheduling component, while the finance side would drive the cost component� These degrees offer a huge degree of flexibility, especially if you are seeking to move away from mining operations and into the corporate side of the business�

Akin to a higher education background, I cannot stress the importance of being self aware and possessing communication skills� You cross paths with people from absolutely all walks of life and it is critical that you are patient, respectful and can communicate a clear and concise message� These skills can be developed by undertaking part-time work, playing team sport, and/or joining a social club�

What do you love about your job?

I love how the rawness, practicality and technical aspects of mining come together in the day-to-day operation of the business� I enjoy communicating and navigating my way around the hierarchical structure of the business and find it rewarding when plans come together to form positive outcomes for every employee� Without a doubt the only limitation is the geographical location�

Do you work weekends?

Weekend work goes hand in hand with roster work�

Any advice for students?

Talent x effort = skill� Skill x effort = achievement� The takeaway? As much as talent counts, effort counts twice�

Blaise Gassin

Blaise Gassin studied a Bachelor of Mining Engineering (Hons) and is a statutory candidate mining engineer at Glencore.

Study

Bachelor of Mining Engineering (Hons), University of Wollongong, 2015

ROLE

Statutory candidate mining engineer, Glencore

Specifically, my area of responsibility is the safe, efficient and day-to-day extraction of highquality export coking coal in an underground environment.

Day in the life

Sanam Misthry

4.45 AM

I get ready for work and head to the mess to have breakfast� I love having a variety of breakfast options, from bacon and eggs to fresh fruit and cereal� I hop in my car and make the short commute to Olympic Dam from Roxby Downs�

5.30 AM

I arrive on site and get changed into my PPE (personal protective equipment)� I love wearing PPE because I don’t have to worry about outfits for the week and all our laundry is done on site� It’s a winwin! I get to my desk and check my emails. I flag the ones that require a more detailed response�

6.00 AM

Whilst having a quick chat with my colleagues I put on my safety gear�

Prior to heading into the mine, I complete a pre-start check on our vehicle to make sure it’s functional and all safety systems are in working condition� This includes checking the braking system, fire suppression system and numerous fluid levels. We then begin our drive into the underground mine!

6.50 AM

We attend the daily pre-start meeting with the work crews to discuss any hazards identified the previous day and works planned for today� This is a great time to catch up with some of the operators before they head off to their working areas for the shift�

7.30 AM

With a few minutes to spare before our weekly production improvement meeting, I follow up with stakeholders for some of my projects� A face-to-face chat is definitely the best way to get things done!

This meeting involves a discussion with supervisors from each crew to evaluate any improvement ideas

Sanam Misthry studied a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering/Bachelor of Commerce and is a graduate engineer in the Underground Production Analysis and Improvement team at BHP’s Olympic Dam mine.

from our operators� These ideas are centred around making our operational environment safer for all workers whilst considering uplift in our productivity� Some of these improvements include installing better seats in our trucks to improve ergonomics or installing additional cameras on

our production drill rigs for safer tramming� We also provide an update on current improvement projects and any actions required�

9.30 AM

On our way out of the mine, we complete field leadership with one of our loader operators� Field leadership is an opportunity to have open conversations about safety, and ensure controls are in place and procedures are evaluated to determine if they are up to date� This presents an opportunity for a new set of eyes to identify additional hazards or suggest an easier, potentially more efficient, way to complete a task. Today I sat in the loader cabin for the first time, whilst the operator explained how the machine worked and its many controls� How cool is that?!

10.30 AM

A quick pit stop at the quarry to retrieve data from our weighbridge, which I will analyse later in the day� The weighbridge was recently installed to provide more data regarding the weight and density of the payloads in our haul trucks� I am analysing this data to determine new tub factors to improve our reporting and to understand how our crews are loading the trucks� Too much in the tray results in more wear of the trucks, but too little means less production – it’s very much a fine balancing act!

11.00 AM

Finally at my desk� I check my emails and reply to any that require immediate action� I update my task list and prioritise work for the rest of the day�

12.00 PM

Lunch time – a quick break to refuel and socialise� I pack food from dinner the previous night, or enjoy a wrap in the comfort of our crib room�

12.30 PM

Back to my desk to begin my data analysis� There’s a lot to do so this will keep me busy for a few hours/ days. I’m definitely on my way to becoming an Excel guru!

2.30 PM

Risk assessment time! For every new project, a risk assessment is completed to ensure we identify all impacts a change or project may have on operations� This usually involves all stakeholders in one room identifying hazard scenarios� The stakeholders can include personnel from across the business to external suppliers and is a great opportunity to learn something new and expand your network� Today, I am facilitating the risk assessment for a trial of a new payload weighing system to be installed on one of our haul trucks�

3.30 PM

That went smoothly! Now, to spend some time finalising the risk assessment before I send it for final review and approval.

4.30 PM

I make my way back to camp� My afternoon varies between exercising and playing sport� Roxby Downs is a very sports-oriented community so there are numerous competitions and courts for some friendly competition with co-workers�

6.00 PM

The best part about living in camp is that I don’t have to worry about cooking� I just rock up to the mess after my afternoon activity� There are about forty graduates at Olympic Dam so there’s always a familiar face and never a shortage of conversation�

7.00–9.00 PM

The last hour or two of the day is spent getting ready for bed, catching up with family and friends, reading, Netflix or getting lost in a deep internet rabbit hole�

Day in the life

Jack Murphy Cruise

6.45 AM

Alarm goes off� Have a quick read of today’s news on my phone and take a shower� Have breakfast and jump in the car�

7.15 AM

Drive down the coast through Fremantle and Kwinana to get to BP’s Kwinana Refinery.

8.00 AM

Arrive at Kwinana Refinery and check out the flares on the way in to see if we have any excess gas� Kwinana is Australia’s largest crude oil refinery with a refining capacity of 152,000 barrels per day� Commissioned in 1955, it lies 35 kilometres south of Perth in the Kwinana Industrial Park. At 250 hectares, the refinery is 21 times the size of the WACA stadium�

8.15 AM

Check overnight refinery activity. The refinery is a 24-hour facility so once I get to my desk I check out how the refinery has run overnight and look for any deviations from usual production� As LPG and natural gas scheduler, I am most interested in any changes to these trends� I run the stock progression on LPG storage and make notes of any adjustments needed in production as I formulate the refinery’s LPG plan for the day.

9.15 AM

Grab a morning coffee with my team�

9.30 AM

First meeting of the day is with the production and optimisation team to discuss the refinery’s position as a whole; we process

Jack Murphy Cruise studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical)/Bachelor of Commerce (Finance) and Master of Engineering (Renewable and Sustainable Energy). Jack is an LPG and natural gas scheduler at BP.

up to three types of crude oil and produce up to 10 products at any one time� We discuss any overnight or upcoming process unit changes, limitations or outages that will

impact production or quality for all products including LPG�

10.00 AM

Production morning meeting with operations where I provide an update to the team on any operational changes required to meet our LPG plan� It’s a good week for LPG and I ask the operators to open the catalytic polymerisation unit’s bypass line to maximise LPG production to meet higher demand from our customers� I also put in a request to the on-site laboratory to sample and test one of our butane storage drums for a certification of quality (CQ)�

10.30 AM

I get onto organising our natural gas plan� The refinery burns natural gas to produce the heat energy required to run various process units, and it needs to be imported via pipeline from various WA gas reservoirs and storage facilities� I call our natural gas supplier to purchase the gas I need for the day� I schedule the gas in the WA pipeline to reach the Kwinana exit point�

12.00 PM

Lunch in the canteen with the other graduates and summer interns; there are 12 of us in total over summer�

12.45 PM

I grab my safety gear and make my way to Kwinana Jetty at the west end of the refinery� BP provides ongoing training to its graduates and we have the opportunity to learn about all areas of the refinery – today we’re doing a site specific tour of our jetty facilities� This includes a tour of the crude ship that is discharging crude oil taken from the Middle East� The BP-owned British Respect, is off-loading enough crude to last four days of processing through our crude distillation units�

2.30 PM

Video teleconference with our head office in Melbourne where

I provide the weekly operations update and report any operational issues to the supply team�

3.00 PM

Meeting with my line manager to discuss any work updated, provide feedback and talk about any other issues�

3.30 PM

Catch up on emails from the day� I need to approve the invoices for natural gas purchases, reply to any LPG customers, check product quality CQ’s and keep an eye on any other issues relating to LPG and natural gas�

4.30 PM

Last task of the day is to provide an updated LPG production strategy to the overnight operators�

5.00 PM

Leave Kwinana and drive to football training�

7.30 PM

Arrive home and have dinner with my housemates� Time to chill out and watch whichever TV series I’m hooked on before I head to bed!

Day in the life

Lincoln Crooks

6.15 AM

I snooze my alarm for the fifth time before panic sets in and I realise I’m running late� After quickly showering and eating breakfast I’m standing at the bus stop in less than 30 minutes – not bad�

7.00 AM

I make my way up the lifts to level 18 to my usual desk in the Brisbane Integrated Operations Centre�

7.15 AM

I briefly scroll through my emails, check my calendar and update my diary before our team stand-up meeting�

8.00 AM

The first formal and back-toback meeting of the day� This video conference between the operations centre (OC) and site manager’s agenda is discussing what is happening on the ground� This can include information about maintenance shutdowns, production targets and how compact the shipping line-up is�

8.30 AM

The same meeting – just for the second mine site region that the OC schedules�

9.15 AM

I get out of the office with my colleagues and walk down to our ‘local’ (Strauss) – an alleyway/ Melbourne-inspired cafe� What started as being a general coffee run is now an essential part of our schedule where we debrief our current workload, discuss errors and pitch new ideas for our current longer-term projects that weren’t discussed in the earlier meetings�

9.45 AM

After spending some of the morning catching up with my team it’s time to sit down and

Lincoln Crooks studied a Bachelor of Actuarial Science and is a data scientist in the dynamic scheduling team at Rio Tinto.

grind out the ad-hoc tasks I had been assigned throughout the morning’s meetings� These tasks can vary from ETL data processes from our on-site historian SQL systems through to a quick analysis� This morning’s task; comparing the current ship loader rates against historical information and identifying if there are any underlying trends or relationships in data�

11.00 AM

As a graduate at Rio Tinto, you are assigned a senior mentor outside of your team� The aim is to catch up on a regular basis, to build upon your technical and professional skill set� Today’s meeting was a quick discussion on what cloud platforms are approved and utilised internally, and suggestions for productising my current project!

12.00 PM

Third meeting of the day: the data strategy catch up�

Rio Tinto is internally pushing teams to operate in an industry 4�0 approach� This time is utilised to identify pain points in our current data workflow and report on how we might improve upon and make a more intuitive process�

At this stage we are flagging all manual tasks that can be developed into a more automated approach, most likely a Power BI solution, for more data-driven decisions (aka the death of spreadsheets!)�

1.00 PM

Lunch� I try to meal-prep on a Sunday so I don’t ‘forget’ my lunch, but on the days I do, there’s always somewhere new to eat in the Wintergarden with the team, which is always capped off with a bubble tea�

2.05 PM

With a hot coffee in hand, it’s time to work on my long-term projects� Using the discussions from both the morning coffee run and the catch up with my mentor, I’m booting up either my AWS environment or R-Server to begin coding� That is, unless it’s a research day, where most of the time is spent reading academic papers and understanding what machine learning techniques can be applied� On a stressful day, I find it’s important to block out time (including closing emails) to get ahead on work with quickly approaching deadlines�

4.00 PM

A quick debrief with my manager, including what today consisted of, feedback and if there are any outof-schedule meetings I should expect tomorrow�

4.30 PM

A massive benefit to my role is the flexible work hours that allow me to have a schedule that best suits my lifestyle� Living close to the city I am fortunate enough to have a gym within the apartment complex, a commercial gym and F45 all within a 250m radius of each other� Today I am quickly ducking to my apartment,

dropping my bags off and getting changed for exercise!

6.00 PM

Time to start preparing dinner while watching Bondi Rescue� I was a little unprepared tonight, so I’m throwing together leftover vegetables to make a stir-fry�

7.00 PM

After sitting down and watching a combination of the news and some reality TV, I have built up the last of my daily motivation to start a new DataCamp online course called Supply Chain Analytics in Python� A massive benefit for working at Rio Tinto is the support to develop your skill set and achieve your professional development plan� In my team, we have a learning budget to support us attending courses and training�

I am a massive advocate for continuous learning, and although I am no longer at university I am leveraging these online courses to ensure I am constantly improving technically!

9.00 PM

It’s time for bed, although I’ll probably be on my phone scrolling Instagram and watching YouTube videos for the next hour before I actually fall asleep knowing that I’ll be snoozing my alarm again in the morning!

Day in the life

Claudia Haugg

5.50 AM

BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!

It’s time to go-go-gooo! I jump out of bed, pull on my exercise clothes and flash out of the door. After a few quick stretches, I’m down the road and running next to one of my local freshwater lakes� The fresh, crisp morning air clears my mind and I am ready for the day�

6.30 AM

I’ve bounced back home and am ready for the next race – racing the clock to be ready to leave at 7AM� Optimisation and making processes more efficient has translated well from my work to helping me complete this task� The ‘getting ready sequence’ can be executed in 30 minutes, 29 on efficient days!

7.00 AM

That’s me showered, dressed, lunch packed and I’m on my way to work� I enjoy the half an hour drive and the time that I can listen to my audio books�

7.30 AM

I arrive at work – Rio Tinto’s remote operations centre� This is where the company’s mines, ports, and rail systems are all operated from a single location – more than 1000km away from the action! I’m part of the fixed plant control systems team who look after all the fixed plant equipment� These machines are amongst the biggest in the business and deal with the processing of ore after it has gone through the crusher to be made into finer pieces, sorting it, stockpiling it and then loading it onto the trains and sent to the ports where it’s loaded onto a ship and sent to our customers�

8.00 AM

I’ve settled in at my desk, gone through my emails, checked what’s

Claudia Haugg studied a Bachelor of Science (Mechatronics Systems) and is a graduate systems/software engineer at Rio Tinto.

on the calendar for me today and brought up my ‘to-do’ list� But before I get onto those tasks I need some energy! KeepCups in hand, the team and I head out for our usual morning coffee�

8.20 AM

I’m fortunate to be working on and writing logic for one of the coolest machines in the business – a reclaimer� This machine, as

you can see below, has a giant bucket wheel with which it scoops up ore from the stockpile� This ore travels down the conveyor on the boom of the reclaimer and this then goes into a chute which loads up trains with the ore to send to the ports� So, once caffeinated, I check the weekly reclaimer report to see how my machine has been working� Not too many alarms showing up and productivity is looking good! Time to get Microsoft SQL open and pull some data from the database to investigate what those alarms were�

9.00 AM

Time to do some of my own reclaiming – I reclaim spoonfuls of muesli into me as I keep an eye on some trends� I watch trends to get insights into the specific performance of the reclaimer which help me to know what code needs a bit of tweaking� Trends are friends!

9.30 AM

I grab my notebook and favourite green pen and head to the common area for the morning stand-up meeting where the whole team comes together for a morning catch-up� We discuss any safety incidents that happened the previous day and the initial findings or improvements that may help keep our workplace safe� We also discuss how we are progressing on our tasks and what tasks we will be working on today�

10.00 AM

Noise cancelling headphones on and I enter focus mode as I listen to my instrumental tunes� Time to get coding! I write code on PLCs (programmable logic controllers) which run much of the equipment on-site�

12.00 PM

Finally, lunchtime – I’ve been very excited for my spaghetti bolognaise all morning! After heating up my lunch, I sit down with the team and we open the instructions for our Lego digger – time to get building!

1.00 PM

Time to write up a change management form for some new code that I want to implement to improve the productivity of the reclaimer� This form captures what changes I’ll be making, what the impact of this will be as well as what some potential risks are and how I will mitigate them�

2.00 PM

Now for a catch-up with the site to hear how things have been going that side� Liaising with sites is an important part of my role� We have to check with the site engineers to understand any issues that they have been observing with the machine to give us an idea if we need to make any changes to the code�

2.30 PM

With the site engineers happy with the changes I want to implement, I can go ahead and book my flights and accommodation and then I’ll be all sorted for my site visit next week!

3.00 PM

Back to more coding! Hmmm what’s the best way to go about writing this code? Might be time for a walk so my mind can churn away at the problem�

4.30 PM

Aaand that’s a wrap! I tidy up my desk and wave goodbye to my team� It’s time to head home so that I can beat the traffic!

On the job

Can you tell us about your background?

I grew up in Perth and completed a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Nanotechnology (Hons) in 2010� Upon graduating I found it quite difficult to find lab work that paralleled my qualifications. The mining boom had just started and I struggled (failed) to really get a foot in the door� I eventually got a start in the environmental monitoring equipment industry� Getting the opportunity to move to QLD for a year to open a service branch from scratch was a highlight, and through this I had the chance to visit a lot of really cool places, like mines, processing plants, power stations and even Navy frigates! This really ignited my passion for engineering and I decided to enroll in a Bachelor of Electrical Power Engineering� The rest they say is history!

How did you land at Newmont?

I applied across a wide range of graduate programs in 2018 and was fortunate to be accepted into the 2019 Newmont Australia Graduate Program. I spent my first year of the two-year program at the Superpit in Kalgoorlie, before transitioning to our Tanami Operation in the Northern Territory in January 2020�

How did you choose your specialisation?

My biggest decision initially was whether to pursue an electronic based or electrical power engineering stream� Given my struggles in finding a job after my first degree, I decided to look at a stream that would be as general as possible and offer the most diverse range of opportunities across my career� I settled on electrical power because hey, everything needs power right?

What does your employer do?

Newmont Corporation is the world’s largest gold miner and operates across several jurisdictions across the globe, primarily North America, Australia, Africa and South America�

In my current role, I am working in the mine maintenance and projects department� We provide support to the processing plant and underground mine for all electrical assets and infrastructure, as well as scope and execute small capital projects� In short, we’re responsible for all things electrical across the site� However, given the increasing levels of digitisation across the industry, we often cross into instrumentation and communications related projects�

What are the career prospects with your job?

If choosing to stay within the mining industry, one can typically pursue a technical pathway or a leadership pathway� Technical pathways involve specialising in your field and becoming a project manager or technical specialist, while leadership pathways would involve moving through a maintenance-based supervisor/superintendent direction� That said, there’s many opportunities outside of mining and resources� For example, working for an OEM/ vendor, infrastructure construction, consultancy or public sector utilities�

What would your career be if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now?

Hard to say! I spent ten years working out what I wanted to do with myself and I’d like to think I’m pretty satisfied with where I’m at now!

Trent George-Kennedy

Trent George-Kennedy studied a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Nanotechnology (Hons) and a Bachelor of Electrical Power Engineering. Trent is a graduate electrical engineer in mine maintenance and projects at Tanami Operations, Newmont.

Study

Bachelor of Science in Physics and Nanotechnology (Hons), Murdoch University, 2010; Bachelor of Electrical Power Engineering, Curtin University, 2018

ROLE

Graduate electrical engineer, mine maintenance and projects, Tanami Operations, Newmont

We provide support to the processing plant and underground mine for all electrical assets and infrastructure, as well as scope and execute small capital projects.

On the job

Ania Manka

How did you choose your specialisation and land at Santos?

I chose a broad science/arts double degree because I did well at science and maths in high school, and loved languages� I studied a range of science courses across different disciplines and found I enjoyed geology for the field work and social learning environment� This led me to take Geophysics and Exploration Methods in my third year, which I liked because we were given the opportunity to practically apply the mathematical and physical concepts from previous years� I applied for the summer vacation program at Santos in my penultimate year and was accepted to intern as a student geophysicist� The project I worked on sparked my interest in the energy and resources industry and led me to undertake my honours at the Australian School of Petroleum� I did my honours in geophysics because it was the perfect combination of mathematical and physical concepts with an understanding of a dynamic earth� I completed my honours project and undertook another internship with Santos, before commencing the Santos Graduate Program mid-2018�

What are your areas of responsibility?

I am currently rotating through operations geophysics, supervising a geophysical processing project that involves taking seismic data and turning it into a friendlier image of the subsurface� It involves the application of theoretical concepts and mathematics to real life situations� Once the data is processed, it is then used by exploration and development geophysicists to pick drill locations and understand how much resource is there� My responsibility is to ensure the processed data we are receiving meets necessary standards�

As a graduate you can rotate through various roles that spark your interest� I started in Brisbane as a petrophysicist for ten months, then went on to drilling and wellsite experience in operations geology, before returning to Adelaide to learn about seismic acquisition and processing� Following this, I am eager to get experience in exploration, development and possibly finance, and keep acquiring skills and knowledge� The sky’s the limit�

Can you describe a typical day?

My role is predominantly officebased at a computer, with meetings during the week and field visits a few times a year. I am in close contact with peers, the processing company and the asset team geophysicist through emails every day, making sure the project objectives are achieved� I use ProMax to view and play around with seismic data and create PowerPoint presentations summarising workflows and highlighting issues�

Could someone with a different background do your job?

A geophysics major would be ideal but someone with maths, physics and geology majors with experience in oil and gas would be able to pick it up�

What do you love about your job?

I love being surrounded by extremely intelligent and passionate people� I am constantly learning and feel very supported, but at the same time I am given responsibility and charge of my own projects, which is really exciting�

Ania Manka studied a Bachelor of Science (Geophysics, Geology) (Hons)/Bachelor of Arts (Spanish) and is a graduate geophysicist at Santos.

Study

Bachelor of Science (Geophysics, Geology) (Hons)/Bachelor of Arts (Spanish), University of Adelaide, 2017

ROLE

Graduate geophysicist, Santos

I love being surrounded by extremely intelligent and passionate people.

On the job

What does your job involve?

I work in the technical services team for Thiess at the Mt Pleasant Operation�

I currently work in short-term planning, which is the field of mining engineering that’s responsible for design, scheduling and implementation of the mine plan� A typical week involves designing dig sequencing plans for the excavators, haul roads, ramps, waste dumps and areas of rehabilitation� Towards the end of the week, these designs are transferred into GPS files that can be interpreted by the excavators, dozers and graders�

My other responsibility is to work with the team to develop the weekly mine plan that details the operational strategy for the coming week� To do this, I collaborate with the mining engineer, drill and blast engineer, geologist and surveyor�

Several times a week I drive around and inspect the pit with the mine manager, supervisors and mining engineer� This pit inspection allows us to identify issues that may result in changes to the schedule, potential hazards and further design requirements to run a successful operation�

One thing I find exciting is being present through all phases of the operation – from design and construction to implementation� I can see the full life cycle and understand how each impacts the operation technically, practically and financially, and identify opportunities for innovation and improvement�

Could someone with a different background do your job?

My job requires an engineering degree but is not limited to mining� Engineers of different backgrounds, particularly civil and geotechnical engineers, often go into mining engineering roles�

In mining, the local environment is always changing� Every week thousands of cubic metres of material are moved and there are many challenges associated with this� An analytical mindset is needed to develop the most practical and financially suitable plan�

Having an understanding of the mining process and the different methods associated is crucial� It’s also valuable to have an understanding of the financial implications relating to a particular method of mining�

What do you love about your job?

What I love most is how I can have a direct impact on the layout and design of the mine� It’s incredibly rewarding to watch an excavator dig the design you made or watch a ramp develop based on your design�

Another highlight is the opportunities you receive� I have the opportunity to work all over Australia and potentially overseas in different roles and fields.

What are the challenges?

The biggest challenge is working in isolated locations. It can be difficult being away from family and friends� It is important to make an effort to socialise with your work colleagues�

Personally, I think it’s a great way to travel and see the country� The graduate program rotates you to a different site every eight months, so you could be in the Hunter Valley one moment and a few hours from the Whitsunday Islands the next�

Harry Kaveney

Harry Kaveney studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Mining and Civil Engineering) (Hons) and is a mining engineer graduate at Thiess.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Mining and Civil Engineering) (Hons), University of Wollongong, 2018

ROLE

Mining engineer graduate, Thiess

The graduate program rotates you to a different site every eight months, so you could be in the Hunter Valley one moment and a few hours from the Whitsunday Islands the next.

On the job

How did you get to your current position?

In 2017 I moved to Perth to start full-time work at Woodside� The graduate program is three years long and graduates rotate every year. My first placement was in the technology team� Most people who are reservoir engineers studied petroleum engineering� I had not, so had a steep learning curve ahead of me� I learnt more in this year than I ever did at university, including data analytics, reservoir engineering, corporate style working, project management, coding and production modelling�

During my first year, I went offshore to a drill rig, which was an eyeopening experience and one of the highlights of the year� I really enjoyed the role, but decided I didn’t want to be a reservoir engineer for the rest of my life�

I’m interested in climate change and the energy transition� I found out there was an environmental function within Woodside and there were people who worked as senior climate change advisers� I asked if I could work in this niche team in a graduate role and was given the opportunity to do so!

What are your areas of responsibility?

Climate change, emissions forecasting, emissions reporting, new technologies, carbon capture and storage, climate change strategy and governance, government policy and legislation, safeguard mechanism and carbon offsets�

Can you describe a typical day?

My main job is to support robust emissions forecasts for all our assets� At the moment I am building these forecasts, but an important part of my role is developing the processes and technical capabilities so that others can build and maintain them� In my second year, I had the opportunity to go offshore to a drill rig in Myanmar� I also went to Exmouth for a simulated oil spill exercise as part of the onshore shoreline cleanup assessment team�

What do you love about your job?

I love that I am trying to address such an important issue in society today, working with a company that is committed to being part of the solution to climate change� It is an ever-changing space; every day there are new developments around renewable energy technology, energy efficiency targets, policy and legislation� No two days are the same�

I like that I am getting to build my technical skill set in the emissions forecasting sense, but am also exposed to strategy and governance on the same topic� I learn new things every day that I want to go home and research more in my spare time; it’s awesome�

What advice would you give to students?

Think big� The world is interconnected these days� Whether you want to start an Instagram business, work for a start-up or work for a corporation, the world is literally at your fingertips.

Vinati Chaudhari

Vinati Chaudhari studied Chemicals and Materials Process Engineering and is a graduate climate change adviser at Woodside.

Study

Chemicals and Materials Process Engineering; University of Auckland; 2016

ROLE

Graduate climate change adviser, Woodside

Think big. The world is interconnected these days. Whether you want to start an Instagram business, work for a start-up or work for a corporation, the world is literally at your fingertips.

Pharmaceuticals

Overview

The Australian pharmaceuticals industry includes biomedical research organisations, biotechnology firms, original and generic medicine manufacturers and associated wholesaling and distribution businesses� A recent survey found that the industry comprised over 40 originator companies (mostly subsidiaries of multinational companies), up to ten generic companies, 470 small-scale core biotechnology companies and over 20 world class medical research institutes�

The chief customer of the Australian pharmaceutical industry is the federal government, which subsidies the cost of many medications through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). The budget controls overall expenditure on the PBS including the funding of new medicines and vaccines� Australia exports around four billion dollars worth of pharmaceuticals each year and has the world’s twelfth largest consumer market�

What’s involved?

Getting a new drug to the market is a lengthy and costly process – each medication that passes through a research and development phase and proves itself in a series of carefully monitored clinical trials, is then subjected to a stringent governmental review (overseen by the Therapeutic Goods Association)�

In Australia, this process, as well as the need to support existing drugs, generates about 16,500 jobs for scientists, engineers, chemists, technicians, marketers, doctors, machine operators and other professionals� They concern themselves with research and development, intellectual property, human resources, trial design and execution, marketing, manufacturing and engineering, and corporate management�

Australian pharmaceutical industry employees have been behind several important medical innovations, such as the development of a Swine Flu (H1N1) vaccine and the synthesis of a drug (by Cytopia) that helps to prevent transplant rejection� Their work will become increasingly vital over the next two decades as the population not only increases, but also shifts towards a higher average age� It’s also expected that environmental and social changes will bring new medical challenges, as will current issues such as the growing prevalence of antibiotic resistant bacteria� The federal government estimates that annual global spending on medicines will greatly increase, reaching $1�4 trillion US this year�

Where do people in the pharmaceuticals industry work?

The pharmaceuticals industry usually employs people in laboratories, offices and manufacturing facilities� With approximately half of its employees involved in marketing, the industry also has a considerable presence at conventions, conferences and trade fairs�

Many of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies operate subsidiaries, or otherwise maintain a presence, in Australia� These businesses include Alphapharm, AstraZeneca, Apotex, Pfizer, Aspen Pharmacare, Merck, Sandoz, Sanofi-Aventis and GlaxoSmithKline�

Entering the pharmaceuticals industry

Many of the businesses listed above – for example Sanofi-Aventis and GlaxoSmithKline – have dedicated graduate programs that aim to recruit talented scientists, researchers and marketers�

GSK’s IBL (Industry Based Learning) program is developed for undergraduate university students in their penultimate or final year of study upon commencement of the program.

The growth of the pharmaceuticals sector may see you focusing on new medications and hitherto unknown technologies

However, you needn’t find a graduate program to apply for a job in the pharmaceuticals industry� The expansion of this sector means that roles are often advertised for both junior and senior positions� In replying to such an advertisement, you will benefit from emphasising not only your relevant technical skills but also your ability to communicate effectively, work in a team and contribute to in-depth research and analysis, while demonstrating adaptability, flexibility, initiative and sound judgment.

Career prospects

The federal government’s Job Outlook website offers good news to those considering a career in the pharmaceuticals industry: the numbers of medical technicians and medical laboratory scientists will experience ‘very strong growth’, while associated roles are expected to grow or remain relatively stable�

Importantly, the growth of the pharmaceuticals sector may see you focusing on new medications and hitherto unknown technologies� For example, the federal government notes that ‘Australia, with its stronger intellectual property provisions, highly skilled workforce, maturing biotechnology sector and world class medical research institutes, may be better placed than many other countries to benefit from a new era of high value-added biologics manufacturing, which has the potential to create and sustain high value jobs�’

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

You will most likely require a STEM background if you wish to pursue many of the more technical, challenging and innovative jobs in the pharmaceuticals industry� Common majors among graduates in this field include chemistry, physics, biochemistry, medical science, chemical and biomedical engineering and maths�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Biochemistry

Learn more

page 74

Medicine and medical sciences

Chemistry

Manufacturing engineering

Mechanical engineering

Chemical engineering

Biology

Environmental engineering

Physics page 90

page 78

page 30

page 36

page 22

page 76

page 28

page 92

Public sector

Overview

The public sector encompasses those sections of the economy that provide governmental services and are (primarily) funded by public resources� In Australia, the public sector includes the three main branches of government (the legislature, the executive and the judiciary); the military; the public healthcare system; the public education system; various infrastructural service providers; the members of the government (such as administrators and elected officials); and many other departments and agencies�

What do public sector employees do?

There are many roles within the public sector, from personal assistant to local councillor to prime minister of Australia� In this sense, the phrase ‘public sector’ is unhelpful – it refers to who employs you, but sheds little light on what you do� Having said that, what all public sector employees theoretically have in common is they are expected to serve citizens and enhance the state�

They do this in a variety of ways, from performing crucial administrative functions (such as staffing community services centres) to overseeing public art projects and infrastructure initiatives� A healthy civic life relies on the contributions of various professionals, so the public sector is arguably the broadest industry in terms of the people it hires and the responsibilities it expects them to assume�

Where do they work?

Currently the federal government has 14 departments, which are collectively responsible for around 200 agencies, dealing with matters as diverse as fisheries research and native title�

Historically, the largest federal government departments have been the Department of Defence, the Department of Health, the Australian Federal Police, the CSIRO and the Department of Home Affairs� Individual state governments are also broken down into departments and agencies, with local matters addressed by elected councils�

Approximately 40 per cent of Australia’s 150,000 public sector employees are concentrated in Canberra, the nation’s administrative capital� The other 60 per cent are found everywhere, from Australia’s largest cities to its most remote communities, as well as on overseas postings�

Entering the public sector

Most government agencies that recruit graduates have regular and well organised admission programs that take applications during fixed periods each year� The easiest way to learn more about the different programs, including application procedures and what will be expected of new recruits, is to search for graduate programs on the Australian Government or APSJobs website, or by visiting gradaustralia�com�au�

Government jobs tend to be highly competitive� Given their popularity, you shouldn’t be surprised if the application process is unusually rigorous� For example, to apply at the Department of Home Affairs, candidates must successfully move through a detailed online application, online testing, a video interview, an assessment centre, a referee record and security clearance�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

Employment options for STEM graduates in the public sector fall within two broad categories: roles that specifically require a STEM background and roles that instead draw upon the generic skills developed during the course of acquiring a STEM degree� In the first category, there are the many public and governmental positions that are filled by STEM graduates with specifically STEM-related responsibilities� It’s useful to note there is a broad range of jobs for STEM graduates even within this sub-category of the public sector� You’ll find them advising on policy development for individual parliamentarians, reviewing urban development plants for the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development, performing research at the CSIRO and overseeing demographic studies for the Australian Bureau of Statistics�

The second category of public service jobs are those that draw heavily on, say, highly developed reasoning skills without employing you to perform a STEM-related activity� For example, the Department

of Foreign Affairs and Trade has a reputation for attracting high-performing graduates from various disciplines to diplomatic and foreign policy based positions� This is due to their training in analysis, pattern recognition and communication�

Career prospects

A career in the public service offers unparalleled stability� Indeed this, along with the attractive working conditions enjoyed by public servants, is a primary reason that people seek out public employment�

As mentioned above, the public service is also very large and extends beyond Australia’s border to give it a presence in almost every country� As such, the possibilities for movement both upwards (via promotion) or sideways (by changing departments or applying for foreign rotations) are endless� A career in the public service really could see you anywhere, from a press room in Canberra to a diplomatic outpost in Trinidad�

Average salary

The average entry-level package for graduates in the public sector is $65,000 and the average industry hours are 37�5 per week� Furthermore, working conditions are highly competitive, with flexible hours, structured career breaks, job sharing and mobile working arrangements�

Choose this if you:

■ Have a strong interest in public institutions� ■ Prioritise stability when evaluating potential career paths� ■ Are open to the idea of travelling for work – most often to Canberra or other Australian destinations� ■ Can communicate clearly with people from various backgrounds�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Medicine and medical sciences

Learn more

page 90

Data science

Computer systems and networks

Environmental science

Software engineering

Environmental engineering

Statistics

Mechanical engineering page 64

page 60

page 82

page 68

page 28

page 52

page 36

A career in the public service offers unparalleled stability.

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) offers opportunities to graduates who are passionate about the financial stability of Australia.

On the job

What’s your job title?

Graduate methodologist at the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)�

How did you choose your specialisation?

I wanted to study something that was both mathematical and practical� I seriously considered studying to become an engineer or an actuary before deciding on statistics, which attracted me because of its broad applicability�

After graduation I worked for the ABS as a temporary data analyst before applying through the ABS graduate program� The methodology stream in the ABS graduate program was a natural choice; it provided me the opportunity to work on challenging statistical problems across a wide range of areas�

What was your interview process like?

There were two interviews: a series of short recorded responses, followed by an in-person interview with a panel in Canberra�

The questions in the panel interview were provided half an hour in advance, to allow time to prepare responses� They included a number of technical questions on areas of statistics relevant to the ABS, as well as questions on the broader role the ABS plays in society and the present and future challenges that the organisation faces�

What are your areas of responsibility?

I work in the Data Access and Confidentiality Methodology Unit. We are responsible for making sure ABS data doesn’t compromise the privacy of people or businesses that provide us with information, while making sure it remains meaningful and useful� This involves desktop research as well as working with subject matter areas to help them implement confidentiality methods in their data releases� ABS graduates in the methodology division initially split their time between the regular business of their sections and a formal internal course in survey methodology�

What are the career prospects with your job?

Most graduate methodologists stay within the ABS and move up the ranks, either within the division or the broader ABS� Others have found opportunities in the private sector or other government agencies� A notable example is the current head of the Commonwealth Treasury, who started his public service career as a methodologist at the ABS�

What do you love most about your job?

I feel pretty lucky to have joined such a supportive team that encourages me to develop deep technical expertise in statistics� The work itself is highly technical and challenging, which is part of what drew me to the division in the first place. I’ve enjoyed writing code to implement a prototype of a new system for ensuring confidential information cannot be extracted from an ABS publication�

Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Are the stress levels high?

I was almost immediately given responsibility for work on one of our ongoing projects, which was challenging but also rewarding� Overall the team does well in keeping projects on track and keeping the workload smooth, which means the stress doesn’t become unmanageable�

What advice would you give to students?

People will tell you that your marks don’t matter, but this is nonsense� Take your studies seriously�

Nicholas Erskine

Nicholas Erskine studied a Bachelor of Statistics (Hons) and is a graduate methodologist at the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Study

Bachelor of Statistics (Hons), Australian National University, 2019

ROLE

Graduate methodologist, Australian Bureau of Statistics

I feel pretty lucky to have joined such a supportive team that encourages me to develop deep technical expertise in statistics.

On the job

Dale Todd

What did you study?

A Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering and Master of Applied Finance�

How did you get to your current job position?

I started at the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) as a graduate in the finance team of the corporate management group� As part of my graduate program I completed a rotation into the systems assurance and data analytics group and spent a lot of time in the data analytics (DA) team� I discovered data analytics appealed to my problem-solving nature and being in the team helped me develop skills I wanted to apply in the finance sector. I have been fortunate to be able to stay in the DA team and have been working as a data analyst supporting our auditors for nearly six months�

How did you choose your specialisation?

I studied mechanical engineering and thought I would like a career as an engineer but discovered it wasn’t for me� I enjoyed problem solving and had always had an interest in finance and investing. Throughout university I developed a liking for asset management and corporate finance, and after experiencing data analytics at the ANAO, my desire to learn data analysis was born� I realised the DA skill set was directly translatable to the finance field and was akin to concepts used in engineering problem solving�

What was your interview process like?

We had 15 minutes before the interview to prepare responses to questions, which reduced the pressure to think on the spot� Resultantly the entire process felt more like a relaxed chat�

What does your employer do?

Performance and financial statement audits of federal government entities�

What are your areas of responsibility?

Analysing and interpreting available data for our audit teams, based on the direction of the audit� Responsibilities include stakeholder management, time management, upwards management (communicating with supervisors) and development of data solutions, most likely using Python�

When audit season is in full swing, I usually have quite a few meetings with supervisors, audit managers and/or the audit client (entity being audited)�

What are the career prospects?

Data analytics is an extremely transferable skill set and can be related to any field of study. If you have data, you can analyse it! The mindset and style you learn to solve problems is also transferable� For example, data analysis could be utilised by a business consultant from an advisory firm. You can really go anywhere with data analytics�

Which kind of task do you enjoy?

Developing a data analytics solution under the allocated budget that will help an audit team complete work significantly quicker and improve the quality of the audit�

What’s the biggest limitation?

Being mindful of budgets, however that could be said about any job� Being a data analyst really is that good�

What advice would you give to a current student?

■ Go to the gym� ■ Don’t run in somebody else’s race� ■ If in doubt, have a think�

Dale Todd studied a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering and Master of Applied Finance. Dale is a data analyst at the Australian National Audit Office.

Study

Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Adelaide, 2011; Master of Applied Finance, University of Adelaide, 2017

ROLE

Data analyst, Australian National Audit Office

Data analytics is an extremely transferable skill set and can be related to any field of study. If you have data, you can analyse it!

On the job

How did you find your way to ANSTO?

In my penultimate year of university, I thought I would start practising the interview and assessment centre process by applying for some internships (something I highly recommend)� I didn’t consider the implications of getting one, but I built up my communication and interviewing skills� This is actually how I started my journey at ANSTO, through the Year In Industry Internship Program, working as a laboratory technician doing hydrometallurgical chemistry�

What does your role involve?

ANSTO is the home of Australia’s most significant landmark and national infrastructure for research� Thousands of scientists from industry and academia benefit from gaining access to stateof-the-art instruments every year� My roles in this program have revolved around developing ANSTO’s innovation community and generating research impact� My daily tasks have included working closely with researchers to develop commercialisation plans, business models and map stakeholders, as well as donning appropriate PPE to get in the lab and do some synthetic chemistry myself�

From engaging with the industry at conferences to communicating the impact of the amazing research that is being conducted at ANSTO, I have been able to take an active role in growing and developing research projects�

How have your studies assisted your work?

If you are from a STEM-only background, having a commercial background has helped me a lot in my roles� It has framed my way of thinking, which is different from most people who have been through a research pathway�

If you are from a commercial background, my science degree has deepened my understanding of scientific methodology, which has assisted me in effectively communicating the science underpinning the projects I deal with�

No matter what your background is, you must have an appreciation for science as well as have the business acumen to develop ideas�

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Yes� My role is driven by a passion for impact�Every time I read a research paper I think about the impact: how it can make the world a better place and the journey from moving it out of a research paper to a tangible product or service that people can use� If you like thinking about the future and can understand and communicate science effectively to a range of stakeholders, then you can do my job� I’ve used the skills I’ve learned in both of my degrees� The background you have is the value you will be bringing to the team�

What do you love about your job?

I love communicating with external stakeholders about the research we are conducting, and building and maintaining the relationships I have developed� I love being able to talk researchers through the commercial process and bring their ideas into reality�

What advice would you give to students?

Get involved with your university’s innovation hub and start developing any ideas you have� Universities provide a lot of support to develop them�

Shakila Fernando

Shakila Fernando studied a Bachelor of Commerce/Science and is a graduate at ANSTO.

Study

Bachelor of Commerce/ Science, University of New South Wales, 2018

ROLE

Graduate, ANSTO

If you like thinking about the future and can understand and communicate science effectively to a range of stakeholders, then you can do my job.

On the job

What’s your name and job title?

Jaymes Bonacci, senior analyst in the insurance team�

What does your employer do?

APRA is an independent statutory authority that supervises institutions across banking, insurance and superannuation, and also promotes financial stability in Australia.

I work in the insurance team as a supervisor� For a select number of institutions, I conduct financial analyses, write risk assessments and liaise with key stakeholders on risk matters to support the broader team�

How did you get to this position?

I have always had an interest in financial services and have prior professional experience in analytics and relationship management� While I applied for a number of graduate roles, I discovered APRA offered a unique value proposition that combined these interests of mine�

Suppose a student was considering your career. What would you advise them to study? Which soft skills should they develop?

I would advise them to study economics or finance to develop commercial acumen as a foundation� That being said, I would also encourage students to consider anything that is most enjoyable, because increasingly organisations are seeking more diverse skill sets�

I believe the most important soft skill to develop is communication, both verbal and nonverbal� As part of the job and during your career, you will need to communicate with a range of people from varied demographics, organisations and experiences� Tailoring your message to the target audience will have the most impact� I would also recommend pursuing work experience in a corporate environment as early as possible, choosing a range of different internships�

What sort of person succeeds in your career?

Someone who is enthusiastic, eager to learn and enjoys problem-solving� Someone who works well with others will succeed in any career�

What are the career prospects with your job?

APRA is in a unique position to provide its employees with a highlevel view of the entire Australian financial sector. Graduates are encouraged to rotate into different areas of the organisation such as data analytics, policy and advice, and supervision�

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Yes, of course� You do not need a finance background to work at APRA� What’s more important in an applicant are their qualities and potential, rather than employment history or specific degrees.

What do you love most about your job?

The thing I love most about my job is the passionate people who work here, who really believe in our mission� I also really enjoy synthesising large volumes of data into meaningful insights�

Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Do you work on weekends?

The organisation as a whole bears a lot of responsibility to the Australian financial system. This, of course, filters down to individuals, however I am surrounded by a supportive team� Weekend work is a rare exception; if there is a need, I am allowed a high degree of flexibility to manage the circumstance�

Jaymes Bonacci

Jaymes Bonacci studied a Bachelor of Engineering/ Bachelor of Commerce and a Master of Applied Finance. Jaymes is a senior analyst at the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.

Study

Bachelor of Commerce/ Bachelor of Engineering, Master of Applied Finance; Monash University; 2016

ROLE

Senior analyst, Insurance team, APRA

The thing I love most about my job is the passionate people who work here, who really believe in our mission.

On the job

What’s your name?

Helen Liu

What’s your job title?

I’m a graduate analyst at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)�

Can you tell us about your studies? When did you graduate?

I graduated with a Bachelor of Financial Actuarial Mathematics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2017� I studied three years of pure mathematics and one year in the actuarial applications at UCLA� Mathematics is like a language that you can easily apply to many different areas� The main reason I applied for the college of mathematics is due to the diverse body of majors it offers: biomathematics, actuarial mathematics, mathematics/ economics and mathematics of computation� But of course, just like everyone else, the biggest reason I applied for this major is because you get to see Terence Tao!

What does your employer do?

ASIC is an independent government body� It is Australia’s corporate, markets and financial services regulator� My current rotation is with the market intermediary supervision team within the markets group� The team carries out proactive supervision with major market intermediaries including investment banks, stockbrokers and security dealers� The team conducts onsite reviews of market intermediaries� This can include meeting with boards, CEOs, key committees and internal/external auditors to review a firm’s key business functions, culture and conduct, compliance, governance and risk programs�

Can you describe a typical work day? What was the last thing you worked on?

Each day is different and dynamic – you never know what the market will throw at you� As a graduate in the market intermediary supervision team, my typical day involves onsite trade surveillance of some of the most complex and high-risk market intermediaries� The best part is being able to sit with actual traders on the trading floor and watch them process hundreds of orders and alerts!

What do you love the most about your job?

ASIC’s graduate program opens you up to a range of different career opportunities, even as a maths and statistics graduate� I can work on monitoring trades, supervising financial advisers and analysing credit banking data�

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student?

■ Be open-minded� As maths and statistics students, you can use your skills across a whole range of tasks� There are many career possibilities! ■ Always ask questions� My colleagues and buddies are very supportive and there is no such thing as a stupid question� ■ Connect and engage with people from a range of backgrounds and skills� You never know what you can learn from them!

Helen Liu

Helen Liu studied a Bachelor of Financial Actuarial Mathematics and is a graduate analyst at ASIC.

Study

Bachelor of Financial Actuarial Mathematics, University of California, Los Angeles, 2017

ROLE

Graduate analyst, ASIC

Each day is different and dynamic – you never know what the market will throw at you.

On the job

Where did you grow up?

I was born in Australia but spent my early childhood travelling around the Pacific. After a few years, my family moved to Canberra as a temporary stopover and never left!

Over the years I’ve lived around Australia, Europe and the US, and was lucky enough to extensively travel�

How did you get to your current job position? For how long have you had it?

I put my name down on the Department’s temporary employment register� Within a week I had secured a non-ongoing position for three months� This worked out well as it gave me an awesome introduction to the work� When it had finished I went straight into the Department’s graduate program in 2018� Not long after, I was successful in obtaining an acting position at a higher grade�

What was your interview process like?

We were required to do a written assessment and cognitive testing online� A few months later, as a team, we were required to put together and deliver a presentation on a relevant topic in a short time�

Our individual interviews were run as a ‘speed-dating’ experience, where several recruitment staff members were placed around the room and interviewees were given two minutes to speak to each� Questions ranged from what I was most passionate about, to why I was interested in the Department, to what I thought I could bring to the program and what I thought I could get out of it�

What are your areas of responsibility?

While a large proportion of my time is spent on agricultural or environmental biosecurity, I also work on human biosecurity concerns, helping to keep serious human diseases out of the country and assisting with the movement of human remains�

Can you describe a typical workday? What was the last thing you worked on?

A lot of time is spent liaising with stakeholders to ensure we are all working efficiently. We also work with a number of areas within the Department in setting policies and procedures for staff operating in airports and seaports, and improving the systems they use every day�

Where could you or others in your position go from here?

The Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment encourages and supports staff mobility� There are also opportunities to move within the Australian Public Service to other departments and agencies�

What do you love most about your job?

I really like the variety of work I get to do in my job� Day to day and week to week I may be working with different people on a range of different projects, all while managing my business-as-usual activities�

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student?

■ Make sure you keep doing what you love� ■ See every experience as an opportunity to learn about yourself, your interests and skills� ■ Always remember that people come first.

Callum Blake

Callum Blake studied a Bachelor of Environmental Science (Resource and Environmental Management) (Honours) and is a policy officer at the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment.

Study

Bachelor of Environmental Science (Resource and Environmental Management) (Honours), Australian National University, 2016

ROLE

Policy officer, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment

I really like the variety of work I get to do in my job.

On the job

Priya

What does your work involve?

As an intelligence Organisation, ASIO achieves their mission through collecting information (through human and technological sources), analysing it, drawing conclusions and sharing it with relevant bodies to act upon� As a member of IT security, I perform a wide variety of activities under the umbrella goal of ‘enabling ASIO through the secure use of technology’� Such activities include: providing advice to operational areas on their utilisation of technologies to perform technical intelligence collection; performing security assessments of ASIO’s IT systems to ascertain their fitness for holding classified information; and responding to cybersecurity incidents that may involve ASIO’s infrastructure and/or information holdings�

What was your interview process like?

I undertook several interviews related to my aptitude, personal background and psychological profile, each to help determine my ability to hold a high-level security clearance and work in the Organisation� Each interviewer was pleasant and it never truly felt like an interview – more like a conversation� I was encouraged to be myself�

What do you love most about ASIO?

I love knowing my work is directly contributing to the security of Australia and its citizens� Whether it be through enhancing the security of a system that holds classified information or assisting operational staff in the secure implementation of their systems, I can always draw a direct line between my work and the Organisation’s mission� I have a strong sense of purpose working at ASIO�

Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Are stress levels high?

There is certainly a lot of responsibility (and sometimes stress) that comes with working at ASIO, particularly within the cybersecurity space� This not only comes with the mission but also from balancing the wide variety of tasking you must undertake to support that mission� However, the sense of fulfilment when you complete that tasking always outweighs the stress� Plus, ASIO has several support functions to help its staff deal with stress, including internal psychologists who are available to work through any personal or professional stressors�

Typically, ASIO staff work within sensitive compartmented information facilities (SCIFs), which allow us to view and handle classified information. Understandably, we can’t take such information outside of the SCIF, which means once we leave work each day, we are much better equipped to disconnect entirely�

What advice would you give to a current student?

■ Always keep one eye on the big picture� Think of each task or event as a stepping stone to your big picture and you’ll find a lot more purpose in doing them� ■ It’s okay to not know what you want to do in life; that means you have virtually limitless options to try! I’ve met so many people within ASIO who started their careers in fields like entomology, music composition and baking but found their way here because they saw the opportunity to try something different and took it�

Priya studied a Bachelor of Information Technology (Business Analysis) and is an information technology security advisor at ASIO.

Study

Bachelor of Information Technology (Business Analysis), Charles Sturt University, 2018

ROLE

Information technology security advisor, ASIO

I have a strong sense of purpose working at ASIO.

On the job

How did you land at ASIO?

Choosing a career after high school was really hard because I didn’t know what I wanted to do� I’ve always had an interest in IT and was working at Officeworks as a sales assistant in the IT department� I applied online for the IT Traineeship program during my year 12 exams and joined the Organisation at 18� The best thing about the traineeship is that I didn’t have to choose a specialisation when I started; I was exposed to a broad range of IT in real-world applications and then decided where I wanted to go� The IT Traineeship is really great because it has four six-month rotations�

What are your areas of responsibility?

As an IT trainee, there’s a lot of responsibility placed on us to manage both working in the Organisation and completing our studies at the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT)� We have to ensure our CIT work is completed efficiently, to best utilise the time work gives us to attend classes and complete assignments� My responsibilities have changed depending on the team I am in, however I have never been alone in handling them� The more responsibility you ask for and prove you can handle, the more you will be given� In my experience, it’s best to speak up when you feel you could handle more�

What is the last project you worked on?

I worked on building a system from scratch, based on a system that existed in production� This included building servers, allocating firewall rules, SQL database management, Windows administration (DNS, Active Directory, PowerShell etc), and building and maintaining the application� There was limited documentation with a lot of assumed knowledge� My task was to make sure I filled in the gaps to make the process easy to follow in the future�

I enjoy most tasks I get given, but I like building Linux and Windows servers for clients the most� It’s nice to know that what I’m building will be used in a project to achieve a business requirement�

What’s the biggest limitation of your job?

The biggest limitation is not having access to personal emails/ electronics while in the office. This can be taken as a positive, as it means there are not as many distractions� However, studying at CIT and not having access to personal emails causes delayed responses and a sense of disconnection, especially around exam time� I work Monday to Friday and the most stressful part of the job is CIT. Trying to find balance with work and exams was difficult.

What advice would you give to a student?

Think differently! If you want a career in a particular field but don’t want to rack up debt by going to university, there are heaps of options to choose from� Whether it’s TAFE, online courses or an internship, there are so many ways to start your career in IT�

Sophia

Sophia completed her year 12 certificate and is an ICT trainee at ASIO.

Study

Year 12 certificate, 2017

ROLE

IT trainee, ASIO

The best thing about the traineeship is that I didn’t have to choose a specialisation when I started; I was exposed to a broad range of IT in real-world applications and then decided where I wanted to go.

On the job

Can you tell us about your work history?

Since school, I’ve worked numerous jobs in IT support at the local university, as an engineer on residential construction sites, and with wind turbines and waste-toenergy facilities�

What does your current employer do?

Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation (AGO) is the lead geospatial and imagery intelligence organisation in Defence� Its purpose is to provide geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) from imagery and other sources in support of Australia’s defence and national interests� GEOINT is intelligence derived from the exploitation and analysis of imagery and geospatial information about features and events, with reference to space and time�

Recently I have been focused on automating the workflows of other analysts in the organisation as well as for some of our customers� To do this, I spend a few days immersed within different teams to learn about how they work and how I can help them� Automation of repeatable workflows allows analysts and customers more time to complete other tasks and products� I really believe this is the way of the future�

Suppose a student was considering your career. What would you advise them to study?

We have everyone from engineers to people with history degrees – as long as you can think critically and creatively! If I was recommending courses, I would suggest geographic information system (GIS) courses, international relations, remote sensing, surveying, cartography, earth and environmental science, engineering or geomatics and spatial systems� However, AGO has a training program that all graduates partake in�

Should students pursue work experience?

I would consider work experience as incredibly important� All the jobs I had prior to working in Defence have set me up to succeed; they don’t have to be relevant to your degree to teach you a lesson� Prior to coming to AGO I already knew how to work within teams, how to research and how to conduct analysis�

I would recommend that if students are curious to know a little more about AGO, they visit our website at www.ago.gov.au and try out the photo interpretation challenges� These are challenging and so much fun!

What do you love about your job?

I love the people� I’m grateful for the opportunity to work with, and see the mateship between, civilian and military personnel� I also enjoy the long-term projects – ones where I’m presented with a challenge that involves prototyping and testing to solve it�

Do you bear a lot of responsibility?

We bear responsibility as we handle classified information and are expected to hold a high clearance� However, unlike my friends in consulting firms, I’m not expected to work on weekends or unreasonable hours�

Sarah

Sarah studied a Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Engineering (Electronic and Environmental) (Hons). Sarah is an intelligence officer at the Australian GeospatialIntelligence Organisation, Department of Defence.

Study

Bachelor of Science/ Bachelor of Engineering (Electronic and Environmental) (Hons), Australian National University, 2015

ROLE

Intelligence officer, Australian GeospatialIntelligence Organisation

Automation of repeatable workflows allows analysts and customers more time to complete other tasks and products. I really believe this is the way of the future.

On the job

Zayne

What are you currently studying?

A Master of Systems Engineering through the University of New South Wales (Australian Defence Force Academy)�

How did you get to your current job position?

Whilst growing up, I always had a passion for aviation and the military, which led me to join the Australian Air Force Cadets (AAFC)� All the years and time spent at the AAFC instilled in me a great sense of pride for the sacrifice and work our members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) undertake on a daily basis� This drove me towards exploring careers relating to the ADF and the Australian Department of Defence (DoD)�

Not too long after my bachelor’s degree, I found myself applying for the graduate program within the Australian DoD� Whilst on the program, I experienced unique opportunities right across the Defence workforce�

My first rotation saw me working in the project acquisition phase, where my team and I were responsible for acquiring two landing helicopter docs – Australia’s largest ships in the Royal Australian Navy’s fleet at present� During my second rotation, I was fortunate to organise an out-of-stream rotation with the Special Operations Engineering Regiment within the Royal Australian Army� I was based at Holsworthy Barracks and the work exposed me to the rapid acquisition process of specialist equipment used in the chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive environments� I was also lucky enough to conduct some test trials with the explosive detection working dogs� Following this, I ventured into the project sustainment environment and completed my third rotation at the mine clearance and diving system program office based within HMAS Waterhen� I successfully graduated from the Defence Capability Pathway program in February 2017�

What does your employer do?

The Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG) are primarily responsible for purchasing and maintaining military equipment and supplies� Military equipment ranges from acquiring new aircraft (eg Joint Strike Fighter project), ships (eg Future Frigates project) and submarines (eg Future Submarine project) to new weapon systems, army land vehicles and modernisation of soldier kits� CASG manages nationally significant projects that are unparalleled in their size, cost, timescale, risk profile and level of technological complexity� The core business is to deliver cuttingedge capabilities to the ADF�

What do you love about your job?

Working with cutting-edge technology and being exposed to unique opportunities and experiences has always kept me motivated� The idea of working on projects which have a direct influence on supporting the men and women serving overseas to protect our nation and its national interests drives my work on a daily basis�

The great benefit of working for Defence is you get a flexible working arrangement, great remuneration packages and all weekends and public holidays are work free�

Any final words of wisdom?

A person who portrays a strong sense of teamwork, professionalism, leadership, integrity, courage and innovation will excel and be a great asset to the Australian DoD�

Zayne studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) (Hons) and is a SEA1448 Phase 4B project engineer at the Department of Defence.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) (Hons), University of Wollongong, 2014

ROLE

SEA1448 Phase 4B project engineer, Department of Defence

I have always had a passion for aviation and the military…

On the job

Emily Renshaw

How did you get to your current job position?

I applied for the DELWP Science & Planning Graduate Program in the final year of my postgraduate degree. Through this process, I applied for the graduate water policy officer position, which I am currently in�

I believe I was offered this position due to my passion to work within the water resource and catchment management sector, my academic knowledge and transferable skills (written and verbal communication, data analysis etc�) and my internship experience in a government-based organisation�

Our two-year graduate program allows us to rotate between three teams/locations� I have been part of the program for just over a year now and am currently in my second rotation�

What are your areas of responsibility?

My position falls within the water & catchments group at DELWP� Water & catchments is responsible for effectively managing Victoria’s water resources to meet future urban, rural and environmental needs and works in partnership with stakeholders including water corporations and catchment management authorities�

Within my first rotation, in the licensing, groundwater & unregulated systems (LGUS) team, I was involved in drafting forwards, diagrams and charts for policy documents; analysing data to produce a key performance indicator report; writing ministerial correspondence and presenting in stakeholder meetings�

Within my second rotation, in the groundwater & streams team at Goulburn-Murray Water, I have undertaken risk-based assessments of groundwater use applications, which assess potential impacts of groundwater extraction from this user on the environment and neighbouring groundwater users; the collection, input and analysis of groundwater use data; presentations to teams and community committees, and field work.

What are the career prospects with your job?

You can move sideways through secondment opportunities to gain broad experience across your department group and/or move up to become a senior project or policy officer, who takes lead on a project or policy� If you’re interested in managing others, you can make your way up to be a manager or director�

As you gain experience within your group, there are always opportunities to move to another department group (from water & catchments to environment & climate change), to move into a consultancy or to work for a stakeholder (water corporation, Parks Victoria, catchment management authority)�

Which kind of task do you enjoy the most?

I enjoy tasks that require research or seeking knowledge from others, including tasks I feel I can take ownership of� I also enjoy being given the opportunity to present on work I have been involved in�

What advice would you give to a current university student?

Once in a graduate position, say yes to every opportunity and seek the possibility to undertake a regional rotation� As a graduate, it is your aim to network, shadow others and expose yourself to varying projects across teams, which will allow a broader understanding of the department’s responsibilities and projects�

Emily Renshaw studied a Bachelor of Environmental Science (Geographical Science) and Master of Environment (Integrated Water Catchment Management). Emily is a graduate water resource officer at the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP).

Study

Bachelor of Environmental Science (Geographical Science), Monash University, 2016; Master of Environment (Integrated Water Catchment Management), University of Melbourne, 2018

ROLE

Graduate water resource officer, Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning

As a graduate, it is your aim to network, shadow others and expose yourself to varying projects across teams, which will allow a broader understanding of the department’s responsibilities and projects.

On the job

Christopher Tassone

How did you gravitate towards this field?

I started working as a carpenter apprentice on weekends and I was introduced to computer programming� I fell in love with the ability to solve complex problems by combining multiple methods, and running my code and receiving instant feedback� It was then that I decided to become a software developer� After completing my bachelor’s degree, my supervisor asked me to apply for a scholarship to undertake a PhD, continuing my research in the field of digital forensic visualisation. Last year I was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy and realised how far I have come�

I saw the graduate development program advertisement in the public sector job search website and applied� The selection process had several stages including an online test and face-to-face interview�

What does your job involve?

I am an information and communications technology (ICT) graduate at the Department of Home Affairs� The Department of Home Affairs is a global organisation dedicated to the protection and prosperity of Australia�

The graduate program provides each graduate with an opportunity to move around the Department through scheduled rotations� I have been responsible for conducting enterprise data warehouse roles; producing architecture overview diagrams to illustrate the connections between different datasets, systems and teams; different data exploration projects to identify potential patterns and value of new and existing datasets; and developing an advance analytics Confluence Lexicon page. My typical day can range from producing architecture documents and frameworks to going to meetings with other colleagues, providing professional advice and leading projects with different stakeholders�

What advice would you give to students who are considering your career?

Make sure you study what you’re passionate about and don’t wait until the end of your studies to enter your chosen field! As soon as you start your studies, look for work experience, internships and apprenticeships� Even donate your time to charities to build your skills� Remember that applying for jobs is an art� Customise each resume and use the STAR method!

My department accepts graduates from different disciplines including arts, sciences, economics, mathematics, business, finance and data analytics� The skills required to succeed in my career include critical thinking; complex problem solving; good judgement and decision making; excellent written and verbal communication; and the ability to establish positive relationships and be supportive of a workplace culture that values diversity, respect and inclusion�

What do you love the most about your job?

I love gaining exposure to the Department’s hardware and data flow environments, enterprise data analytic development and deployment capability across several domains including visa, cargo, traveller, trade and mail�

What’s the biggest limitation?

Every day, I enjoy being part of this Department� Being away from my hometown of Adelaide is hard� However, my supportive colleagues have helped me settle into life in Canberra and I appreciate the Department’s flexible working arrangements, which assists when flying home to see my family.

Christopher Tassone studied a Bachelor of Software Engineering (Hons) and a Doctorate of Philosophy (Digital Forensic Visualisation). Christopher is an ICT graduate at the Department of Home Affairs.

Study

Bachelor of Software Engineering (Hons), University of South Australia, 2012; Doctorate of Philosophy (Digital Forensic Visualisation), University of South Australia, 2017

ROLE

ICT graduate, Department of Home Affairs

Make sure you study what you’re passionate about and don’t wait until the end of your studies to enter your chosen field!

On the job

Harrison Martin

How did you choose your profession?

I considered a number of different professions but ultimately settled on a role in government as I believed my work would have an impact on the decision-making of government� I did consider other departments, however the interesting projects and responsibilities of the Department of Infrastructure’s portfolio were definitely a big factor in my final decision.

What was your interview process like?

The interview took the form of a panel interview with four representatives from the Department on one side and myself on the other� The interviewers were enthusiastic and you could see they wanted the candidates to give the best of themselves� They also sought further clarification on technical answers provided to them, which is the best indication that they are really interested in you�

Generally, the questions asked were not specific to my academic or professional background but rather focused on broader issues like problem solving, stakeholder management and behavioural attributes�

What does your employer do?

The Department is responsible for designing and implementing the Australian Government’s infrastructure, transport, regional development and cities policies, programs and regulations� This supports the government in achieving a strong economy and thriving communities, now and for the future�

The Department delivers against five purposes through eight Budget programs:

Supporting economic growth through transport Making travel safer Increasing transport access Supporting regional development, local communities and cities Providing good governance in the territories�

I started my time with the Department through the graduate development program in 2018� I rotated through three very different sections, getting exposure to policy, regulatory and corporate functions of government� I finally landed in the market conditions team in the infrastructure investment division� I am responsible for developing evidence-based policy on different topics affecting the major infrastructure market�

What was the last thing you worked on?

A market intelligence gathering exercise, to help the Department form a position on an issue affecting the contracting of major infrastructure projects that have gained recent attention�

What are the career prospects with your job?

Outside of government, the skill set I hold would have broader applications in the resource and construction sectors, and a good knowledge of the workings of government would put you in a desirable position to enter these fields.

What do you love the most about your job?

In addition to being in a knowledgerich and caring team, I have also managed to land in a section that is influential in the decisions of government� This means there is an emphasis on research and ensuring the policy advice provided is sound in its evidence base�

What’s the biggest limitation?

Given the broad range of topics the team works on and the relative short turnaround time, there often isn’t the time to research a task as much as you would like�

Harrison Martin studied a Bachelor of Environmental Science and is a team member in the market conditions team at the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications.

Study

Bachelor of Environmental Science, University of Canberra, 2015

ROLE

Team member, market conditions team, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications

The interviewers were enthusiastic and you could see they wanted the candidates to give the best of themselves.

On the job

Edwin Anderson

Can you tell us about your education and any previous employment?

I had no idea what I wanted to do going into university� I travelled extensively to Sri Lanka, Italy, Turkey and Spain and also studied abroad, volunteered and worked every job under the sun, including hospitality, retail, admin, legal and engineering� All of these experiences helped me to slowly figure out what I enjoyed and where I could perhaps see a career for myself�

How did you choose your specialisation?

I realised the things I enjoyed always involved a sense of giving back� I connected the dots and a job in the public service seemed to align perfectly� I chose to apply to public policy because I knew it involved two things: intense teamwork (something I loved during my engineering degree) and a chance to give back, however small that may be�

What does your employer do?

The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) provides advice to the prime minister, the Cabinet and our portfolio ministers on almost any issue – from social, women’s, economic and international policy through to issues of national security� We are in the heart of the government� It is fast paced, consultative and a lot of fun�

I am currently working within the climate change and energy team working specifically on international climate and liquid fuels�

Can you describe a typical work day?

As cliche as it sounds, there really is no typical day� Being at PM&C means you get the chance to influence policy at early stages and subsequently advise the government on what is the best policy� This means new deadlines might pop up and you have to adapt�

The last thing I worked on was writing a brief to the prime minister on an emerging issue� I had to coordinate with many different areas within PM&C to provide robust advice, so the prime minister could make the best decision�

What are the career prospects?

The best part of the graduate year at PM&C are the rotations, as they allow you to try out almost any area within PM&C� Graduates are working in everything from behavioral economics and the Office for Women, to social policy including education, immigration and infrastructure� I am excited to try new things and learn as much as possible�

I love that my work requires me to work collaboratively not just with my colleagues, but with public servants from across government� I really thrive off working with people to solve a common problem�

What advice would you give to a student?

Find companies that align with your values� I know this is hard because the job market is competitive and almost every company seems to be an eco-conscious warrior� I sifted through the marketing jargon and really identified with the public service� PM&C really aligned with my values and my type of work�

Edwin Anderson studied a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering/Bachelor of Laws and is a graduate at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Study

Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering/Bachelor of Laws, Monash University, 2018

ROLE

Graduate, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

We are in the heart of the government. It is fast paced, consultative and a lot of fun.

On the job

What is your job title?

User researcher�

What do you love about your job?

My role is heavily involved in user research� Being involved in the government allows me to talk to a diversity of people� There are always things to learn by talking to users or potential users of a service. I can find out what people are trying to achieve, what they do to accomplish this and how they feel about it� I learn what problems they experience and what opportunities there might be to improve things� I get huge satisfaction in listening to problems and undertaking practical change to make every user experience optimal�

Can you tell us about the graduate program?

The graduate program is great because you can customise it to your skills and experience, so you are constantly learning new things� As an older graduate (I started when I was 30) I’ve had a few office jobs and have established processes that work for me�

Before the program I was a web developer� I loved coding, but I had skills in research, analysis and design as well� I applied for the program because I wanted to explore those other skills� This was great because I was exposed to different skills and aspects of the job through my rotations�

If you stay open to different experiences, graduate programs can be the perfect way to discover new paths� I couldn’t be happier with my new career in user research� It uses a much broader range of my skills and challenges me in ways I find much more satisfying�

What does a typical day look like?

Apart from a stand-up meeting, what I do each day varies according to my tasks� This makes me super excited to come to work because I know I will get a new experience each day. We work by flextime, which means we can make up hours when needed, which is great when we have other commitments�

What has been your most inspiring project?

In my final rotation I worked on a project that involved gaining a deep understanding of what people experienced when having a child in Australia� In a small team we looked at people’s journeys through pregnancy, birth and caring for a baby and the services they used throughout� We outlined the many activities someone might encounter during this life event and then mapped government and nongovernment services relevant to those activities�

The map started out as a physical artefact, with post-it notes on a wall� It was about eight metres long! I found it eye-opening to see the number of complex situations expectant and new parents had to deal with and the huge potential for improvement if services worked together�

What advice would you give to a student?

Stay flexible! There are lots of careers that will suit you; don’t dismiss opportunities just because they’re not what you envisioned for yourself�

Kate Newborn

Kate Newborn studied a Bachelor of Web Design and Production and is a user researcher at the Australian Government Digital Emerging Talent Programs.

EMERGING TALENT PROGRAMS

Study

Bachelor of Web Design and Production, University of Canberra, 2017

ROLE

User researcher, Digital Emerging Talent Programs

If you stay open to different experiences, graduate programs can be the perfect way to discover new paths. I couldn’t be happier with my new career in user research.

On the job

What’s your job title?

Adviser, Indigenous data analysis and research section, National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA)�

How did you get to this position?

I completed a rotation in the Indigenous affairs group of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet� This was just prior to the NIAA being stood up as its own agency as part of the 2019 federal election�

What was your interview process like?

The application process was really different to others I had experienced� There was a written application, followed by online psychometric testing� We were then invited to an assessment centre where, we participated in a written assessment, a speed dating style interview and an escape room! The interview room was set up with eight or so stations, each with different interviewers who asked different questions� I had about ten minutes at each station� I really liked this system, because each new station felt like a fresh start, particularly if I had just answered a tough question or wasn’t confident with my answer� The escape room was designed to test our teamwork and problem-solving skills� It was a fun challenge that helped calm our assessment centre nerves�

What does your employer do?

The NIAA is committed to implementing the government’s policies and programs to improve the lives of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples� The NIAA works to influence policy across the entire Australian Government� We liaise closely with state and territory governments, Indigenous peak bodies, stakeholders and service providers to ensure that Indigenous programs and services are delivering for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as intended� I was in the legal, employment, environment and evaluation group where I specifically worked in the policy analysis and evaluation branch� It was so rewarding to be working on policy that will have an impact on the lives of First Australian’s in our community�

What are your areas of responsibility?

My team provides thoughtful policy advice by thinking deeply and creatively, and consulting widely� The NIAA has many areas of focus including Closing the Gap, community safety, constitutional recognition, economic development, education, employment, health and wellbeing, and Indigenous voices�

What do you love the most about your job?

I really feel I am contributing and making an impact to improve the lives of Australians� I enjoy working in a fast-paced environment with people who really care about their work and know their stuff�

I love that I have been able to put my STEM background and skills to use in so many different policy areas� Whilst at the NIAA I worked in the Indigenous data analysis and research section� I worked specifically on overcrowding in remote Australia where I had to contribute useful data to the development of a brief� It was awesome to be able to use my research and analytical skills developed from my degree to provide the most up-to-date research for my team�

Sai Lyons

Sai Lyons studied a Bachelor of Science (Human Biology) and is currently completing a Master of Public Health. Sai is an advisor at the National Indigenous Australians Agency.

Study

Bachelor of Science (Human Biology), Master of Public Health, Australian National University, ongoing

ROLE

Adviser, Indigenous Data Analysis and Research Section, National Indigenous Australians Agency

I love that I have been able to put my STEM background and skills to use in so many different policy areas.

On the job

What’s your job title?

Graduate policy officer – conservation and sustainability team, green and resilient places branch, Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE)�

How did you choose your specialisation?

I decided to work for the NSW Government as I knew I would perform best if I was passionate about my work and confident that it would have a positive impact on the people of NSW and the environment� I knew working in the public sector would allow me many opportunities for progression and movement into different teams, branches and departments� I also knew I would have a good work-life balance and stable employment with a competitive salary�

What does your employer do?

My team at DPIE are working on developing the Cumberland Plain Conservation Plan (CPCP) for the bio-certification of growth areas in Western Sydney� This involves strategically planning the location and management of conservation sites that offset the damage caused by development in growth areas� This involves research, policy writing and engagement with a wide array of stakeholders�

What are your areas of responsibility?

My main responsibilities have included helping create, edit and update the monitoring, evaluation and reporting framework for the CPCP, and helping manage the team’s relationships with our stakeholders and delivery partners� I acted as the single point of contact between the branch and a consultancy firm and acted as secretariat at a weekly meeting with them� I conducted a lot of research projects, researching the potential use of blockchain technology to possible survey methods for the different threatened species in our project area�

Can you describe a typical day?

A typical day involves going through my emails, attending meetings about projects and undertaking specific tasks and spreadsheets. I sometimes have a quick chat with my manager about my progress, and like to have lunch with the other graduates and work on my Diploma of Government�

What do you love about your job?

I love that my job allows me to make a difference to the lives of the people of NSW as well as to the environment� I love that my job allows me to have good work-life balance, mentoring, networking, training and skill development� I also love that I am exposed to a wide variety of tasks and my managers have really tried to help me develop my skills in my areas of interest�

What’s the biggest limitation? Are the stress levels high?

Having three six-month rotations is good for access to a variety of tasks and workplaces� It can feel a little difficult moving as you feel you are just getting the hang of everything and then you are moved to another place, but this does not detract from the program� In the way of stress, I bear a level of responsibility suitable for me and if I ever need help, I am always able to get support from my team�

Sarah Aldrich

Sarah Aldrich studied a Bachelor of Science (Biology) and is a graduate policy officer in the Conservation and Sustainability team at the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.

Study

Bachelor of Science (Biology), University of Sydney, 2018

ROLE

Graduate policy officer, Conservation and Sustainability team, Green and Resilient Places branch, Department of Planning, Industry and Environment�

I also knew I would have a good work-life balance and stable employment with a competitive salary.

Further Study

What made you decide to apply for the Crawford School?

When I was living in Japan in 2017 as part of the Hamer Scholarship Program, I was on a train going from my host family’s house to university� While I was scrolling through Twitter, I saw that the Australian National University (ANU) Crawford School of Public Policy had signed a double masters partnership with the University of Tokyo� Without even really knowing what public policy was, I applied to the ANU! I had been to the ANU in 2016 as part of Asia Pacific Week (APW), which is an annual conference held at the ANU for 100 leaders from around the world engaging in the AsiaPacific region. Thanks to APW, I had a general idea about the campus� Looking back on it now, it was a really big risk, but it has certainly helped me to approach things from a whole new angle�

How did you choose your further study course?

After applying directly to Crawford School, I went along to a number of other information nights for postgraduate study in Melbourne, but I was completely sold on the idea that I could potentially graduate with two master’s degrees from two different internationally renowned universities� Despite what people say about Canberra, it is arguably the place to be for anyone interested in studying policy and government� This year I was selected for the Young Australians in International Affairs Young Leaders Series, which enabled me to go to places such as the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet to hear from some of Australia’s key policymakers in the Asia-Pacific region.

What skills do you hope to gain by completing this course?

I know that I will look back on my time at Crawford School and see it as an important juncture in my learning that allowed me to formally join my background in science with my interest in language and cultural studies� I have gained a greater understanding of how contentious policy-making is and the importance of applying critical thinking skills to policy programs that claim to impact the lives of citizens� My background in science and the humanities, as well as languages, has been invaluable for looking at policy from so many different complex angles� I think if you go into a program like this with an open mind, you will get so much more out of it� Crawford School has a vibrant group of brilliant students who will teach you a great deal about how you grapple with conflicting values.

What do you love about your course?

The people� From the academic and administrative staff to the close cohorts, Crawford School is an exciting place to study� Crawford School has its own academic skills advisors who are always there to keep you on the right track and help you towards setting your own academic goals (whatever they may be!)�

Sarah Strugnell

Sarah Strugnell is studying the Master of Public Policy at Crawford School of Public Policy.

COURSE

Master of Public Policy

visit

crawford�anu�edu�au/ study/graduate-degrees/ master-public-policy

From the academic and administrative staff to the close cohorts, Crawford School is an exciting place to study.

Retail and consumer goods

Overview

Retailing describes the practice of earning a profit by selling goods and services to consumers� This industry includes small local retailers and transnational businesses, such as Amazon, Costco and Target�

What’s involved?

While you may think first of customer-facing roles when you hear the phrase ‘retail sector’, there’s an enormous industry of people who work behind the scenes to ensure that retailers remain competitive and consumer needs are met� In Australia, the retail industry employs some 1�2 million people� The domestic retail market turns over about $120 billion each year, contributing between seven and eight per cent of gross domestic product�

Where do they work?

Retail employees work everywhere where there are retail stores and Australia has many thousands of them� However, that’s only half the story – between ten and thirty per cent of Australian retail transactions are conducted online� These stores often eschew customer-facing roles, instead employing warehouse stockists, administrative staff and various other participants in a supply chain that is, to the consumer, mostly invisible�

Larger retailers, such as department stores, global brands and franchise companies, often have a large back-office division that focuses on administrative, financial and other responsibilities� This is where you’ll find business strategists, senior managerial staff, consumer analysts and more�

Entering the retail sector

There are several graduate programs in the retail sector, most of which are offered by larger companies like Coles, L’Oreal, Woolworths, Myer and Aldi� Large retailers also directly hire professionals to work in various departments, such as finance and administration, human resources and training,

Coles are looking for graduates to deliver new strategy and ‘sustainably feed all Australians to help them lead healthier, happier lives’.

Joining Mars’ graduate program, which is known as the Mars leadership experience, will kick off three rewarding years packed with great experiences, opportunities and learning.

STEM graduates may use their analytical skills and creativity to pursue retail careers that don’t draw directly on their STEM skills.

logistics, information technology, store operations and marketing�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

STEM graduates may use their analytical skills and creativity to pursue retail careers that don’t draw directly on their STEM skills� While some such careers may require specific training – marketers, for example, will generally be expected to possess a marketing qualification – other advisory, administrative and managerial roles are more ‘degree agnostic’� There are also a limited number of positions within the retail sector that specifically call upon the services of STEM graduates� These include roles for data analysts and computer programmers�

Career prospects

With the arrival in Australia of new retail giants like Amazon, the retail sector will need to grow and adapt, relying increasingly on the management of online retail processes, efficient supply chains and the ability to understand changing consumer behaviour� Graduates can build careers that support these endeavours and the future of retail in Australia�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Mechanical engineering

Electrical engineering

Robotics and mechatronics engineering

Chemical engineering

Manufacturing engineering

Chemistry

Food and nutritional science

Biochemistry

Data science

Mathematics

Statistics

Learn more

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Day in the life

Neelesh Patil

5.30 AM

My thought every morning: ‘It’s so early, what am I doing?!’ But I’m up and it’s time to get moving� I go to the lounge, roll the mat out and get stretching� It’s yoga time!

6.00 AM

I like to enjoy taking my time getting ready, so I’m generally quite slow in the morning�

7.15 AM

I’m ready to head off to work� My commute is a difficult 30-minute stroll�

7.45 AM

Focus time� I consider this the most important time in the day� I write down the most important things I need to complete for the day and make sure I complete them during this time� I’m currently assisting the project manager with the launching of our new BP Rewards program, so my main priority for this morning is ensuring the project schedule is up to date and identifying the key risk items for the week that need to be completed�

9.00 AM

Catch up with the project manager to discuss which priorities I think we should be talking about in the upcoming weekly stand-up, and what we should get the team to focus on during the week� With a project of this scale, it’s important we get the team focusing on the ‘burning bridges’ of this week�

9.30 AM

Time to get to my emails� I try to avoid looking at my emails until I’ve completed the most critical items. I find emails a little bit distracting, so I generally turn off notifications or don’t even open Outlook until I’m ready�

10.30 AM

My brain needs a break� I grab my banana and go for a small stroll� The office is located in Docklands, so I generally walk towards the water and back�

11.00 AM

Time for the weekly project meeting� I pull up the activities that are outstanding and need to be completed during the week, and together as a team we go through each item� It’s a bit of an odd experience being a graduate and telling a room full of well experienced colleagues what their priorities are for the week, but what an experience and opportunity for me!

12.00 PM

Lunch� Lunch for me is always 12�00 pm on the dot and always in the kitchen with mates� Today I have my favourite: rice and daal�

1.00 PM

After grabbing some caffeine, I re-write my priorities for the afternoon� I generally jump back on my emails to see if anything critical has come up�

1.30 PM

Focus time� Today I’m working in collaboration with the operations and offer workstream leads to develop customer journeys for how the new program will look once we go live�

3.00 PM

Catch up with my mentor� This is my last year on the graduate

Neelesh Patil studied a Bachelor of Engineering/ Bachelor of Commerce and is now a marketing coordinator at BP.

program and it’s getting to the time of year where I need to start looking for a role to move into after the graduate program� My mentor has been brilliant in helping me navigate through the organisation� It can be so difficult in the early years knowing which pathway to choose�

4.00 PM

Wrap up a few last minute things, then I’m ready to go home�

5.00 PM

After I reach home, I quickly cook some dinner� Tonight, I have a game of ultimate frisbee, so I have my usual pre-frisbee dinner of pasta�

7.40 PM

Game time! It’s time to play some disc!

9.50 PM

After licking our wounds with a close loss I’m back home� I am spent! I have a quick bite to eat and then I’m off to bed�

Day in the life

Belinda Hardiman

7.00 AM

Beep� Beep� Snooze� Every morning my alarm goes off at 7�05 am and I eventually get up and get ready for my day (I am not a morning person!)� For breakfast I make some poached eggs on toast and a mug of English breakfast tea� I jump on my bike and am ready for my 20-minute leisurely ride to work on the Gardiner Creek Trail�

8.00 AM

I arrive at work and head down to the Coles gym where I have a shower and get ready� I make my way to the Coles Hub (atrium) where I buy a skinny latte extra hot (I am one of those people!) and catch up with a colleague�

8.30 AM

Working as a digital analyst in martech (marketing technology), my job is to make difficult processes easier, measure the impact of marketing activities and drive more efficient spending. I use data to understand what our customers are doing online so I can tailor and create enhanced experiences� In the morning I read and sort my emails and create tickets in Jira (agile project management and bug tracking tool) with tasks� I like to use this time to prioritise my workload and set myself up for the day�

9.00 AM

I have my first meeting for the day where I update my stakeholders about their channel’s performance� I have created a self-service dashboard in Adobe Analytics that provides real-time data� I like to use this time to gather requirements for further dashboard enhancements�

Belinda Hardiman studied a Bachelor of Communication Design/Bachelor of Business (Marketing) and is a digital graduate at Coles.

10.00 AM

I get back to my desk and open Jira so I can move the tickets I completed yesterday to ‘done’ and start prioritising what I need to do� I decide to work on updating a stakeholder dashboard with their upcoming campaign so we can have it ready when it goes live� I use

Jabber (internal messenger) when creating these workspaces so I can confirm with the stakeholder that I am including all the relevant metrics they report on�

12.00 PM

Lunch time – and I am hungry! I typically meal prep and bring my lunch from home, but today I felt indulgent� I head down to the Hub (food court) where I grab a salad from Courtney Roulston (Season 2 MasterChef finalist). I then go and join the other grads outside in the courtyard, where we talk about upcoming music festivals and holidays�

1.00 PM

After lunch I have another stakeholder meeting where I provide updates on how different segments of customers are using the website. I provide flow visualisations, funnels and fallouts to demonstrate processes and pages that are performing well and where opportunities can be found�

2.00 PM

Now it’s time for our weekly workin-progress meeting� As a team we go through what we have achieved, what we learnt and what we could do to improve from the previous week� We also look at all our Jira tickets so that we can allocate resources and understand our team’s capacity� This session sets our team up for success as it helps prioritise our workloads and keeps us informed on what everyone is doing�

3.00 PM

I see an email from the sensory booth; they are looking for 20 people to sample gingerbread houses� I walk (run) to the test kitchens and do a blind tasting of three different gingerbread houses and complete an online survey�

3.30 PM

I get back to my desk and start actioning tasks� I send an email to a stakeholder with commentary from Hotjar (a heatmapping tool)� I also create a Confluence page that documents the requirements for tagging a campaign and continue to monitor the performance of multiple websites�

5.00 PM

Home time! I make my way back to the gym’s changing rooms and get ready for my ride home� I always enjoy cycling home (particularly in spring when the weather is good), as it allows me to relax and switch off from work�

6.00 PM

I have nothing to eat at my house, so I walk with my partner to our local Coles supermarket to pick up some sausages and salad for dinner� We head to the park where we have a BBQ and kick the footy�

7.30 PM

It’s Amazing Race time! I relax on the couches with my partner and housemate, and drink some Camomile tea�

10.30 PM Bed time!

Day in the life

Alyssia Santilli

5.45 AM

I never thought I would be a morning person� Before starting full-time work, I would laugh at friends who raved about an early morning wake up and gym session – it’s like they looked forward to it!? And yet, I am here being one of those people� These days I rarely even wait for my alarm to go off! The body clock wakes up at 5�43 am to be precise, I (rarely) jump out of bed and slip on those runners ready for a F45 or pilates session!

7.00 AM

Rushing around the house to make the 8�10 am train is often a tight squeeze!

8.45 AM

I arrive at work to be greeted by the bubbly FSQ team� It is always great to start the day with a friendly smile� While eating breakfast, I check my calendar and email, and create a daily to-do list� This way, I am set up to have a successful day of work�

10.00 AM

As it is the start of the year and the business is finalising the NPD pipeline, I make my way down to South Melbourne where the ready meals marketing team are presenting concepts to our regular consumers� Focus groups allow us to gain an insight into individuals opinions, expectations and recommendations� It is really exciting to hear the creative and innovative concepts that the marketing team have put forward� As we sit behind a one-way mirror, we listen to the opinions of the consumers and make notes on how we can amend the concepts and bring the products to life�

12.00 PM

Lunchtime! Being a part of a graduate program is great as you make such awesome friends! Often we will all meet up, talk about things other than work and fit in a 15-minute walk.

1.00 PM

It is R&D’s responsibility to create all the on-pack information� This includes calculating the nutrition information panel, writing up the ingredient list and ensuring all claims are validated� Currently I am working on a mac & cheese innovation product that will hit the shelves soon� I have received nutritional analysis results from our labs and will begin doing some calculations to understand if we can meet dietary fibre and calcium claims! Once completed, this document will be sent to our regulatory affairs and legal team to review and approve�

2.30 PM

Time for a quick, cross-functional team meeting on an upcoming innovation� We review the timelines and create an action plan for everyone to achieve by the next meeting (normally run on a fortnightly basis)� We are in initial stages working with the co-packer to develop bench samples, so I update everyone on how we are tracking�

3.00 PM

My body thanks me for the early morning gym workout! While my colleagues are hitting threethirty-itis, I am full of energy and ready to smash out my afternoon

Alyssia Santilli studied a Bachelor of Food and Nutrition Science (Exercise Science) and is a R&D technologist at Kraft Heinz.

meetings� First up is a tasting! People in the office love to wander through the kitchen while a tasting is occurring, just for the free food! Sometimes we even have McDonald’s fries or nuggets (if it is a ketchup tasting)�

Today we are completing a competitor tasting for our frozen meal category� We do this at least once a year for each of our categories to see what is happening in the market, what new innovative products have launched and to benchmark products to assist us in developing new projects� We have about 15 products to taste, starting from healthy plant-based meals, moving to the hearty, cheeseoozing pasta dishes that really pack a punch!

4.00 PM

I dial into a Skype call with people across the Australia and New Zealand business� Often, I have people reaching out to me for assistance in how to use Microsoft Project to manage their project timelines� As part of my graduate program, we had a project that

focused on an area of the business that needed improvement� I created Microsoft Project timeline templates, which are unique to different types of projects we run at Kraft Heinz� This now assists teams to launch projects in a realistic timeframe� As this is a new software, I often hold training sessions�

4.30 PM

Now to finish off the day with another tasting: mac & cheese� The marketing, consumer insights, quality and R&D members who

worked on developing the mac & cheese line extension SKUs come together monthly to monitor the shelf life of the product over time� We check the appearance, texture, how creamy the sauce covers the pasta, the flavour and the mouthfeel� This is all documented and compared to previous months to note if there are any changes over shelf life� There are rarely any leftovers!

5.15 PM

As the office starts to wind down, I review my to-do list for the day� I check my schedule for tomorrow, sign off and cheerfully say goodbye to the team�

6.15 PM

I arrive home and change into my comfy ‘couch clothes’! One ritual post dinner is to prep my breakfast, morning snack, lunch and afternoon snack (I know… I own a lot of Tupperware containers), and then hit the couch for some well deserved Netflix!

On the job

Tory Rowley James

What’s your job title?

I am a second-year MECCA Brands graduate in the IT Data team�

Why did you choose this specialisation and MECCA specifically?

I’ve always loved maths and problem solving, and data analysis is an organic progression/natural fit. It’s exciting that these skills are now transferable to non-traditional industries and roles�

I chose the MECCA Brands Graduate Program because I wanted an unfiltered entry into a game-changing business� I wanted to work in a role where I could use my technical ability, as well as be exposed to diverse experiences and develop well roundedness� Graduate programs are accelerated experiences and force you to learn and adapt to new environments quickly�

MECCA is a game changer in the beauty space, globally� The environment is fast paced and extremely unique� Although I tossed up alternatives, based on all the information I had about MECCA and the opportunity I was looking for, it was the right choice for me�

What was your interview process like?

The process included an initial application, cognitive testing and a full day at the graduate recruitment forum at the Mecca Support Centre in Melbourne� This included two group activities and two individual interviews�

The group interviews were focused on working in a team, brainstorming a project and managing unexpected change on short notice� The individual interviews were focused on understanding the detail of my technical ability as well as my cultural alignment with the business� Employers take a deep dive into your background and personality to assess not only your competency for the role, but to ensure you’re a good culture fit. I believe what made me successful, was being authentic, self-aware in my response and being able to think on the spot�

What does your employer do?

MECCA Brands is the leading beauty retailer across Australia and New Zealand� I’m currently placed in MECCA’s IT Data team, and I’m responsible for data delivery for a wide range of departments� Currently I’m working on building dashboards in Tableau for different departments and working on a CRM attribution model�

Which tasks do you enjoy the most?

I thrive in an environment where I have the freedom to choose my own adventure and go after the big rocks� I love working on tasks that have not been tapped into yet and are an innovative step in the future for the business�

What’s the biggest challenge?

Naturally, when you’re passionate about doing a good job and you care about the outcomes of tasks, you can easily get into a less than optimal work-life balance relationship� From experience, I know this is something I have to manage�

What advice do you have for students and graduates?

You can change your mind about what you want to do at any time� You haven’t wasted anything� New opportunities present themselves and you should be flexible and reassess your situation to ensure you’re doing things that interest you�

Tory Rowley James studied a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance, Data Analysis) and is a secondyear MECCA Brands graduate in the IT Data team.

Study

Bachelor of Commerce (Finance, Data Analysis), Bond University, 2018

ROLE

MECCA Brands graduate, IT Data team

MECCA is a game changer in the beauty space, globally. The environment is fast paced and extremely unique.

Technology

Overview

Technology professionals aim to help individuals and organisations harness the power of computing by using appropriate software, hardware, services, networks and infrastructure to meet a range of goals, from centralising customer records in a readily accessible database to performing large-scale data analysis� It’s difficult to overstate the importance of technology to modern business – almost all major organisations rely on computing, whether they’re replying to emails or aggregating huge amounts of online shopping data� Consequently, technology has become a mammoth industry in its own right, with some of its most successful businesses, such as Apple and Alphabet (formerly Google), becoming household names the world over�

In Australia, the technology industry is now seen as critical to the economy and national security� Global companies including Canon, Citrix, Google, IBM and Microsoft employ many thousands of Australians, while home-grown firms have made valuable contributions to areas as diverse as education, mining, finance, cybersecurity and health�

What’s involved?

Broadly speaking, tech professionals fall into five categories that reflect their area of expertise.

First, there are technology workers who specialise in hardware, such as servers, microchips, printers, computers, network equipment and mobile phones� They have responsibilities ranging from research and development to manufacturing and design� Tech companies are engaged in a constant arms race when it comes to hardware (and software), with new breakthroughs and products promising lucrative returns�

In the second category are the many tech workers who focus on software� Here, programmers, software designers, app developers, security experts and other professionals create the many pieces of software that make computers useful� This includes operating systems (such as Windows and Android), word processors (such as Microsoft Word and Google Docs), email clients (like Outlook and Gmail) and video games (from Pong to the present)�

The third category contains the professionals who focus on providing tech services� These professionals offer software support, systems integration (making two incompatible software applications work together), the design of custom networks and computer systems, and more�

Fourth, there are the many professionals dedicated to tech infrastructure� This includes all of the hardware and software used to support telecommunications networks, cloud data centres, colocation facilities and the internet�

Finally, there are the positions in the technology industry that focus on administration, managerial responsibilities, sales, human relations and other primarily non-technical areas�

Where do tech professionals work?

Tech companies hire the largest proportion of tech professionals� These organisations tend to focus on one segment of the market, though others – particularly larger companies like IBM and Microsoft – may invest in multiple areas� Common market segments include hardware (Apple and Dell); internet retail (Amazon and Netflix); software and programming (Microsoft, Oracle and Adobe); semiconductors and chips (Intel and Qualcomm); and computer services (Facebook, Google and VMware)�

The success stories of companies like Whatsapp and Instagram have inspired many tech professionals to establish their own ventures� Hence the proliferation of start-up companies in the technology sector, with major businesses like Microsoft and Google originating in the garages of their founders�

The past decade has also seen an increase in the demand for tech professionals within various management consulting firms, which offer tech solutions as a form of business support� Technology consultancy divisions can now be found at leading firms like Deloitte, McKinsey, Capgemini and the Boston Consulting Group�

Of course, many businesses have sought to avoid relying on outside assistance by hiring tech professionals of their own� It’s not unusual for banks, insurance companies, media companies, schools and other institutions to hire tech professionals who work on site full time� Finally, the government is a major employer of tech professionals, whose tasks in the public sector are similar to those they would perform for a private

business: troubleshooting hardware, designing software, enhancing cybersecurity, upgrading systems and so on�

Entering the technology industry

While it’s still possible for savvy programmers and other specialists to crack the industry with practical demonstrations of their experience (for example, apps they’ve designed or problems they’ve solved), almost all professional tech jobs now require you to possess a relevant degree� This usually means completing a four-year bachelor’s degree in computer sciences, programming, systems administration, management information systems, computer engineering, information technology or a related area� While there is some overlap between these areas, you’ll find that some are better suited to certain positions than others (and may be specifically requested in a job advertisement). For example, a programming background is essential for a software engineer but not necessary for a sales professional�

Many major technology organisations run dedicated graduate programs, with competitive salaries and exciting training opportunities available to successful candidates� Often, applicants must pass through a multi-stage recruitment process involving an online application, in-person interview and various aptitude tests. Your application will benefit from evidence you’ve completed an internship, gained industry experience, or worked on personal or academic projects related to the target role�

Career prospects

The technology industry is expected to grow by leaps and bounds over the coming decades, with its centrality to modern business and culture encouraging many to push for the inclusion of subjects like programming in standard school curricula�

Areas of major growth include ecommerce, mobile applications, cloud computing, health technology and computer security� Each of these expanding fields promises to employ many tens of thousands of additional tech professionals, with software developers, computer systems analysts and web developers in particularly high demand� The advancement of your own career will be determined largely by your specific role and the organisation for which you work� For example, larger companies like Microsoft and Apple offer various paths for internal career advancement, whether you decide to pursue leadership positions, overseas roles or acceptance to competitive research and development teams�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

For many popular jobs in the technology industry, a STEM degree is mandatory: you will, for instance, require a computing science degree to apply competitively to most graduate software development positions� Instead, it’s better to focus on advantageous ways to augment your STEM degree by acquiring additional experience or education� For example, you could enter coding challenges, apply for internships, research potential employers carefully, join professional networks or hone your skills by enrolling in an online open education program�

Average salary

Entry-level salaries for tech graduates range from $55,000–$66,000� However, salary progressions vary widely based on specialisation and employer, with competitive employers willing to secure talent by offering generous packages to standout graduates�

Choose this if you:

■ Are attracted to the idea of working in a ‘tech’ environment – many tech employers are well known for their unique work cultures� ■ Can commit to ongoing professional development to keep up to date with new trends and technologies� ■ Want a job that makes you think hard about problems�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Computer systems and networks

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Software engineering

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Cybersecurity

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DXC Technology have opportunities to work alongside senior leaders on real projects with a diverse range of people.

On the job

How did you choose your specialisation?

I prioritised what I enjoyed doing and what I was interested in, which was coding and augmented reality respectively�

What was your interview process like?

The process involved a phone interview, aptitude questions, faceto-face interviews and teamwork activities with other applicants� During the face-to-face interview, I remember being asked about my problem resolution skills� For example, what challenge I might encounter if I started working at the company and how I would resolve it� I was also asked to describe a teamwork issue occurring in the past and how I resolved it�

What does your employer do?

DXC Technology is the world’s independent end-to-end IT services company that helps clients to harness the power of innovation to thrive on change� Quite simply, we use our years of experience running mission-critical systems with the latest digital innovations to deliver better business outcomes for our customers and their stakeholders� The team I’m part of provides design thinking consultation and rapid prototyping services�

What are your areas of responsibility?

A portion of the rapid prototyping we do is the creation of virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality application prototypes, which is my primary role� My responsibilities include making 3D models (virtual objects) and development of AR/VR apps, testing and working closely with clients to make sure we build exactly what they want�

Can you describe a typical work day?

First of all I check and answer emails, then attend a team stand-up where we update the status of projects we are working on� When this ends, I continue working on a prototype� Making AR/VR apps is a lot like game development, in that it requires a lot of creative input to make the experience engaging for the user� Sometimes I ask my co-workers for feedback on how things look and feel� In the afternoon, there might be meetings with clients or project delivery teams�

What are the career prospects with your job?

AR/VR is a growing industry� While applications like Pokemon Go and Beat Saber are helping consumers get used to the idea of consuming digital content in AR/VR, businesses seem eager to incorporate it into the workplace� In the future, I see mixed reality technologies becoming more commonplace in everyday life�

What do you enjoy about your job?

I like the opportunity for creative input that it provides� Working with AR/VR technology can be trippy and fun� I like putting myself in the shoes of the user and asking myself, ‘Would I enjoy this? Does this feel easy to use? Is this aesthetic suitable?’

Do you have to work on weekends?

We have a fixed amount of time to build each prototype� When we encounter a major change or problem, we might need to spend extra time at work to meet the deadline� The team environment is relaxed and friendly however, so that helps to reduce stress�

Anna Do

Anna Do studied a Bachelor of Mechatronics Engineering/ Bachelor of Arts and is an associate technical consultant at DXC Technology.

Study

Bachelor of Mechatronics Engineering/Bachelor of Arts, University of New South Wales, 2017

ROLE

Associate technical consultant, DXC Technology

In the future, I see mixed reality technologies becoming more commonplace in everyday life.

On the job

What does your role involve?

Before starting my graduate role, I started my career with Expedia Group as an intern in the mobile development team� Now as an associate software development engineer, my responsibilities are to develop and manage our team’s software stack to connect property owners with their customers�

In less than a year I have delved into all parts of the stack, from web front-end to managing infrastructure on AWS (Amazon Web Services)� I have also been attending a lot of training sessions on skills such as machine learning as well as utilising AWS resources to further advance my essential skills�

How did you choose this specialisation?

I have been interested in software development ever since my discovery of the internet and have always wanted to be involved in creating products that millions of people use� Immediately after graduating from high school I enrolled in a Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical Engineering) at The University of Queensland, contradicting my love for software development� After a brief venture being a prospective electrical engineer, I decided to make the switch to a software engineering major, realising my passion lies firmly in software. It was not a painless change, but it was a life-changing decision I will never regret�

Travelling to all corners of the world to experience different cultures and food has always been my mission in life, which happens to coincide with Expedia’s industry and mission�

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Yes! As a new graduate without a lot of experience, I was able to smoothly transition into the role with the support of experienced colleagues who were always eager to help�

What are the greatest aspects of your job?

The great thing about working as a software developer at Expedia Group is having the freedom to express your opinion on your project no matter who you are� It is exciting to have the opportunity to hear diverse opinions from people all over the world�

Expedia Group has a wonderful culture of caring about the product they drive forward� The drive to learn new things and try new technologies is prevalent across the company, as people are always looking for new ways to improve their product� Furthermore, we are given substantial support to acquire new knowledge and to try our newly acquired skills in our application without worrying about being reprimanded for making mistakes� When you remove the fear of making mistakes, other skills will come along naturally� Expedia Group offers thousands of training courses for both new and seasoned employees who wish to learn new skills�

There are always new and exciting challenges to solve on any given day� It is exciting to see the work you do have an impact on real people – on someone’s holiday dreams�

Jerry Wang

Jerry Wang studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Software Engineering) and is an associate software development engineer at Expedia.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Software Engineering), The University of Queensland, 2018

ROLE

Associate software development engineer, Expedia

Expedia Group has a wonderful culture of caring about the product they drive forward.

On the job

Asad Aziz

Can you tell us about your background?

I grew up in Islamabad, Pakistan, a peaceful city with few people – relative to other cities in Pakistan, of course� I went to school in Islamabad and had an interest in science, then went on to get a Bachelor of Science (Electrical Engineering)� While studying I had a few part-time jobs and internships� The most notable was with the WWF, in which I got to work in a team that was making a submersible dolphin tracking system� After that, I felt I needed some robots in my life, so I decided to get a degree in mechatronics� After having a look at a few programs online, I found one at the Australian National University, which provided the right mix of computer science and robotics� I applied, got in, packed my bags and moved to Canberra�

How did you get to your current position?

I have been working at Fujitsu since February 2019� I applied when the graduate applications were open for the 2019 graduate program intake� I attended the assessment centre in Canberra but based on my location preference and skills, was given the opportunity to join the automation team based in Sydney, which I happily accepted�

What was your interview process like?

It consisted of an assessment centre where a group of applicants had a scenario and individual roles/ characters� We had to determine how each character would perform in that scenario and present our findings to the interviewers. I also had three individual interviews (two more than any other graduate I’ve met) to narrow down the ideal role/ the role that would complement my skills the most� These were more like conversations with managers of teams I was suited for� These interviews resulted in me finding the automation team and working on things I enjoy�

What are your areas of responsibility?

I work in the automation team, primarily on projects that involve machine learning, AI and analytics� This includes, but isn’t limited to, writing design documents, machine learning algorithms and implementing/integrating solutions to our environments�

What was the last thing you worked on?

I am currently working on delivering a conversational virtual assistant (chat-bot) for one of our internal teams� The chat-bot will be able to hold a conversation with a user and answer any questions they have�

Do you bear a lot of responsibility?

I have a lot of autonomy in the workplace, which means there is responsibility as well, but it also means there is a lot of trust� Most of the work I do involves emerging technology and at times there is trial and error, but that makes celebrating success at the end even better� Everyone should take ownership and be accountable for the work they do�

What would your career be if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now?

I play the electric guitar, so probably a rock star!

Asad Aziz studied a Bachelor of Science (Electrical Engineering) and Master of Engineering (Mechatronics). Asad is a technical graduate in Automation CoE at Fujitsu.

Study

Bachelor of Science (Electrical Engineering); Master of Engineering (Mechatronics), Australian National University, 2017

ROLE

Graduate – technical, Automation CoE, Fujitsu

Most of the work I do involves emerging technology and at times there is trial and error, but that makes celebrating success at the end even better.

On the job

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I’m Emma Flanagan, 21 years old and currently taking part in a graduate program at Infosys – a global technology consulting company� Although it’s been just a few months, it’s been a learning experience that has taught me many important career skills�

How did you choose your specialisation?

After high school, I had no clue of what I wanted to do� I spoke to a guidance counsellor who (based on my good mathematics results and forward-thinking attitude) suggested I look at a degree in IT� I had a preconceived notion that IT would be super boring and just a bunch of guys talking about video games� Don’t get me wrong, there is still plenty of video game chat, but after completing my Bachelor of Information Technology from Australian Catholic University, I learnt that IT encompasses so much more� There are endless opportunities, from business consulting to blockchain and everything in between� For those without a set career path, a career in technology is definitely worth exploring�

What was your job search like?

The job search can be stressful for many and I think I was lucky to have had a relatively short lead time� I had a plan in place and identified potential suitors well before applying� I also had a distinct approach to each application – positioning my profile the best way for each role – which I think really helped� I was successful in securing a few interviews and offers but decided Infosys was the best place to kickstart my career� It’s been just a few months now, but I’ve already had a fun and challenging learning experience, developing a good understanding of the tech industry and banking�

How did you find your training?

The training was definitely challenging but in a very positive way� It has made me more confident in my ability to work in a technology-based role� As someone with minimal development knowledge and experience, learning Java for the first time was difficult yet important� This especially helped me in my ability to learn other programming languages� It’s a huge stride in my learning journey because at university I had only programmed for a short time�

What is the culture like?

I really appreciate that my employer is focused on equal opportunity and diversity in the workplace and our community� The inclusive values that help unite people from diverse backgrounds are key to a great workplace� Personally, I’m looking forward to volunteering and creating awareness about digital skills, especially because I want to see more girls and women take up a career in technology� It’s a cause I am deeply invested in and I really wish to see more women in a field that is clearly dominated by men today�

Emma Flanagan

Emma Flanagan studied a Bachelor of Information Technology and is a graduate at Infosys.

Study

Bachelor of Information Technology, Australian Catholic University, 2018

ROLE

Graduate, Infosys

The training was definitely challenging but in a very positive way. It has made me more confident in my ability to work in a technologybased role.

Day in the life

Marta Kiki

7:00AM

I’m not an early bird, so after I hit the snooze button for the third time I wake up at 7�30 am� I leave for work by 8�00 am� I use the bus ride to catch up on emails, social media and read the news�

8:45AM

I make my way to the seventh floor and make myself comfortable on a desk by the waterside, trying my best not to get distracted by the mesmerising view of the harbor� It’s a hot-desking system so everyone seems to be attracted to the harbor view desks on this side of the building, making it seem like a race for the ‘front row seats’! As I go through my emails and calendar I routinely create a to-do list for the day accordingly�

9:00AM

Coffee time� We love our morning coffee� There are coffee machines in every kitchen area around the building (if you haven’t had one already)� These areas seem to be great places to meet new and interesting people�

Today I’ve met someone from Dubai who has been with the company for 15 years working in different projects in various countries in Europe and Asia� Ericsson is very multicultural and you get to meet people from around the world�

9:15AM

Hello to drawing reviews� This task is a priority and requires lots of attention to detail� I have to make sure the radio frequency (RF) section of each drawing has the correct information and that the antenna configuration details meet our design guidelines� We want our radio antennas to be installed and placed correctly on towers to avoid interference and other issues that

Marta Kiki studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Telecommunications) and is a graduate engineer at Ericsson.

might occur in the future, hence, making the details of the drawings critical�

11:00AM

I have a meeting with our Human Resources representative to discuss potential venues for the Young Professional Summit that will be held this year� This is a threeday event organised by Ericsson every year for the graduates� Within

the Young Professionals Committee, I have been assigned to help with organising the venue and the speakers. This event is a first for me and it seem like a big deal for the company� Thus, I’m eagerly looking forward to it�

11:30AM

After sending off a few more emails, I check if we have any requests to register radio spectrum� Designing new sites or adding capacity on various base stations sometimes requires additional radio spectrum, therefore we have to register all the radio spectrum we use through the Australian Communications and Media Authority� There are some technical questions that I just can’t get my head around, so I go and ask my buddy� As always, he’s super helpful� It all makes sense now�

12:20PM

I can’t believe it’s lunchtime already� I’m meeting with the other graduates in the lunchroom and we use this time to share what we’ve been doing so far within our teams� I didn’t bring lunch today, so I’ll need to go grab some downstairs� There are plenty of restaurants in the area, which sometimes makes it hard to decide what to eat� We’ve decided to use a few minutes of our lunch break for a quick game of table football� I’m doing pretty bad here�

1:00PM

MI have a meeting with the client� I quickly grab a quiet room and join the meeting via Skype� The RF design engineers will present the sites they’ve designed to the client� I learn something new about RF designing every time I attend these meetings, so I try to attend them all�

3:30PM

Time flies. Back to my desk and drafting an email for the client to let them know that a design issue we had in one of the sites has been resolved� I have some electromagnetic energy (EME) report reviews to do before I leave� The purpose of these reports is to make sure the levels of EME likely to be emitted by the base stations are minimal� Also, here we go: I’ve just received another drawing review�

5:15PM

We take flexible working seriously, hence, I’m leaving early today to

attend the monthly Women in Engineering (WIE) Committee meeting at Engineers Australia� Within the committee, I’ve taken up the event coordinator role for this year� I am very passionate about gender diversity within engineering industries, so this is some volunteer activity I do outside of work� Having said this, there is a diversity and inclusion interest group within Ericsson that I plan on joining in the next few months�

8:00PM

The WIE Committee meeting is finished with some astonishing outcomes: some great events and initiatives have been locked in for the year� We’ve decided to treat ourselves with dinner at one of the local bars on Bourke Street�

9:30PM

What a day. I’m finally home. A warm chamomile tea while watching The Blacklist always helps� Sometimes I work late to catch up with tasks that I wasn’t able to finish on time, but normally I get home by 7�00 pm, so I get plenty of time for a gym session or walk with my mum�

On the job

What experiences led you to where you are today?

When I was in primary school, I was struggling in my mathematics class and my teacher told my concerned parents, ‘Don’t worry, most girls just don’t understand maths�’ My parents pulled me out of that school and sent me to another where there was a strong emphasis on empowering girls� The never-ending support of my incredible teachers, parents and the countless strong young women in my life have led me to where I am today – a confident woman in tech.

How did you choose your specialisation?

As I went through university and was exposed to what a career in tech looked like, I saw that having a technology-centric skill set opened doors to a wide range of opportunities� Tech skills are needed across many industries, and there are so many ways to apply what you know� It is this endless opportunity to learn and discover new ways to apply my skills that made me choose tech�

What stood out about your graduate experience at Microsoft?

During my time as a graduate, there are two things that stood out: the strong support network; and the investment in my professional development. From the first day, I knew I had the complete support of my mentor, manager and the other graduates� As I’ve adjusted to my role and faced different challenges, this has only been confirmed.

Being a recent graduate starting in a tech role, I have a lot to learn� With that can come a lot of anxiety� From the outset, my team has been openly invested in my ongoing learning� I am constantly encouraged to take the time to educate myself on new topics and take myself beyond my comfort zone�

Can you describe a typical day?

There’s a large emphasis on continual learning in my role, so my typical day sees me dedicating a bit of time to expanding my knowledge and making sure I’m developing skills that can help our customers� For the rest of the day, I’ll be shadowing more senior team members on their projects�

Despite being a graduate, I’m given responsibility and meaningful work that allows me to have an impact� This sees me being involved in client meetings, conducting research, performing proof-of-concepts and writing documentation�

A recent project involved connecting Australian farms to the Internet of Things� That is, creating an infrastructure that allowed farmers to install sensors and easily monitor their farm’s health� This was a great project to work on, since I could see the direct impact that our work was having�

What are the career prospects with your job?

As Microsoft is a large global company, there are an incredible number of unique roles� The company strongly encourages us to constantly review our plans for the future and the roles we’d like to find ourselves in� No role is off limits, so the possibilities are endless�

Katie Ward

Katie Ward studied a Bachelor of Engineering and is a cloud solution architect at Microsoft.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering, Australian National University, 2019

ROLE

Cloud solution architect, Microsoft

From the first day, I knew I had the complete support of my mentor, manager and the other graduates.

On the job

How did you get to your current job position?

I applied for the 2019 Optus graduate program during my final year of undergraduate study and have been in my current role for just over 15 months�

How did you choose your specialisation?

Growing up, I was interested in international relations and languages, cultures and customs� I chose my specialisation on interest rather than market opportunities� I believe that if you choose an area which sparks your interest, you’ll always find yourself in a positive position�

What was your interview process like?

It’s rare for applicants to take a campus tour during an assessment centre, but that’s just what Optus did� There were a range of standard interview questions, experience related and behavioural related questions� The interview was more a conversation about my personality, the culture I would like to work in and my personal brand�

What does your employer do?

Optus is one of the leading organisations in the telecommunication industry, providing consumer and enterprise organisations with quality solutions through great customer experience

What are your areas of responsibility?

The Optus business strategy teams area of focus includes market insights, competitor intelligence, strategic planning, major programs, business analysis�

Can you describe a typical work day? What was the last thing you worked on?

My typical workday would consist of analysing market information, drawing insights and creating informative presentations to be shared around the business regarding our strategy�

What are the career prospects with your job?

It’s a springboard which sets you up for roles in business analysis, strategy management and project management�

What do you love the most about your job? Which kind of task do you enjoy the most?

I love the creativity and challenges in my role� Every day is different, and every day I find myself learning something new about not only the industry, the business and people around me, but also something new about myself� I enjoy analysing, finding trends and presenting my findings to my stakeholders around me�

What’s the biggest limitation of your job? Do you bear a lot of responsibility?

There are times when a lot will happen within the span of an hour, with many moving parts in the business� But support within the team makes it less chaotic�

I believe that stress only comes from yourself; it’s the mindset that you’re ready for a challenge and ready to make a positive difference which is more important�

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student?

■ Always ask why� Challenge yourself and those around you� ■ Work hard in silence and let success be your noise� ■ Don’t give up if things don’t work out� You just haven’t found the right place yet�

Graduate name

Betty Huang studied a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Arts at UNSW and is now a graduate at Optus.

Study

Bachelor of Commerce/ Bachelor of Arts, UNSW, 2018

ROLE

Graduate, Optus

Don’t give up if things don’t work out. You just haven’t found the right place yet.

Day in the life

Bowei Liu

8.20 AM

Once I arrive at the office, I ensure all the applications I deployed last night are working� This includes Instrument File Manager, our app that manages instrument data� If there are any bugs, I work on a fix before the markets open� It is very important to make sure Instrument File Manager reflects all the changes made in the database so our traders can access and trade these new instruments� Today everything is working (relief!), so I go through the logs and make sure there are no critical alerts that should worry me�

9.30 AM

If there are no production issues, I’ll go to the kitchen and get some orange juice and bananas for breakfast� While enjoying my breakfast, I also take in the 360-degree view of Sydney from our kitchen – it never gets old!

10.00 AM

With the production issues out of the way, it’s time to start on my programming tasks� SIG enables graduate developers to have a voice on the planning and business impact of projects� My thoughts and opinions are valued as much as the senior members of the team� If I have any questions or see problems in our code base or project requirements, my team lead makes it easy for me to voice my concerns and then directs me towards a solution� My team lead has taught me a lot about how to design high-performance serverclient architecture that can handle large amounts of live data� I can already see how much I’m applying it to my next application�

12.30 PM

Lunchtime! SIG provides lunch and the menu changes daily� If there’s fried chicken on the menu,

Bowei Liu studied a Bachelor of Computer Engineering (Hons) and is a graduate trading software developer in the tactical team at SIG.

I try to get there early as it is a popular dish� Lunchtime is a great chance to have some interesting conversations with my colleagues about a variety of topics such as the news, poker or work�

1.00 PM

After eating, I’ll continue with the programming work� We use Kanban boards to keep track of

our progress, in order to make sure our work can achieve the business goals� In addition to larger projects, I’m responsible for solving any production issues throughout the day, as well as writing scripts based on the needs of traders and researchers� Today I’m working on a script to gather data used by traders in order to analyse market trends�

2.00 PM

On Tuesdays and Fridays, it’s time for our stand-up team meeting� Every team member will discuss their progress and plan for the remainder of the week� The team meeting provides us with a platform where we can share new technologies between team members� You can pick up a lot in a team meeting! I’ve learned about specifics like protocol buffers (a method of serialising structured data efficiently) and entity framework, as well as larger concepts like the purpose and variety of our internal applications�

2.30–5.00 PM

If my team lead is free, at this time we’ll usually sit down together and review my work� It’s a good opportunity to learn and improve software development skills from someone more experienced� After all the production issues have been solved, I am able to focus on my larger development projects, which are typically done in C#�

My technical skills have grown a lot since leaving university� At school you work on stand-alone assignments, whereas at SIG I am working in a large code base with complicated requirements and multiple dependencies, in order to solve problems that have direct impact on the business� I’m currently working on the internal alert manager – an application with client and server architecture that enables users to view and acknowledge alerts sent by different applications running in-house� Due to the large volume of data flowing through the SIG office every day, the alert manager is responsible for handling high volumes of live data without affecting the application performance. It’s the first time I have had to actually think about software scalability and conduct

a lot of research and experiments to get it right� It’s been a great opportunity for me to learn about software architecture design�

5.00 PM

Before I leave for the day, I’ll deploy my code into production (if it’s ready)� This process includes software deployment, raising JIRA tickets and restarting the application� I’ll make sure the application can be successfully restarted before finishing.

5.30 PM

If everything goes well, I like to end my day with an office poker game! If I can’t find one already happening, I’ll arrange one myself� We have a very strong poker culture and there are a number of very talented poker players at SIG, including World Series Of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winners� Poker gives me the chance to put my decision-making and quantitative thinking to the test� I have even used the poker knowledge I learnt from SIG and ranked 59/1147 in one of the major WSOP events hosted in Sydney�

On the job

What does your employer do?

We do analytics, data science and machine learning� As part of consulting, I’m responsible to customers for providing accurate, advisory support and building analytical solutions that help them run their business� I’m also responsible for leading and educating them in new technology and techniques, for example neural networks or Internet of things!

Can you describe a typical day?

A typical day would be working on different projects while communicating with international colleagues in different regions of the world� I have the freedom to accomplish tasks I’ve set for myself or tasks I’ve received from colleagues� I can reach out for support at any time and others reach out to me too, so we can share knowledge�

I’ve recently worked on building a text analytics use case for a utility company, scraping tweets about a certain topic and performing natural language processing to extract topics, categories and concepts� I then take these text features and augment them with geo-data so I can visualise them on dashboards for further analysis� This is powered by neural networks – I’m basically teaching an AI how to read tweets!

What are the career prospects?

The career prospects are surprisingly broad and SAS gives you freedom in choosing where and how you want to proceed� Want to become a docker/Kubernetes guru? Or maybe a data scientist, cloud specialist or fraud expert? As for me, I’ll be doing Internet of things and machine learning!

What do you love about your job?

I love that I’m on the cutting edge of technology and constantly doing cool stuff I’ve only read about in tech news� Solving problems by constantly learning and adapting is the bread and butter of engineers!

Is your job stressful?

It can be stressful and scary when talking to customers, because I always imagine them to be magnitudes smarter than me, but that’s part of my responsibility; being confident in the advisory service I provide them, in the area of my expertise� The biggest limitation for me would be having to wait for projects related to me to pop up, so I can really dig into some real-world problems�

One special thing about SAS is how we value work-life balance and take it seriously� It’s reassuring to see nearly all of my colleagues pack up and go home at 5�00 pm�

What three pieces of advice would you give to a student?

■ Be open to new ideas from different disciplines� You will be working with people from many backgrounds, all of whom will approach problems with different strategies� Every education path has strengths and shortcomings: you won’t have all the answers! ■ Diversify yourself and allow personal experimentation and flexibility. Refuse to conform to stereotypes or expectations: go against the grain and be unique� ■ Always ask, ‘Why are we doing this?’ and ‘Can we do this better?’ Don’t be afraid to challenge and innovate�

Andrew Gu

Andrew Gu studied a Bachelor of Renewable Energy Engineering/Bachelor of Arts (German) and is an associate pre/post-sales systems engineer at SAS.

Study

Bachelor of Renewable Energy Engineering/ Bachelor of Arts (German), University of New South Wales, 2019

ROLE

Associate pre/post-sales systems engineer, SAS

I’m basically teaching an AI how to read tweets!

On the job

What does your employer do?

TechnologyOne is Australia’s largest enterprise software as a service (SaaS) company. With offices across six countries, TechnologyOne caters to over 1,200 leading corporations in the industry markets we serve�

What’s your job title?

Graduate solutions architect�

What are your areas of responsibility?

The responsibilities of the solutions team in research and development (R&D) include acting as a conduit between the consulting and R&D product teams, as well as working with R&D product teams to enhance product functionality� The goal of solutions is to create shipped configuration templates for our Ci Anywhere platform, based on industry needs, that can be provided to our customers to help streamline implementation�

What are the career prospects with your job?

One of the best things about TechnologyOne is the opportunity for both horizontal and vertical growth� If there is a role in the organisation that interests you, TechnologyOne is happy to help you get the skills you need to get to the place you want to be�

In terms of horizontal growth, the solutions team works with many parts of the organisation, so this has been a great way to see what the role of business analyst, project manager and consultant are like in the organisation�

Within solutions there are also many prospects for vertical growth; once my time as a graduate finishes, my role will change to solution architect and my responsibilities will increase� Further opportunities include becoming a solution architect lead, taking care of a specific product with a sub-team of solution architects�

What do you love most about your job?

I find TechnologyOne to be an enjoyable and creative place to work� I love the collaborative culture and the willingness of people around you to lend a hand� I feel valued and enjoy the opportunities we have to participate in the many fun events held by the company� In my work, I’ve found creating templates and configuring software to be fulfilling, as I know the work I’m contributing to will be a great help for our customers and consultants�

What’s the biggest limitation?

The biggest limitation has been the steep learning curve� There has been a lot to learn about the software we provide, along with how local governments operate; understanding such a large and vastly differing industry, as well as the massive and complex product, takes time and patience� I’ve been grateful to have a strong support network, with the members in my team acting as mentors, sharing their extensive knowledge and guiding my work�

What advice would you give to a current student?

Don’t be afraid to ask for help� It’s very daunting starting a new job and wanting to make a good impression� I’ve discovered that when there is a lot to get your head around, the sooner you can overcome the fear of asking ‘silly’ questions, the faster you progress�

Victoria Holm

Victoria Holm studied a Bachelor of Business Management/Bachelor of Information Systems and is a graduate solutions architect at TechnologyOne.

Study

Bachelor of Business Management/Bachelor of Information Systems, Queensland University of Technology, 2018

ROLE

Graduate solutions architect, TechnologyOne

One of the best things about TechnologyOne is the opportunity for both horizontal and vertical growth.

On the job

Daniel Gibson

What’s your name and job title?

Daniel Gibson, graduate consultant developer�

What does your employer do?

We’re in consulting� ThoughtWorks is a premium software delivery partner� We build custom web solutions and applications for clients, using agile practices�

How did you get to your current job position?

I joined ThoughtWorks as a CareerTrackers intern in 2015 and since then have returned in my semester breaks for further experience� Throughout my internships I learnt about ThoughtWorks as a business, different tech stacks, clients and met lots of ThoughtWorkers along the way� Upon graduation I joined the graduate program in 2019�

What are your areas of responsibility?

This varies from project to project� As a consultant developer my role on a project will differ based on scope and requirements� For example, in my first project I was in charge of product quality where I conducted testing for the application and fixed bugs alongside other developers� Currently in my new project I’m building backend systems for a client�

What are the career prospects with your job?

ThoughtWorks doesn’t have set career pathways – graduates are able to obtain a broad understanding of technologies through training and project experience� I’m still in the early stages of my career, so having the ability to explore and learn is important to me� I have an interest in infrastructure, so there are opportunities for me to work in this space within projects� We also have individual training budgets and training leave, which means I can attend relevant conferences, enrol in courses and be certified in areas that are of interest to me and beneficial in my career�

What do you love the most about your job?

The flexibility and culture. ThoughtWorks’ environment gives me the freedom and opportunity to really learn and develop; there’s no hierarchical structure�

The task I enjoy most is the opportunity to pair program with senior developers� The amount I learn in one day is significantly higher than in other environments� I’ve also had the opportunity to pair with my peers, which reinforces my knowledge and is a valuable experience in itself�

What’s the biggest limitation of your job? Are the stress levels high?

As a consultancy we have set deliverables and timelines with clients� The tasks and projects (or time spent working on them) may not necessarily align with my interests at the time, but the ability to continuously learn within a team environment is invaluable�

Stress levels come and go with project deadlines� You’re never alone though; projects are done within a team environment so we’re all in it together�

What advice would you give to a current university student?

■ Obtain work experience in an area that’s of interest to you� My internships solidified my career path decision� ■ Everyone has their own journey and university isn’t the end� There are many options if one path doesn’t work out�

Daniel Gibson studied a Bachelor of Information Technology and is a graduate consultant developer at ThoughtWorks.

Study

Bachelor of Information Technology, University of Wollongong, 2018

ROLE

Graduate consultant developer, ThoughtWorks

We also have individual training budgets and training leave, which means I can attend relevant conferences, enrol in courses and be certified in areas that are of interest to me.

Telecommunications

Overview

The Australian telecommunications industry has a long history that has been shaped by the vast size of the continent, as well as its distance from Europe and Asia. The country’s first telco grid – a network of telegraph cables connecting Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney and Tasmania – was completed by 1859� One hundred years later, the telephone and radio had created a new, more easily used network and by the 2000s the telecommunications industry was again reshaped by the emergence of widespread internet usage�

Now, with many internet users regularly sharing content they’ve created themselves, the modern telecommunications system – which includes home phone, mobile phone, internet and satellite services – is indispensable, with telco companies keeping more than 18 million Australians connected to each other and to the world�

What’s involved?

The telco industry is broadly concerned with connecting new customers to existing networks while upgrading communications capabilities via largescale projects, such as the replacement of ageing copper wires with superior fibre optic lines.

Careers in the telco industry are split into four broad categories, the largest of which includes occupations related to the installation, repair and maintenance of telecommunications equipment� Workers in this category are responsible for phone exchanges, cables and access lines, consumer communication devices and telecommunications systems�

The second category includes office and administrative support occupations� Companies like Telstra, Optus and Vodafone employ thousands of staff members whose job it is to assist customers by resolving problems and providing product information� They also fill important financial, managerial and administrative positions�

The third category includes the telco industry’s professional occupations. Here you’ll find the engineers who design cable routes, plan the expansion of existing infrastructure and assist customers with custom installations� Most telecommunications engineers inevitably specialise in areas such as the design of communications systems, the integration of communications equipment with computer networks or the use of lasers to send fast signals across fiber optic cables� Computer engineers play an important role in maintaining the hardware and software systems that underlie modern telecommunications�

Finally, the telecommunications industry employs many people in sales-focused roles� They aim to promote different services – such as residential phone lines and ADSL packages – while also selling physical products such as new phones, modems and other equipment�

Where do people in this sector work?

People in the telecommunications sector work everywhere, from regional towns to capital cities� Most administrative, support and sales staff are based in cities and larger towns, where there is a large enough market to support an office or retail store. Similarly, senior managerial staff will usually work out of a company headquarters in a capital city� By contrast, engineers are more likely to travel while responding to maintenance needs, unless they’re focused on research and development in a fixed location.

Entering the telecommunications sector

To enter the telecommunications sector, you must first meet the degree requirements of the position you’d like to pursue� For technical positions, a general engineering background is usually expected, though a focus on certain specialities, such as electrical engineering or computer engineering, may be advantageous� Administrative and managerial positions are often easier to apply for if you have a background in finance, business or commerce.

Several of Australia’s major consumer telecommunications organisations, such as Telstra and Optus, have dedicated graduate programs, as do other industry leaders, including Skype�

Alternatively, you might consider working for a smaller telco company, a start-up or a related government agency, such as the Australian Communications and Media Authority� Graduate entry programs for most positions open at the beginning of the year and close in May�

Telstra graduates will work in an environment that’s embracing new ways of working like Agile, DevOps, Human Centred Design and Lean.

Career prospects

The size of the major telecommunications organisations means that most entry-level positions come with various opportunities for career advancement� For example, as an engineering graduate, you might aim to run a regional team, lead a research and development unit or focus on a technology of special interest� Alternatively, as a business-focused graduate, you could aim for upper managerial positions or career advancement opportunities abroad�

Whatever your stream, you stand to benefit from the industry’s overall growth� With internet usage at the heart of modern business and more people connected than ever before, the telecommunications sector is expected to grow by leaps and bounds over the coming years�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

Many technical positions in the telecommunications industry require you to possess a specific STEM degree� For example, a background in engineering is mandatory if you wish to play a significant or supervisory role in the implementation, development or maintenance of new equipment� However, other STEM degrees still work well if you wish to pursue roles with less specific requirements.

For instance, a background in chemistry, with its emphasis on patiently solving problems, prepares graduates well for the solutions-focused nature of, say, telecommunications consulting� Similarly, the generic skills gained from a biology degree – highly developed written and verbal communication skills, for instance – could be emphasised in a way that strengthens a graduate’s application to managerial or administrative roles�

Average salary

Graduate salaries at major telecommunications organisations like Telstra and Optus range from $55,000 to $70,000 (depending on the position filled). Later salary increases are based on one’s career path, with the range of roles in this sector making it possible to pursue much higher remuneration�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Data science

Learn more

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Software engineering

Actuarial science

Statistics

Mathematics

Computer systems and networks

Electrical engineering

Mechanical engineering

Robotics and mechatronics engineering page 68

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Transport and logistics

Overview

The transport and logistics sector is concerned with moving things as efficiently as possible from A to B� However, as you will see below, this is no straightforward process, even when it comes to the transportation of regular items� The Australian transport and logistics industry currently employs some 1�2 million people and accounts for about 10 per cent of GDP�

What’s involved?

Common careers in the transport and logistics sector include data analyst, consultant, supply-chain manager, procurement officer and logistics manager. The sector also contains roles related to information technology, business management, engineering and statistics�

Together, these professionals work for various types of business, including freight companies, which manage the transportation required to shift goods around; distribution companies, which help businesses move their goods from the site of manufacture to the marketplace; and supply chain and logistics companies, which take a holistic view of the process whereby products are connected with consumers, and look for ways to make this more efficient, profitable and manageable� Specialty areas in this sector include distribution logistics, which focuses on getting goods to customers; disposal logistics, which deals with the transportation of waste; and, increasingly, digital logistics, which aims to improve efficiency using computer software and automation�

The transportation and logistics sector is particularly important in Australia, because as isolated as it is from key international markets, Australia must maintain efficient domestic supply chains if it is to compete on a global scale�

Where do people in this sector work?

The transport and logistics sector is geographically dispersed in a way that reflects the often immense distances between Australian importers, manufacturers, wholesalers, suppliers, businesses and consumers� Road freight accounts for around 75 per cent of the goods transported inside Australia, with logistics companies relying on a network of road and rail routes that link various warehouses�

Given the globalised nature of many supply chains, this is a sector in which many employees can expect to travel regularly and work unusual hours (especially when liaising with stakeholders in different time zones)�

DHL graduates join a team driven by delivering excellence every day.

As a Toll graduate, you will participate in a structured two-year program moving through key areas of the business including our global logistics, global forwarding and global express divisions.

Given the globalised nature of many supply chains, this is a sector in which many employees can expect to travel regularly.

Some of the largest employers in this sector include Toll Group, Linfox Australia, Australia Post, Swire and DHL Supply Chain�

Entering the transport and logistics sector

Employers in the transport and logistics sector tend not to select graduates from any particular discipline (the exception would be for graduates who have completed one of the relatively uncommon Bachelor of Supply Management/Logistics degrees)�

Some of the larger companies, such as DHL and Linfox, have dedicated graduate programs� Linfox, for example, offers a ‘24-month development program that involves a comprehensive induction and sixmonth rotations at various Linfox sites across Australia and New Zealand�’ Many other roles in the transport and logistics sector can be pursued via direct application�

Career prospects

The size of the Australian transport and logistics industry is set to triple by 2050, especially as more and more regional centres become connected to our urban capitals� The way the industry works is also changing as new technologies (like drones) and foreign retailers with superior supply chain expertise force Australian businesses to be more competitive and creative�

How can I take advantage of my STEM background?

Many of the generic skills developed during a STEM degree are invaluable in the transport and logistics sector� These include creative thinking, the ability to manage complex processes and a high degree of attention to detail� Transport and logistics companies also employ engineers, data analysts and programmers for a range of purposes�

Popular degrees sought by this industry

Mechanical engineering

Learn more

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Civil engineering

Environmental engineering

Robotics and mechatronics engineering

Environmental science

Computer systems and networks

Data science

Electrical engineering

Software engineering

Materials engineering

Cybersecurity page 24

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On the job

Hayley Whitehead

Can you tell us about Jetstar and its graduate program?

Jetstar is a low-cost carrier that aims to offer low airfares to make flight accessible to more people, more often�

The Jetstar Graduate Program is a generalist program� You are rotated into various teams doing various roles on a whole range of topics within the airline industry� The graduates come from a diverse background: multiple engineering fields, finance, business, aviation management, marketing, people management and more!

Currently in the engineering team, we work across a range of things� Lately I’ve been working on bringing new aircraft into the fleet and all that entails, as well as a project to install some additional cockpit technology�

What was your interview process like?

I recall the assessment centre being the least stressful and most comfortable assessment centre I attended whilst searching for a graduate position� Everyone was very friendly and the previous graduates were there to chat and answer questions – it wasn’t intimidating�

There was a period with one-on-one discussion (more interview style) and we talked about how I dealt with problem solving and difficult situations� We also talked about topics outside of work on a more personal level�

Can you describe a typical work day?

I wouldn’t say there’s a ‘typical’ work day as anything can happen, and reprioritisation happens often� I like to come in early to avoid the packed trains� I get a cup of tea, read any new emails and check my calendar to make sure I’m prepared for any meetings coming� I tend to have a quick meeting with my manager in the morning to go over any complications/issues or areas that need clarification. The day can go anywhere from here: meetings, workshops, emails, discussions, analysis and so forth�

What are the career prospects with your job?

Ideally, the program will lead to a role within Jetstar� The program gives you a broad understanding of how the business works and helps build a strong network of connections�

What do you love about your job?

I love going out to the airport and getting on a plane� It always feels special even if you’re not actually going anywhere� Getting to sit in the jumpseat during flight is pretty special too – and a great opportunity to see the pilots in action�

Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Are the stress levels high?

Stress can be raised when there are important deadlines or when you’re juggling too many things at once� In my experience, the responsibility that you bear is up to you� If you want to get the most out of your time at Jetstar, take on as much as you can handle responsibly�

What advice would you give to students?

Don’t underestimate yourself or your capacity� Everyone was a student once� If you don’t know something, be open about it and ask questions� Getting clarification shows maturity.

Hayley Whitehead studied a Bachelor of Engineering (Advanced Manufacturing and Mechatronics) (Hons) and works in engineering support at Jetstar.

Study

Bachelor of Engineering (Advanced Manufacturing and Mechatronics) (Hons), RMIT University, 2016

ROLE

Jetstar Group engineering support, Jetstar

If you want to get the most out of your time at Jetstar, take on as much as you can handle responsibly.

THE BEST GRADUATE JOBS, INTERNSHIPS & GRADUATE PROGRAMS IN AUSTRALIA

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Chapter 3 Women in STEM

Women in STEM�������������������������������������������������������������� 280

Women in STEM

Introduction

One needn’t look very far for evidence of the groundbreaking contributions made to various STEM fields by talented women. Some of the more famous examples in research include:

Marie Curie, whose pioneering research into radioactivity won her the Nobel Prize twice� Rosalind Franklin, an English chemist who made vital contributions to our understanding of the structure of the human genome (and was, according to many, robbed of a Nobel Prize for her efforts)� Dorothy Hodgkin, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing protein crystallography� Chieng-Shiung Wu, who led groundbreaking research in nuclear physics and became the first recipient of the Wolf Prize� Dame Jocelyn Burnell, an astrophysicist credited with the discovery of radio pulsars� Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, whose astounding joint work on CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology has established them as two of today’s most celebrated biochemists� Elizabeth Blackburn, a Tasmanian-born biologist, who received the Nobel Prize for her co-discovery of telomerase, an enzyme implicated in cellular aging�

And outside of research:

Peggy Johnson, an electrical engineer who is now Microsoft’s Executive Vice President of Business Development� Indra Nooyi, a physicist and chemist who went on to become the CEO of PepsiCo� Angela Merkel, who completed a PhD in quantum chemistry before entering German politics�

Despite the obvious contributions of STEM-trained women to research and industry, gender inequity within STEM remains a pervasive issue� Worse, this inequity has an effect on women and girls of all ages� For example, according to research performed by Donna Farland Smith, if you take a group of primary school aged students – be they Greek, Australian, Chinese or American – and ask them to draw a scientist, between 65 per cent and 78 per cent of them will draw a male every time� Moreover, most recent figures reported by the Australian Government show adult women occupying fewer than one in five senior positions in Australian universities and research institutes, and one in four positions within the overall STEM workforce�

In this section of the STEM guide, we consider three myths that surround women in STEM, briefly survey the effects those myths can have on women at all stages of their life, and then turn our attention to what this means for graduates today, with a particular focus on programs designed to support women as they enter STEM careers (you can skip ahead to this section if you’re already convinced that women in STEM face unique obstacles)�

Three myths holding women back in STEM areas

There are multiple reasons for the historical underrepresentation of women in STEM areas, ranging from entrenched cultural attitudes (for example, the belief that women are better suited to interpersonal roles) to systemic issues, such as the impact of discriminatory practices in professional and academic settings. The three influential ‘myths’ below confirm the challenges facing women in STEM, while underscoring the importance of programs designed to boost female representation in STEM areas�

Myth: There is a relationship between gender and mathematical ability Fact: Girls and boys are equally competent at maths – there is no evidence of inherent superiority one way or the other.

According to an OECD report, Australian girls are less confident when it comes to maths, while boys are more confident. However, a Psychological Bulletin metaanalysis of more than 240 studies published between 1990 and 2007 shows no statistically significant difference in mathematics performance when boys and girls are given the same standardised tests�

Evolutionary biologist and behavioural ecologist Shinichi Nakagawa co-developed this meta-analysis to test for variations between groups� He and his colleagues used a sample of 1�5 million students across English speaking countries worldwide� STEM grades for boys were found to have 7�6 per cent higher variance, but this isn’t enough to upset the average� In a simulated classroom featuring the top 10 per cent of STEM students, boys and girls would be evenly distributed�

Nakagawa’s team also found girls to have 7�8 per cent higher average grades and 13�8 per cent less grade variability in non-STEM subjects� This suggests some girls may be discounting STEM, even if they’re good at it, because they see themselves as better at other things� However, opening one door doesn’t close another� If you’re good at STEM, it’s worth considering on its own merits�

Myth: Men and women in STEM now receive equal pay for equal work Fact: Women continue to earn less than men who occupy identical roles

Pay inequality remains a pervasive issue in Australia� Currently, the national gender pay gap, as measured by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, is 13�9 per cent� For the past two decades, it has hovered between 14 per cent and 19 per cent� The gender pay gap is higher among managers (25�1 per cent) than non-managers (18�5 per cent)� When comparing the percentage of STEM graduates in the highest income bracket, reports the Office of the Chief Scientists, 32 per cent of males earn above $104,000, compared with just 12 per cent of females�

Importantly, a marked disparity remains even once one has accounted for the higher proportion of women who work part time; whether or not one has children; and one’s highest educational attainment�

Myth: The battle for gender equality in STEM disciplines is over Fact: Much work remains to be done before women are equally involved in STEM areas and fairly recognised for their contributions.

According to recent data from the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources, women make up only 17 per cent of the entire population of STEMqualified individuals and only 14.5 per cent of all STEM professors. This, of course, has been influenced by high attrition rates, job insecurity and limited career prospects�

Furthermore, having embarked on a STEM career, women may also face sexual harassment and the effects of conscious and unconscious bias� For example, in one study performed by Corinne MossRacusin, researchers presented employers with identical resumes to which male or female names had been assigned at random� Employers tended to rate the ‘male’ applicants as more competent and offered them higher salaries�

What do the three myths above mean in practice?

Cultural, social, educational and professional barriers to women’s participation in STEM have ongoing consequences for women throughout their lives�

Primary school

As described above, by age nine, girls and boys are more likely to draw a man when asked to draw a scientist� Furthermore, though girls in grade four perform equally well in standardised maths tests, only one third are confident of their maths abilities (compared to 44 per cent of boys)�

Secondary school

The Officer of the Chief Scientist reports that, at the age of fifteen, girls are more likely than boys to believe mathematical skills will not help them with later study

Nuramalia Isnin is a HSE graduate at Monadelphous. She is supporting the sustaining capital team, which is one of the business units for its maintenance and industrial services north west division.

or getting a job� By year twelve, boys outnumber girls 3:1 in physics and 1�9:1 in advanced maths�

University

The Office of the Chief Scientist also shows that by the time they reach university, women are vastly outnumbered in most STEM areas� When it comes to the attainment of bachelor degrees, they account for only 13 per cent of IT graduates; 14 per cent of engineering graduates; 22 per cent of physics and astronomy graduates; 33 per cent of maths graduates; 36 per cent of earth sciences graduates; and 42 per cent of chemistry graduates� Women slightly outnumber men in agriculture (51 per cent) and biology (59 per cent); in non-STEM areas, they account for 65 per cent of all completed bachelor degrees�

The workforce

Female STEM graduates who enter the workforce face continued inequality, with STEM employers remaining less likely to employ women� The least inclusive industries are construction and transport, where the proportion of female graduates is 12 per cent and 15 per cent respectively� Women fare better in education and healthcare, where the proportion of female graduates is 41 per cent and 60 per cent respectively� Women who remain in academia must contend with systemic challenges of their own: only 14�5 per cent of STEM professors are female, even though females make up around 40 per cent of junior STEM academics�

Why is it important to increase the representation of women in STEM areas?

Gender inequality in STEM is not just a problem for women – it’s something that should concern all of us, for moral, civic, cultural and even economic reasons� Why? We’ll let you be the judge�

Below is a collection of statements from a variety of influential organisations who advocate for more diverse representation in STEM today�

‘Studies show that women researchers are squeezed out of science careers by structural barriers� The loss of such expertise is a significant waste of knowledge, talent and investment� Gender equity and gender diversity impact our nation’s scientific performance and productivity�’ – Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE)

‘Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) offer the opportunity to engage in some of the most exciting realms of discovery and technological innovation� Increasing opportunities for women in these fields is essential to our economy and to the achievement of gender equality� By attracting and retaining more women in the STEM workforce we will maximize innovation, creativity and competitiveness.’ – Office for Women, Government of South Australia ‘STEM skills are critical to the management and success of R&D projects as well as the day-to-day operations of competitive firms. [...] An education in STEM also fosters a range of generic and quantitative skills and ways of thinking that enable individuals to see and grasp opportunities� These capabilities – including deep knowledge of a subject, creativity, problem solving, critical thinking and communication skills – are relevant to an increasingly wide range of occupations� They will be part of the foundation of adaptive and nimble workplaces of the future�’ – Australia’s Chief Scientist, 2014

‘Attracting and retaining more women in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce will maximize innovation, creativity, and competitiveness� Scientists and engineers are working to solve some of the most difficult challenges of our time and engineers design many of the things we use daily� When women are not involved in science and engineering, experiences, needs and desires that are unique to women may be overlooked�’ – Nature Education

So… I’m a female graduate hoping to embark on a career in a STEM-related field. What’s the good news?

If you’ve read up to this point, you may be feeling discouraged – after all, you probably already know much remains to be done if women are to achieve equity in professional and academic STEM areas� But what about solutions to this problem?

Fortunately, the increased attention given to gender inequity in STEM has sparked some promising developments� Two guiding frameworks were released in 2019, outlining the government and industry’s commitment to improving representation and equity for women in STEM in Australia� These are the Women in STEM Decadal Plan, developed by the Australian Academy of Science and the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering; and the Australian Government’s Advancing Women in STEM strategy� The strategy’s 2020 Action Plan offers a promising start, with action areas listed as:

Enabling STEM potential through education Supporting women in STEM careers Making women in STEM visible�

These frameworks add to existing initiatives including Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) and the STEM Male Champions of Change�

The need for support within STEM industries has also led to changes within the business community, with companies like Boston Consulting Group, PwC and Deloitte enacting policies and programs designed specifically to empower female employees. Be sure to ask about similar initiatives as you make your way through graduate interviews�

John Holland’s CEO said that promoting gender balance and female participation and inclusion at John Holland is an essential prerequisite for the business to achieve its strategic growth plans.

Of course, as noted above, much remains to be done in pursuing gender equity within STEM� However, the progress so far has been encouraging� Below, you will find some of the resources now available due to this ongoing shift towards increased diversity and equity�

Support and advocacy groups

BPW Australia

BPW is a lobbying and advocacy group that focuses on issues that affect working women in Australia� In addition to its activism work, BPW offers grants, a mentoring program and various networking events�

bpw.com.au

Professionals Australia

Professionals Australia is a member’s organisation that advocates for the interests of all Australians in professional occupations� Through its gender and diversity division, Professionals Australia provides practical support to professionals facing a range of employment issues� This includes assistance negotiating pay; advice on wages, rights, career progressions and other aspects of professional life; contract reviews; and events designed to bring together like-minded individuals�

professionalsaustralia.org.au/ professional-women

SAGE

Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) is a government-funded advocacy group that aims to improve gender equity in the sciences through a program of activities designed to support women in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine� As an intersectional organisation, SAGE also aims to support transgender, indigenous and LGBTQI+ individuals in STEM, as well as individuals who belong to ethnic or racial minorities�

sciencegenderequity.org.au

Women in Engineering

A branch of Engineers Australia, Women in Engineering funds a range of initiatives designed to support working female engineers with continuing professional education, career progression and more�

engineersaustralia.org.au/Communities-AndGroups/Special-Interest-Groups/Women-InEngineering

Association for Women in Science (AWIS)

AWIS is a global representative body for women in all STEM disciplines� In addition to organising networking events and providing various resources for women in STEM, AWIS maintains a strong commitment to advocacy work� It aims to promote diversity while creating ‘inclusive, fiscally responsive systems to drive research excellence, feed long-term growth and fuel innovative solutions to the global challenges facing all our citizens’�

awis.org

Women and Leadership Australia (WLA)

WLA focuses primarily on equipping female professionals across all disciplines with the leadership and business skills they’ll need to succeed in their careers� It runs various conferences and symposia and also offers funded places for earlycareer women who wish to take advantage of its courses in leadership and management�

Grants for women

For Women in Science

Sponsored by L’Oreal, the ‘For Women in Science’ grant recognises four Australian women and one woman from New Zealand each year, providing successful academic scholarship that recognises ‘academic

applicants with $25,000 to support their careers in science�

forwomeninscience.com.au

Superstars of STEM

Awarded each year, the Superstars of STEM program aims to support up-and-coming female scientists with the goal of creating role models for younger women and girls who might be considering a STEM career� Successful applicants are able to access a range careers�

of mentoring and educational workshops and also commit to visiting three to five Australian high schools to inspire young students�

scienceandtechnologyaustralia.org.au/ what-we-do/superstars-of-stem

Women Techmakers Scholars

Funded by Google, the Women Techmakers Scholars programs aim to identify female undergraduates and technology� Successful applicants receive an performance, leadership and impact on the community of women in tech’� They are also invited to participate in retreats, mentoring programs and other initiatives�

womentechmakers.com

Mentoring Programs

Franklin Women Mentoring Program

The Franklin Women Mentoring program is aimed at female health and medical researchers, providing them with six months of professional and academic support�

franklinwomen.com.au/mentoring

Mentor Walks Australia

An informal gathering for female professionals, Mentor Walks Australia fosters cross-organisational connections between women at all stages of their and graduates who excel in the fields of computing

mentorwalks.com.au

On the job

What does your employer do?

TechnologyOne is a software company that focuses on software as a service (SaaS) enterprise software that transforms the way businesses are run� TechnologyOne is also a vendor that develops, sells, implements, supports and runs a fully integrated suite of enterprise software solutions all under one roof� It services eight key markets: local government, government, education, financial services, health and community services, asset intensive industries, project intensive industries, and corporates�

What are your areas of responsibility?

As a graduate developer, my responsibilities lie in creating elegant code to develop new features relating to property and rating (government-based) applications and bug fixes. I also develop technical solutions in design sessions alongside business analysts, product architects, product managers and senior developers� I participate in daily stand-ups, sprint planning sessions and internal product showcases�

I love how I am able to work collaboratively and also autonomously in my role� Typically, software development is done on your own, however through design sessions I am able to participate in collaborative discussions between multiple roles within the company� This allows me to understand varying perspectives and ideas, helping me get a better understanding of the product, the market my application is for and improve my technical skills� Honestly, the sky’s the limit at TechnologyOne�

Sandra Finow

Sandra Finow studied a Bachelor of Business (Business Management)/Bachelor of Information Technology (Computer Science) and is a graduate developer at TechnologyOne.

On the job

Eromanga Adermann

What is your current role?

I’m currently a consultant in the insights and data service line, specifically in the artificial intelligence engineering capability�

How have your studies helped you in your work?

I have a Bachelor of Science (Advanced Mathematics) and a PhD in Cosmology and Astrophysics� I studied to become a research scientist, which perhaps unsurprisingly, requires skills that are great to have in consulting� My science degrees helped me develop critical thinking and analytical skills that are needed to deconstruct and reframe problems, as well as creative thinking skills, which are required to produce innovative solutions to hard problems� I also learned to code during my studies, which has opened the door to the AI space for me�

What are you passionate about in your role?

I love the process of solving problems� There is a nice feeling of satisfaction that comes with finishing a project or challenging task! I also love helping people in some way, so if my work has made things easier or in other ways benefited them, then it makes me happy� Additionally, I love exploring the possibilities of how technology will evolve and imagining what the future could be like, and in my role I get to be in the thick of cuttingedge technology� I’ve been able to develop skills in areas of interest to me, specifically in automation, data science and AI�

How would you describe the culture at Capgemini?

I love the culture here at Capgemini! It’s a wonderful mix of team spirit, fun and freedom� We work hard, but we make it enjoyable� All the graduates and grad alumni get together regularly for trivia nights, putt-putt, hot pot dinners and more� I think Capgemini has got the balance between work and play right! There is certainly an expectation that we put in our best effort at work, but everyone understands if we can’t be at work or if we have to leave early� There is also a lot of freedom to build your career� If you want to try out different types of work or move into a different capability, there are people who will help you do that� One of the most amazing things about Capgemini is that everyone is so friendly and supportive�

What has been your most empowering moment?

I think the most empowering moment so far was when I figured out how to automate a process that would save a lot of manual work� I started without the necessary expertise or experience for what I was doing and initially had very little faith that I could do it� I spent weeks on a learning curve while I tried to solve the multitude of problems that just kept popping up� It made me realise that we can solve so many problems if we just keep at it and don’t let our doubts get in the way�

What have you gained from working at Capgemini from a career perspective?

I have gained a far better understanding of the technology landscape and what the world could look like in the near future� I’ve also been able to develop skills in areas of interest to me, specifically in automation, data science, and AI� Non-career wise: The most valuable thing I have gained from working at Capgemini is life-long friendships�

Eromanga Adermann studied a Bachelor of Science (Advanced Mathematics) and Doctor of Philosophy in Cosmology and Astrophysics. Eromanga is an insights and data consultant in Artificial Intelligence Engineering at Capgemini.

Study

Bachelor of Science (Advanced Mathematics), Doctor of Philosophy in Cosmology and Astrophysics, University of Sydney, 2018

ROLE

Insights and data consultant, Artificial Intelligence Engineering, Capgemini

I love the culture here at Capgemini! It’s a wonderful mix of team spirit, fun and freedom.

On the job

Emily Bocking

What’s your name and job title?

Emily Bocking, IT graduate�

What does your employer do?

DHL is a third party logistics company that offers customised logistics and industry solutions� This includes the areas of supply chain management, warehousing and distribution�

What are your areas of responsibility?

As part of the DHL graduate program, every six months my role within IT changes and therefore so do my responsibilities� Recently I completed a rotation that had me working on IT products and solutions: more specifically, digitalisation� In this area I was working on improving the technology that our pickers use to do their jobs, which includes things such as voice picking�

Can you describe a typical work day?

Each day at work brings something different, so there is no truly typical work day for me� However, my morning normally starts with me coming into work, making myself a cup of tea and sitting down to read my emails to check what has to be done for the day� The last project I worked on was assisting in the implementation of new smart devices that are now being used on the floor in the warehouse. This involved customising applications to suit specific needs for our operations and also working on our new voice picking software�

What are the career prospects with your job?

There are so many different directions a job in IT can take, because there’s such a variety of things technology is capable of and used for� For example, you could become an IT solutions analyst or IT integrations analyst, move into IT infrastructure and service management, or into IT products and solutions� With some of these positions there’s also the possibility of working anywhere in the world� There are so many options that you’re bound to find a niche for yourself, doing something you enjoy, in a place you love�

What do you love most about your job?

I love that I get to work on different projects and that every day brings something new I can learn from� I love that I can actually help to further an operation and improve it� Diversity in the projects I am working on is important to me, to ensure I continue to enjoy coming to work every day�

What’s the biggest limitation of your job?

The only limitation I have come across in my time working for DHL is the lack of knowledge I have of some of the systems� As I am changing roles every six months this is a challenge I’ll continue to face, however this constant change keeps things fresh and interesting, rather than becoming stagnant�

The job can place a bit of pressure on a person sometimes, but it all depends on how you manage your time and organise yourself� You are always supported within the team to succeed�

Emily Bocking studied a Bachelor of Information and Communications Technology and is an IT graduate at DHL.

Study

Bachelor of Information and Communications Technology, University of Western Sydney, 2016

ROLE

IT graduate, DHL

There are so many options that you’re bound to find a niche for yourself, doing something you enjoy, in a place you love.

On the job

Dalzy Mendoza

Can you outline your journey to ThoughtWorks?

I moved from the Philippines to Australia for university and took my first part-time job as a mathematics and reading tutor in my first year. However, in my second year, I got caught up in extracurricular activities and stopped showing up for classes� Eventually, I found my way back and finished a year and a half later than my original graduation date� Having been delayed, I strived to be more active in my final year, so I joined hackathons and meetups, and became a demonstrator and tutor in the university� A friend of mine recommended me to a ThoughtWorks graduate recruiter and the recruiter then contacted me� I have now been in my current position for ten months�

How did you choose your specialisation?

As a graduate software developer, there isn’t an expectation yet to specialise� The type of project you get assigned to shapes which specific area you first get exposed to and learn in depth� However, if you do want to try out a different area, most graduate developers would start doing online courses on their own and have conversations with developers in those areas for guidance�

What was your interview process like?

It comprised of several stages: a take home coding assignment, code pairing session, behavioural interview and a short presentation on any topic I wanted� There were three problems to choose from for the coding assignment, and on the code pairing session I had to show my solution, explain how I did test-driven development and do a small improvement on the code whilst pairing with the interviewer� The behavioural interview spanned questions from being a team player to social causes I cared about�

What does your employer do?

ThoughtWorks is a software consultancy that enables core technology and digital services uplift to clients in different industries such as finance, healthcare and transport. Most engagements will be focused on software delivery while some will be on advisory�

What are your areas of responsibility?

I work as a developer in a delivery team that is comprised of both ThoughtWorkers and client developers� My primary area of responsibility is to develop quality software that aligns with the prioritised goals of the client� I need to be in constant communication with the team to surface any technical issues or roadblocks and ensure we are building one cohesive system�

What do you love most about your job?

Building things and incrementally adding to their functionality and value� I enjoy understanding how software systems work, how they’re connected and wired up, and how I could use that knowledge to implement what I need to do�

What are the challenges?

The vastness of software engineering makes it difficult. There can be internal pressure to do extra selfstudy due to how quickly technology changes�

Dalzy Mendoza studied a Bachelor of Science (Computing and Software Systems) and is a graduate developer consultant at ThoughtWorks.

Study

Bachelor of Science (Computing, Software Systems), University of Melbourne, 2018

ROLE

Graduate developer consultant, ThoughtWorks

The behavioural interview spanned questions from being a team player to social causes I cared about.

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Chapter 4 How to get hired

Specialist vs generalist �������������������������������������������������� 290

Five year checklist ���������������������������������������������������������� 293

Researching and choosing the right organisation ������� 294

Writing a CV and cover letter������������������������������������������ 296

Sample cover letter �������������������������������������������������������� 298

How to ace an interview ������������������������������������������������� 300

What to expect at an assessment centre ��������������������� 301

Getting an offer��������������������������������������������������������������� 302

Managing social media �������������������������������������������������� 303

Specialist vs generalist

Recognising the adaptability of a STEM degree

There is abundant evidence that STEM graduates find employment faster than their non-STEM counterparts and that once they’ve established a career, they earn a more competitive salary�

However, those aren’t the only reasons to study a STEM degree. In fact, a key benefit of studying a STEM degree are the transferable skills� While you may be inclined to overlook their value, these skills are highly sought after and greatly diversify the professional choices you can make as a graduate�

For example, even if a mechanical engineering graduate decides not to pursue a career in that field, they still possess mathematical reasoning skills, teamwork experience, programming know-how and so on� As such, they could reasonably consider pursuing an alternate career in finance, information technology, the public service or various other areas� Graduates of less specific STEM degrees – such as mathematics and physics – often find themselves in a similar position�

With this in mind, it’s helpful as you navigate the options available to you as a STEM graduate, to distinguish between specialist and generalist roles�

Specialist roles

Specialist roles require you to have developed certain technical or professional skills while working towards the completion of a specific degree.

Often, such degrees must be authorised by a trusted accrediting body, which reviews curricula and course outcomes to ensure that graduates will meet entry-level professional requirements� For example, Engineers Australia is the national accrediting body responsible for evaluating Australian engineering degrees� Examples of specialist roles include:

mechanical engineer actuary chemist pharmacist veterinarian microbiologist aeronautical engineer medical scientist

Generalist roles

Generalist roles require you to possess skills that, though often developed to a high level within STEM degrees, are not exclusive to STEM areas� Such skills include mathematical reasoning, problem solving, research, communication, methodical analysis and programming� Examples of generalist roles include:

financial modeller research analyst consultant sales professional business manager

Tips to help you decide between generalist and specialist roles

Ideally, by the time you’ve completed your degree, you’ll have a good sense of whether or not you’d like to pursue a specialist career or a more general alternative� Maybe you loved the things you studied and found your internship meaningful or exciting� Maybe you thought your degree was a total drag� Or maybe it was a bit of both, leaving you feeling uncertain as to which career you should pursue now that you’ve graduated�

Unfortunately, there’s no quick way to decide between the specialist and generalist paths� However, the tips below can help you consider your choices in a way that makes it more likely you’ll arrive at a satisfying decision�

Consider whether you’d prefer to be a subject matter expert or a jack of all trades.

In considering this choice it can be helpful to focus on the consequences of choosing to be a generalist instead of a specialist�

Is it important to me that I’m recognised as an expert? Are there desirable skills or professional experiences that won’t be available to me in a specialist role? Will I get bored if I’m focusing on the same challenges every day?

Be honest about your experiences so far

The ‘sunk cost fallacy’ describes our all-too-human tendency to avoid ‘wasting’ investments we’ve already

made, even if committing to them will lead to future losses� Try to avoid it when asking yourself candid questions�

Did I actually enjoy my studies? What about my industry experiences? Would putting into practice the skills I acquired as a student bring me satisfaction or enjoyment?

Beware of false dilemmas

It’s all too easy to forget about the diversity of experiences available within specialised professions or the possibility of integrating specialist skills into a general role� So don’t get caught up making an unnecessary choice� Instead, where appropriate, ask: why not both?

Can I combine my options to get the best of both worlds?

Know your options

Start with a list of all the obvious career choices before you; then force yourself to make it bigger� Make sure you haven’t excluded something that could offer excitement, fulfillment or excellent pay. Then, once you’ve identified all your options, narrow them back down to create a shortlist:

What would I do if my first choice weren’t an option? What would I do if money weren’t a consideration? What do my friends or family members think I’d be good at? Could I combine any of my choices?

Address the unknown

Don’t ignore any nagging unanswered questions� Write them down and then commit some time to researching the possible answers; you might be surprised about how it influences the decision you make�

Can I really get a specialist job in this field? Will I earn as much money if I don’t work as an engineer? Will I have a bigger impact on my community as a research biologist or as an employee of this non-profit organisation? Will I really enjoy being a web developer?

Be a scientist and test your hypotheses

It’s often said that you should trust your intuition and this is true enough – but that doesn’t mean you should trust your intuition alone� Instead, test your assumptions by accruing more knowledge and experience�

Is there a book I can read about this specialist/ generalist career to see if it interests me? Have I searched for any relevant online career reviews? Is it possible for me to ‘try out’ a career by working on a short project, volunteering, asking if I can shadow a current professional for a few days or something similar? Do I know anybody from the profession who will provide honest answers to my remaining questions?

Keep things in perspective

If you’re truly stumped, it can be helpful to remember that the majority of people do change their careers; that switching professions, while occasionally difficult, is not impossible; and that you’re only choosing your first career path, not necessarily the path you’ll take for the rest of your life�

So aim to make the best decision based on the information you have, even if it’s imperfect or leaves you still feeling a little uncertain� New information will help you make more informed choices in the future about whether your career requires a minor course correction or a completely new approach�

Is one of my options more ‘reversible’ than the other? If I choose a generalist role now, will it be harder to move into a specialist role later? What if my hard work actually pays off? What if, in a month’s time, I’m surprised by how certain I feel that I’ve made the right decision?

Chemistry students working in a laboratory at the Curtin Perth campus.

Job-readiness checklist

Applying for graduate jobs can be a long and arduous process� Applications usually involve multiple steps, beginning with an online application and followed by interviews, assessment centres and testing� It’s a competitive process and it pays to plan ahead� Even if you are still in the early stages of your degree, there are things you can do now that will make it much easier to succeed professionally later on�

First year

Develop a study plan and consider forming a study group�

Start thinking about your electives or whether to switch majors� Ask peers in the year above what subjects they enjoyed most�

Seek out career advice so you can understand all your options�

Participate in extracurricular activities such as sport, music, drama, personal development and community service programs�

Look for opportunities to cultivate leadership skills, whether in your part-time job, volunteer work, student society or a sports club�

Middle Year

Talk to members of your target profession or specialisation�

Develop your soft skills and network at industry events�

Explore opportunities to intern or complete volunteer or pro bono work�

Explore ways to demonstrate your skills outside of class�

Consider study abroad opportunities�

Final Year

Keep up to date with networking and job opportunities�

Attend information sessions and open days� Prepare questions tailored to each organisation and your specialisation�

Research the types of firms or organisations that interest you and prepare your CV accordingly�

Apply for a graduate program� Good luck!

Researching and choosing the right organisation

Once you have chosen a specialisation, then your next decision – which organisation to apply for – can fast become a vexing one� Even if you have a strong sense of where you’d like to work, it pays to ensure your decision is a carefully considered one� After all, why shouldn’t you reward yourself with the best possible start to your career?

To help you make the best choice, we’ve compiled a list of seven key questions that every STEM graduate should be able to answer when considering a prospective organisation�

QHow large is the organisation?

STEM organisations range in size from small research bodies to global giants like Roche, which employs some 90,000 people�

There are pros and cons to working in organisations at either end of the spectrum� While some may be drawn to the scale, stability and career advancement opportunities offered by medium and large organisations, others will prefer smaller organisations where they can focus on specific topics of interest or work closely with renowned experts in their chosen STEM field� Smaller organisations may have a faster growth trajectory given their ‘all hands on deck’ approach�

Q

Will you be working in a specialisation that interests you?

As you’ve seen in the first section of this guide, there are many areas in which you could choose to specialise� If you have a strong sense of which specialisation interests you most, then it’s worth seeking out organisations that will cultivate your passion� It’s also important to consider whether your personality fits the specialisation�

Bear in mind that it may be challenging to switch specialisations once you commit to one� This doesn’t mean it can’t be done! There is always scope for change – you may just need to take a backwards or sideways step, depending on the stage at which you choose to switch� For example, it can often be easier to make a change in the early stages of your career rather than later�

QWhat’s the culture of the organisation like?

The importance of culture in an organisation cannot be overstated� After all, there are few other environments in which you’ll work as intensely or closely with other groups of people, so it pays to ensure you fit in and feel supported�

To properly evaluate the culture of an organisation, you’ll need to ask a variety of questions such as: How competitive is the organisation? What sort of people work there? What is expected of graduate employees? What are the people like? How many hours a week will I work?

Organisations and even individual teams within organisations also vary widely in their value systems� Some may value individualism, conspicuous effort or the pursuit of monetary targets; others may value employee and client satisfaction, work-life balance or community engagement� Where possible, try to secure a position in an organisation whose values are consistent with yours�

QWill working at this organisation help you in your career?

On average, people change jobs 11 times during their careers� So, it’s worth considering where you want to be not just for the next few years, but in a decade or so�

If you have a strong sense of your career goals, then you should ensure the firm you’re interested in will help you meet them� This might mean checking that you’ll learn the right skills, focus on the right issues, gain the right experience or network with the right people�

Some firms have established professional development initiatives, especially those with structured graduate programs� Just be certain that your career will grow at the target organisation and not be restricted� Remember, you should always choose an organisation that facilitates the greatest rate of growth� The moment you stop learning, it’s time to look elsewhere, either in terms of role or organisation�

QDoes the firm have an international presence?

For graduates excited about the prospect of working abroad or focusing on international projects, it could be worth prioritising organisations that have a global presence� It can be much easier to find employment overseas if internal transfers are available, and international firms often leverage their global presence to address issues that span multiple regions�

On the other hand, if you’d prefer to work in a single location or focus on domestic issues, you may wish to avoid international firms in which overseas postings or training programs are considered a natural part of your career progression�

QWill I have a healthy work-life balance?

You will have your own sense of what a healthy work-life balance looks like – some people may derive satisfaction from working late, others may prefer more regular hours with ample time for personal commitments� In either case, it’s important to check that your idea of a healthy work-life balance is achievable at a target organisation�

QWho are the clients?

If your role involves working with clients, you might want to consider who they are� Will you be working for homeowners as a civil engineer at a consulting firm? Will you be working for business clients as an actuary at a financial services institution? Perhaps, as a grant-focused researcher, you won’t have clients per se – however, it’s still important to consider who you will be working with�

Other things to consider

If you’ve completed an undergraduate degree or alternative qualification in an area outside of STEM, this may make you more employable in specific areas� For example, if you studied commerce alongside your science degree, you may find it advantageous to pursue a career at, say, a start-up biotech firm in need of chemists with business acumen�

You should also take into account your interests and explore the possibility of using them to create a more satisfying career� If you like painting and science, for example, you might find a fulfilling vocation in art restoration� Or you might combine your interests in coding and chemistry to develop new ways of modelling experimental data�

Other questions to consider when choosing the right organisation:

Where is the organisation located? Will the organisation meet your salary expectations? Will you have any autonomy and if so, how much? Will you receive a variety of interesting work? Will you have an opportunity to rotate through different specialisations? Will you be required to work very long hours without a clear link to performance and pay? Are there opportunities for professional development, including training, education (such as funding for further study) and mentoring? What is the professional reputation of the person you will be reporting to? What are they like and do you think you will enjoy working with them?

How to find answers

If you are interested in working for a particular organisation, it’s helpful to speak with current employees about their individual experiences� One way to do this is by approaching representatives of your target organisation at careers fairs� Alternatively, recruitment agents and other contacts and friends who have worked at the firm can provide honest and valuable information about its culture, reputation and working environment� You can also refer to graduate job reviews and insider guides on the GradAustralia website (gradaustralia.com.au)�

Online research can be a helpful way to find answers to your questions, although you should, of course, endeavour to base your opinions on reputable sources� You can also seek out the advice of lecturers, tutors and career counsellors� Finally, there’s no better time to ask clarifying questions than during a job interview�

By doing your research and deciding carefully on an organisation that fits your values, goals and expectations, you can be confident of your choice and get your career off to a flying start!

Optus have a very diverse culture that actively promotes a work-life balance.

Writing a CV and cover letteR

First impressions are lasting and this is especially true when it comes to CVs and cover letters for graduate jobs� After all, the content of your application is only half the game – as a graduate, it is expected that you can communicate clearly and effectively� Moreover, recruiters are often time-poor professionals who want to separate the wheat from the chaff quickly, before reaching out to candidates who distinguish themselves with their academic credentials, work experience or diverse interests� So, to help you put your best foot forward, we’ve assembled some tips on how to create a killer cover letter and CV� Creating a standout cover letter

The basics

A cover letter is like a sales pitch and what you’re trying to sell is your own suitability for a target job� Successful cover letters:

Highlight the important parts of your CV� Provide a sample of your written communication skills� Show how your skills, education and experience are relevant to the position for which you’re applying� Address any specific selection criteria in the job advertisement� Draw attention to your achievements� Use appropriate formatting and a professional and confident tone of voice. Encourage prospective employers to read further into your CV� Demonstrate one’s command of the rules of grammar and style�

Why invest in writing a good cover letter?

Cover letters can be time-consuming and that’s largely due to the importance of writing a new one for each application� Nothing turns off a prospective employer quite like the sense that they’re reading a template letter� It’s vitally important that your submission – or at the very least, the bulk of it – is specific to the employer in question� It’s a chance to convince them that you want to work in their industry, for their specific organisation and in the job role they advertised� For example, why do you want to use your degree at this large consulting firm? What research have you completed that demonstrates your suitability for this specific government grant?

The contents

■ A cover letter should include the following: ■ Your personal/contact details ■ The date ■ A salutation/greeting ■ How you heard about the job/organisation ■ What attracts you to the job or organisation (you can mention some of their projects or significant staff members) ■ Why you believe you would be an asset to the team ■ A ‘soft pitch’ ■ A closing/signature�

The trick is to have a clear idea as to what the company does and what the job entails, then draw out evidence of your own relevant skills. Here, the more specific you can be, the better� For example, instead of simply writing that you’ve completed an internship, you could say, ‘As an intern, I worked with computer modellers on a project related to the safety of a new open-cut mine’�

Structure and tone

Your cover letter should have a clear structure with an introduction that leads into a coherent summary of your relevant skills and experiences� This should be followed by a closing statement that reiterates your interest in the job, thanks the employer for their time and includes a ‘soft pitch’� For example, you might write something like: ‘I look forward to speaking with you further about how I can make a positive contribution to your team’�

Throughout the letter, your tone should be polite and professional� This doesn’t mean, however, that you should tie yourself in knots trying to sound overly formal� Simply avoid colloquial language wherever possible and focus on providing evidence of why you should be hired (as opposed to simply claiming to be ‘excellent’ or ‘talented’)�

Finally, keep your cover letter succinct – it should be no longer than one A4 page and have your details clearly written as part of a letterhead�

Get to the top of the pile: writing a successful CV

A curriculum vitae (CV) is a written overview of your experience and other qualifications for a job opportunity. Creating a good CV generally takes more time than writing a cover letter� However, once complete, a CV can

be submitted to each new employer with only minor adjustments�

The basics

A CV should concisely outline your relevant educational history, work experience, professional accomplishments and qualifications. It may also include details of referees (if requested)�

A successful CV:

Can be read easily and uses a clear font in a reasonable size with logical headings and well structured bullet points� Uses a skills-focused or chronological format� Emphasises skills or job experiences that are particularly relevant to the job description� Why invest time in writing a good CV?

The role of a CV is to provide recruiters and prospective employers with an easily scannable summary of your achievements so that they can decide whether or not to progress your application by offering you an interview�

As a graduate, you’ll often find that your educational pedigree is similar to other applicants, many of whom will have completed near-identical degrees at equivalent institutions� Consequently, it’s worth taking the time to figure out what differentiates you from the crowd before subtly emphasising it in your CV�

For example, you might bill yourself as having strong communications skills and include the fact that you volunteered at community organisations� Or perhaps you speak another language, love coding or have a specific five-year goal that the role you’re applying for would help you achieve. Giving your CV a novel ‘twist’ is a sure-fire way to make sure it doesn’t get lost in all the noise�

The contents

A CV should include the following:

Your contact details, including your phone number, address and email� Your residency status (if applicable)� A career overview (with an emphasis on industry positions or transferrable skills from other jobs you’ve had)� A summary of your education and training� A list of any professional accreditations/other qualifications you have (this is where you should mention if you’ve received, say, a certificate of proficiency in a different language). Details of your referees (or an explicit offer to provide them)�

Education

Your academic history from your university years should include your predicted or actual degree grades, information on your dissertation (if relevant), any units relevant to your job, and relevant academic awards� Many employers of STEM graduates prioritise educational performance when assessing candidates, so it’s a good idea to emphasise any special achievements and give this section a prominent position in your C�V� (For example, at the start or end of the document)�

Work experience

You should prioritise any work experience you have and highlight specific accomplishments that are relevant to the position to which you’re applying� Of course, as a graduate, your experience may be limited, if you have any at all�

Fortunately, many employers look very favourably on a diverse range of achievements and experiences� Examples worth mentioning include fundraising, voluntary work, independent overseas travel, sporting achievements or leading roles in university clubs or societies� You needn’t go into too much detail – a summary of your achievements and any relevant transferable skills (leadership, teamwork, planning or problem-solving skills) will suffice.

Structure and tone

The most common CV format is the reversechronological order, which presents your most recent work experience and educational accomplishments first. If you follow this approach, make sure the chronology is clear and there are no large gaps that could confuse or worry employers� For example, if you took a year off to go travelling between jobs, you might even include that as a CV entry�

As with your cover letter, your tone should be polite and professional, and your entries as specific and detailed as possible�

Here are some tips to get you started:

Describe achievements, not just job titles� Instead of saying you were ‘an engineering intern at GE’, mention specifically what you accomplished, learned or contributed� Emphasise more recent jobs and achievements� Be honest� You should expect that your CV will be read critically and important points cross-checked with referees or industry databases� Keep paragraphs to three or four lines and space them well� This helps the reader pick out the main facts and assimilate a number of points quickly� Use bullet points wherever they add clarity and visual style� When writing bullet points, use direct action words such as ‘designed’, ‘built’ and ‘organised’� This has the effect of assigning credit for your achievements and enhances the CV’s overall credibility� Prioritise relevance but also leave some room for things that make you seem interesting or well rounded� For example, there’s no reason not to include a cooking qualification as a point of interest, but you needn’t claim that it will be integral to your success in business�

Sample cover letteR

Sample cover letter #1 Applying for an internship

[INSERT YOUR NAME] [INSERT YOUR ADDRESS] [INSERT YOUR NUMBER] [INSERT YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS]

[INSERT DATE] [INSERT NAME OF RECIPIENT] [INSERT RECIPIENT’S POSITION] [INSERT RECIPIENT’S ADDRESS]

Dear [RECIPIENT],

I am a [first/second/third]-year student at [insert academic institution] and I’m writing to apply for [name of position advertised] position with [name of organisation]. I have a strong [insert average mark], which I achieved while [include example of extracurricular activity, significant academic achievement, or personal challenge]. Completing a placement at [insert organisation] would allow me to continue my commitment to [insert an issue relevant to the organisation, and for which you are genuinely passionate]. I feel confident that I will make a positive contribution to your office while strengthening the skills I’ll need for a career in [insert relevant specialisation].

[NB: We will assume from this point onwards that the author is applying for an internship at a large engineering firm]. As a student at [insert academic institution], I wrote an honours thesis on [insert topic]. Specifically, my thesis argued that [provide brief summary]. I am passionate about applying these insights to real-life industry problems. [Here, you could provide an example of how you might do that.] I was drawn to [organisation’s name] because it is my career goal to work in an industry that encourages strategic and creative approaches to [relevant problem]. As a market leader in engineering, [organisation’s name] has [insert examples of its involvement in this area, such as a major client]. These projects resonated with me because I’m also committed to [doing some cool thing].

This semester, I worked with a start-up to develop an app designed to connect disadvantaged youth with potential employers� I was responsible for building relationships with a broad range of stakeholders including disadvantaged youth, youth organisations, smaller businesses and corporates� I was able to learn how to interact with multiple stakeholders representing different interests� I believe these skills will be a valuable asset in helping to build client relationships and business development opportunities in the future�

Given my ability to learn quickly and in a fast-paced environment, I believe I will be able to adapt to the demands of an engineering internship� Moreover, my concurrent study of commerce has provided me with the analytical toolkit that I believe will be valuable at your organisation�

I have enclosed a resume highlighting my education and work experience� I hope to have the opportunity to interview with you about an internship position, and I will call your office in a few weeks to see if I may schedule a time to speak with you�

Thank you in advance for your time and consideration�

Sincerely,

[insert name].

Sample cover letter #2 Applying for a graduate position

[INSERT YOUR NAME] [INSERT YOUR ADDRESS] [INSERT YOUR NUMBER] [INSERT YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS]

[INSERT DATE] [INSERT NAME OF RECIPIENT] [INSERT RECIPIENT’S POSITION] [INSERT RECIPIENT’S ADDRESS]

RE: Application for [Position] at [Organisation]

Dear [Mr/Ms last name of contact person],

I am writing to apply for the graduate program at [organisation name]. I am currently in my penultimate year of an [insert degree and unit], having previously completed my undergraduate major in [insert subject]. I have a strong distinction average, which I have achieved while maintaining multiple extracurricular commitments, including being elected by my peers in 2020 to the role of [position] in the [student society/leadership organisation], and working part time.

I am applying to [organisation name] because of its position as a market leader in the Asia Pacific region. This is reflected in [organisation name]’s success in consistently winning the [award] as well as its prominent role in [example].

[NB: We will assume from this point onwards that the author is applying for a trading graduate role at an investment bank].

My interest in trading was born of my experience developing and trading my own portfolio, where I have consistently been able to generate an above market return. In 2019, I was a finalist in a three-day simulated market challenge run by the University of New South Wales and the Trading Society� From these experiences, I have learnt how to identify trading opportunities and execute these under pressure in a fast-paced, dynamic environment�

Given my passion in trading, I have taken every opportunity possible to prepare myself for a career in this industry� In 2019, I completed a summer internship at Macquarie’s Commodities and Global Markets unit, where I was responsible for researching the energy futures market with a focus on Australian coal and power [insert other achievements where relevant]. Furthermore, in my most recent semester, I completed an online course via Coursera on algorithmic trading to enhance my understanding of the impact of technology on the market�

I believe that my [insert character attributes], and my dedication to [organisation name]’s mission will enable me to make a positive contribution at your firm. Please find enclosed my resume and a copy of my academic transcript�

Thank you in advance for your time and consideration�

Yours sincerely,

[Your name]

How to ace an interview

First impressions: how to nail your job interview

A job interview is essentially an opportunity for you to show off your skills, talents and experience while demonstrating your knowledge of the job and asking any questions you might have� In this section, we’ll focus primarily on the main question you can expect to be asked during an interview: why do you think you’re suitable for the job? Here are some tips to make sure you can knock it out of the park�

Research the job!

We know – this seems like an obvious tip� However, recruiters often express their amazement at candidates who arrive to interviews with only a superficial understanding of what their target job will entail� You should instead possess an in-depth knowledge of the job description and be ready to convince the jury, with evidence, that you’re the best person to take it on�

Start by reading the job description, paying particular attention to any academic requirements, as well as essential and desirable attributes� If there’s anything you want to clarify, be proactive and reach out to graduate recruiters or company contacts� You can also check if gradaustralia.com.au has a profile of the company�

Get a feel for what life will be like in your target job by talking with personal contacts in similar roles, or checking out graduate stories and graduate job reviews on our website�

Find out more about the organisation, such as the types of clients it works with, where it is based and what types of projects it takes on�

Deepen your understanding of the job

When it comes to demonstrating your suitability for a particular role, the general rule is this: the more specific you can be, the better. Of course, this means arriving at a deep understanding of what the role will require� You can do this by asking the following questions:

How much of your working day will be spent working alone and how much interacting with others? Will you only have to deal with your immediate team and supervisor, or will you interact with internal or external clients? Is this job more focused on meeting immediate, conflicting deadlines in a fast-paced environment or longer-term planning and development work? How flexible will you have to be in terms of travel, working hours, changing projects or picking up new skills at short notice? What industry sector(s) will you be working in/for? Will you need to develop a working knowledge of, say, the construction sector, energy and utilities sector or the retail industry? Will training and development time be built into your job or will you be expected to learn extra skills and keep up to date with new developments in your own time?

Bringing it all together into your own pitch

By combining what you’ve learned from the position description and your own supplementary research, you’ll arrive at a strong sense of the talents and attributes you should emphasise in the interview� For example, you might reach one of the following conclusions:

I will be working for both internal and external clients, so I’ll need to show that I have good interpersonal skills such as the ability to communicate effectively, build relationships and negotiate with tact and patience� I’ll be working to tight deadlines, so I’ll need to show that I can handle pressure and manage competing priorities� I’ll be working closely with community stakeholders, so I should talk about my contribution to volunteer projects and extracurricular involvement in community activities� I’ll be performing delicate research with precision equipment, so I should discuss my experience as a laboratory assistant�

Master the STAR technique

When responding to interview questions, use the STAR technique to organise your answer�

What was the situation? What was the task? What action did you take? What was the result? What did you learn from reflecting on the experience?

What to expect at an assessment centre

Assessment centres

Many organisations use assessment centres in their recruitment processes for student and graduate recruitment�

What is an assessment centre?

Candidates are invited to assessment centres to undertake a combination of individual and group exercises� They are used by organisations to compare candidates on the same day and reduce the number of shortlisted candidates moving to the next round� The length of time you’ll be expected to be present at an assessment centre varies widely, from as little as a few hours to as long as three days�

How to prepare

One of the main objectives of assessment centre recruiters is to see how you perform under pressure� As such, you should anticipate some degree of stress� People perform better when they know to expect stress and have done everything they can to manage it� You should also know what the schedule for the day is, read any preparatory material, and double-check the dress code (typically formal)� It can be daunting, but remember: this is a chance to show off your skills while also assessing whether the organisation is right for you�

Things you can do in advance include:

■ Know what is happening in the world� A general understanding of world politics and business will give you a broader understanding of most topics that can arise during formal and informal conversations� ■ Know what is happening in the sector� Be sure to include the most relevant updates� Research whether or not the organisation in question has been in the news lately� You should also familiarise yourself with any broader industry trends and news stories, and be sure to have an opinion� This may not be obviously relevant, but it’s the kind of thing that a recruiter or fellow candidate might bring up in conversation� ■ Know the competitors� This will help you answer any questions about where you think the future of the organisation will be� Will they follow a competitor who is doing well or are they doing things differently? Practise� Assessment centres often subject candidates to psychometric tests, verbal reasoning tests and numerical tests� You would do well to practise each of these – there are many online resources that you can draw upon� Alternatively, you may contact a careers advisor for advice on how to prepare� Brush up on your public speaking skills� Some recruiters will ask you to prepare a presentation for delivery at the assessment centre� This will allow them to test your communication skills� Their attention will focus on the structure of the presentation, as well as its content and the style of your delivery�

On the day

Don’t be surprised if, on the day, you find yourself joined by a large group of people all applying for the same role� There will also be an organiser and various representatives of the employer� It’s natural to feel some anxiety, but bear in mind that your nervousness is usually related to how people will react to your performance� The performance itself is a separate issue – something relatively within your control –and if you’ve prepared well, then you have nothing to worry about�

PwC assessment centre days usually include a group case study.

Getting an offer

Your contract of employment

Before entering into a contract of employment and accepting your first position, you should seek clarification on the following:

Start date� Duties and/or job description� The number of hours you will be required to work� Keep in mind you may be told you have to work 9�00 am–5�00 pm, plus any further hours as required to meet your clients’ expectations and demands of the job� In the private sector, it is possible you will spend at least ten hours a day in the office in order to meet the requirements of the role� Rate and method of pay (weekly/monthly)� Whether the salary offer is a package (base and superannuation combined) or a base salary in addition to superannuation� When and if you will be entitled to a salary increase (particularly if you are paid junior rates)� Any leave entitlements, including parental and long service leave� Whether you will be employed on a permanent, part-time, temporary or casual basis� When you can expect to receive a written contract of employment� Confirmation of all employment conditions in writing (including your next salary review date)� Which Enterprise Agreement or Award you will be working under, if any� The termination notice requirements of both parties�

Before signing your first contract read it carefully, making sure you don’t sign anything you don’t understand� There’s no need to feel pressured into signing a contract on the spot� Tell your potential employer that you want to take the contract home and will return the contract as soon as practicable� If you don’t agree with a certain clause in a contract, you can rule a line through the provision you don’t agree with and place your initials in the margin�

Your salary

Salaries will vary substantially between large and small organisations and different specialisations� More generous salaries are likely to be associated with larger firms or certain specialisations. For example, those working shifts on mining sites may be required to work long hours� They can generally demand higher salaries as compensation�

Superannuation

As a general rule, you are entitled to a minimum of 9�5 per cent superannuation paid into a fund of your choice� However, if you are employed as an independent contractor or on a contract for services you will not be automatically entitled to superannuation�

If you have previous superannuation policies but are unsure of the name or policy number, contact the Australian Taxation Office Superannuation Line on 131 020�

If you have had previous casual and part-time positions, it is likely that you have several superannuation funds�

To consolidate your accounts, obtain and complete a rollover form from your current superannuation fund of choice� Rolling over your superannuation will:

Minimise the risk of you losing your superannuation Minimise administration fees you are likely to be charged Help you keep track of your superannuation as it is all in the one place Minimise the statements you will receive�

Managing social media

Social networking sites are a great way to stay in touch with friends and family, organise events and share photos and videos� However, recruiters are increasingly using these networks as a way of vetting applications� So, as you start thinking about applying for jobs, it is crucial that you ensure your online persona aligns with your career goals�

A balancing act

Whether you are a dedicated social networker or just spend a few hours a week on networking sites, it is worth giving serious thought to who can access your data� The content you place online can have a big impact on your future�

Unless you have made the effort to change your privacy settings, your profile could be visible to any HR person and searchable on Google� Joining location networks on Facebook will also open up your profile to anyone on that network, not just your friends� If you use Facebook’s ‘check in’ feature, others can easily find out how you have been spending your free time�

Many employers use social networks to screen candidates� If your profile is public, any potential employer could have details on a lot more than just your qualifications and work experience� This doesn’t mean you need to remove every trace of your existence� However, you need to be savvy and ensure that your online persona portrays you at your best to recruiters and employers�

Managing your reputation

Consider which content you are happy for anyone to see and which you feel is best saved for friends and family� A good option is to use LinkedIn for your professional life and Facebook for your private life�

Start by using the settings Facebook and other networking sites now offer to help you control your privacy level� You can choose who can see particular status updates, photos and anything else�

Next, pop your name into a search engine and see what comes up� Most social networks have a public listing that contains information from your profile and a link� This can be switched off by editing your privacy settings� While you are at it, why not switch your profile to ‘friends only’? That way, should a recruiter search they will only have access to the content that you want them to see� Don’t forget areas such as blogs, forum posts and other applications like YouTube� Anything you have ever posted under your real name could show up in a search�

Let the internet work for you

The web isn’t just there to catch you out: it can also be your friend� In one study, half of recruiters said that the information they had found about a candidate online had positively influenced their decision-making.

Some graduate recruiters have created groups on social networks to make it easier for graduates to get in touch and find out more about their organisations, which can be an excellent research opportunity�

Twitter can also be a good way to connect with employers, researchers, potential mentors, and industry leaders� You can use it to listen to what recruiters are saying and to keep up-to-date with their latest news� If you are interested in working for an organisation, follow its feed to find out the latest company information and recruitment activities�

Many savvy students have already set up their own website or blog� If you haven’t, consider it� It demonstrates initiative and, if you do it right, is a good way of showing off your creativity and communication skills, and highlighting achievements in greater detail� However, don’t forget to make it look professional and appropriate for your future career� The web is a valuable resource and you can have fun with it, just remember it is a public arena! Ensure it helps, rather than hinders, your career search�

Tips for making social media work for you

■ Be aware: Google yourself regularly to see what information about you is out there for anyone to find. ■ Be proactive: use networking to help you develop and maintain your reputation and relationships� ■ Be consistent: make your personal brand consistent across any platform that is accessible to a potential employer� ■ Be knowledgeable: get to know what people in your target field are interested in hearing about to ensure your messages hit the target�

Chapter 5 Surviving and Thriving

Understanding probation����������������������������������������������� 306

Handling performance reviews ������������������������������������� 307

Establishing strong professional relationships����������� 308

Managing your time�������������������������������������������������������� 310

Learning how to resign��������������������������������������������������� 311

Dealing with bullying and discrimination at work�������� 311

Maintaining mental health �������������������������������������������� 312

Understanding probation

When you start a new role, you may be placed on probation� Don’t worry, this is pretty normal! The purpose of probation, which typically ranges from three to six months, is for both you and your employer to assess if you are suited to your new role�

During this time, your employer will typically help you to develop performance goals (also known as key performance indicators or KPIs)� This gives you both a clear view of what you are working towards and something by which to measure your performance and suitability for continuing employment�

It’s important to understand the terms of your probation� This means confirming:

The length of your probation All goals and tasks you are responsible for during your probation Whether there will be a formal performance review at the end of your probation Who you can speak to if you have any questions or concerns about your probation How the firm deals with employees who don’t meet their probation requirements (especially when prevented from doing so by extenuating circumstances such as accident or illness)�

Your employment can be lawfully terminated if you fail to achieve the required expectations (subject to the terms and conditions of employment)� A strong support network can be invaluable in helping you deal with your employer’s expectations – especially if those expectations are not reasonable�

According to the Australian Government Fair Work Ombudsman, employees who do not pass their probation are still entitled to receive notice when their employment ends� Furthermore, you are not to be denied any basic entitlements, such as paid leave and sick leave, during your probationary period�

While being on probation can feel a little daunting, you should see this period as an opportunity to learn as much as you can about your role and organisation� This is the time to ask lots of questions – after all, no one expects you to know all the

Seeing every opportunity as a learning opportunity and cultivating a growth mindset will help you develop resilience and compassion for yourself as you move ahead in your career.

answers just yet! It will take some time before you find your rhythm – most learning curves are steep at the very beginning, so be patient and remember you are there to learn�

Don’t be alarmed if you make a mistake or two� Mistakes happen and if seen in the right way, are a great learning experience� Think about what it was that didn’t work and how you could do better next time� Seeing every opportunity as a learning opportunity and cultivating a growth mindset will help you develop resilience and compassion for yourself as you move ahead in your career�

It’s also important to take the time to regularly reflect if this is the right path or place for you� Sometimes it can be confronting when you realise a chosen path isn’t necessarily what you thought it might be� In fact, it is often the case that a role may not exactly match your expectations – some aspects might be more exciting than you thought, others perhaps more mundane�

The reality is that there will always be some aspect of your job that you dislike more than others and sometimes you just need to ‘stick it out’� Know that your role will evolve over time and that you can have a say in this! If you see aspects of your role that you particularly like, or would like to do more of, be sure to express this to your manager�

At the same time, don’t be scared to admit the truth� If you continue to feel that your specialisation or role is not quite right, that’s okay� It’s never too late to change your role, specialisation or place of employment� There are always options if you look hard enough�

Handling performance reviews

Performance reviews can be intimidating, but it’s important to remember that in an ideal situation, they have a positive objective� They are designed to help you learn more about how to succeed in your role and grow towards the career goals that are important to you�

Generally, performance reviews are held once a year� You and your manager will review what you’ve accomplished during this time, and discuss any ways you might improve in your role� It’s also an opportunity to discuss remuneration (salary and bonuses)�

Here are some strategies to help you prepare for your performance review:

Know what you want. Remember, this is your career; no one else is going to be as interested in it as you� It’s critical therefore to enter a performance review knowing what you would like to get out of it� Do you want a promotion? An internal transfer? A move to a new location? Study or professional development opportunities? Be clear on your intention for the performance review� This will help you to prepare your thoughts – whether it’s questions to ask or arguments to put forward – and will help you guide the conversation�

Be open to feedback. Performance reviews are an opportunity to really listen to how your manager and team think you could improve� Maybe it’s learning to speak up in meetings, pay more attention to detail or look at the bigger picture in a more strategic way� Whatever it is, this feedback is extremely valuable and if taken on board, can help you to grow in your role and beyond�

Ask questions and get clarification. If you don’t understand feedback that is given to you, don’t be afraid to ask questions� It’s important that you are clear on what you are being asked to do – and how to do it� The performance review is a time dedicated specifically to you and your development, so be selfish, use the time, and ask the right questions to get the answers you need�

Agree on a path forward. It’s important during your performance review that you set the expectations for your performance in the future� Know what you’re being asked to do going forward and set in place some performance metrics with which you can measure your progress� This will provide an objective measure for future performance reviews�

Know your worth. If you are planning to negotiate your salary or bonus, it’s important to know your numbers� Find some benchmarks for comparison, whether they are internal or external (such as other organisations or industry averages), so you have something to compare to� Be sure you are able to point to examples of things you have accomplished and reasons why you deserve higher pay�

Don’t lose your cool! If you believe you are being unfairly criticised, or do not agree with the feedback you have been given, be careful in the way you respond� Taking a defensive or aggressive attitude and showing you aren’t open to feedback – and therefore growth and personal development – may not be the best move�

Sometimes, it is best to take some time to reflect on the feedback you have been given� You can take the time to prepare a counter argument or examples, and then meet up again with your manager� During your performance review, feel free to say that you would like to take some time to reflect, and ask if you can pick up the discussion again later�

Establishing strong professional relationships

Working in any organisation, be it a research team or a mining company, frequently requires collaboration� So it’s vital that you foster strong professional relationships characterised by open communication, mutual respect and the shared pursuit of common goals� As a graduate, you can learn a lot about how to do this by observing your colleagues, taking their advice seriously, and remaining open to constructive feedback�

Below we have discussed some ways to establish and manage your professional relationships with the key people you are likely to encounter in your initial graduate experience – your manager, colleagues, clients and other stakeholders�

Your manager

When you start your role, you will be assigned a manager� Sometimes you will have met your manager during the interview process, other times they will be an entirely new face� Regardless, it’s important you are clear about what you are there for and what you would like to learn and achieve as a graduate� Your manager is someone you can rely on to help you achieve your professional goals� After all, you are the only person in charge of your career� If you don’t tell anyone what you want to learn, they won’t be able to read your mind!

The level of interaction with your manager will depend on your organisation and specialisation� Typically however, the role of your manager will be to assign you work as required, hold you to account and assess your performance (which then has implications for salary increases or bonuses awarded)� It is important then, that you understand exactly what is required of you when delegated a new task� If you are confused or unsure, communicate this to your supervisor and seek clarification.

Don’t be afraid of asking questions! You will gain respect for demonstrating a desire to learn and get things done in the right way� Taking notes is a good way to ensure you successfully integrate advice, and gives you something to refer back to if you need to refresh your memory�

If you feel that you are unable to complete a task by a given deadline, it is important to let your manager know immediately� Your supervisor can use this information to manage workflows across their team more effectively, ensuring you aren’t assigned too many tasks or tasks of undue complexity� Remember, managing your time means being aware – and realistic – about how you spend it and prioritising accordingly�

Finally, it is important that you own up to your mistakes� You’re there to learn! While a mistake may feel mortifying in the first instance, remember that every mistake is an opportunity to ask for feedback and advice on how to avoid making the same mistake in the future� Doing this will help to establish trust in your relationship with your manager�

Your colleagues

One of the best things about entering the workforce as a graduate is your cohort: the people who start with you as part of the annual ‘intake’ at your organisation� Depending on your specialisation, these graduates will have studied similar fields to you, such as science or engineering� Alternatively, if you enter a specialisation such as management consulting, they could have a diverse range of backgrounds beyond business, such as finance, arts or marketing.

‘Nousers’ are motivated and engaging. Nous values diversity of thought and of life experience.

At Coles, you can expect a buzzy, fast-paced, dynamic and collaborative culture.

While a mistake may feel mortifying in the first instance, remember every mistake is an opportunity to ask for feedback and advice on how to avoid making the same mistake in the future.

Depending on the graduate program within your organisation, you will typically find yourself spending a lot of time with other graduates, from formal group training sessions to casual Friday night drinks� It can be comforting to know there is a group of people who are going through the same challenges as you and to share your experiences� It’s common for many graduates to hang out beyond the office and it can be the start of many lasting friendships� While this is a great way to get to know the people in your organisation, remember to be careful about what you (or your colleagues) post on social media�

Aside from your graduate cohort, you will inevitably work with other members of your organisation� These may range from more senior partners or directors to more junior colleagues� While it may be intimidating at first to meet so many new faces, it is a great way to learn more about your organisation and all the different roles� At some organisations, you may be assigned a ‘buddy’ or a mentor� Don’t be afraid to ask them all your questions, from routine queries like how to apply for leave, to more serious advice about how to progress within your organisation�

Your clients

If you work in professional services, you will increasingly be expected to deal directly with your organisation’s clients� This may even mean spending time directly on site during a project� Therefore, it’s worth spending some time to really walk in your client’s shoes� What do they think about? What keeps them up at night? What do they really need? They might be big-picture oriented or love the nittygritty details� Either way, being on the front foot and anticipating their needs – and questions – is critical to success� For example, when presenting a piece of analysis, think about what your clients might ask you, where they might challenge you and what they might think are the next steps� Running through your analysis with your team or manager ahead of time will help you prepare for anything that might come your way�

If you’re working in-house or at a corporate, your clients may in fact be your end customer, particularly if you are working in sales or customer service� Thinking about their needs in a similar way (and how you can service them) is key to building a successful relationship�

Other stakeholders

Depending on your specialisation, you are also likely to work with a range of stakeholders, including suppliers, customers, agencies or consultants (particularly if you’re working in-house or for a corporate)� Remember, each of these may provide opportunities for your future; you never know where you might end up�

If you’re interested in expanding your network, it is also worth considering joining professional bodies or attending university alumni events� These provide great opportunities to build rapport with people who might be relevant to your current or future specialisation�

Managing your time

Graduates often joke that when they are university students, they have all the time in the world but no money� Then, as graduates, they discover they have more money but very little time�

Starting a full-time job can be a tricky adjustment� Even just getting up at the same time every day (and often much earlier than when you were at university) can be a shock to the system�

If you work in professional services, you are typically required to log your hours and meet billable targets� These targets represent the amount of time you charge to clients each week and can be especially daunting for graduates who are still learning the ropes� You may suddenly realise you have to log your hours, bill your hours, maybe work (really) long hours (depending on your specialisation), plus you have to get up earlier than you probably did at university� No wonder that time management can seem so overwhelming�

But it doesn’t have to be this way� The trick is knowing how to prioritise the most important work and setting boundaries so you get that work done� To achieve this, we suggest creating a time management system, which you can even apply to your life admin too!

To stay on top of tasks with minimal stress, consider the following tips:

Keep an up-to-date to-do list. There are various productivity tools you can try, from the Pomodoro Technique to the Eisenhower Matrix, as well as various apps and websites (such as Trello and Todoist) dedicated to task management� Beyond to-do lists, there are also tools for managing your calendar and remaining productive throughout the day�

Prioritise urgent tasks. There are various ways to do this for maximum efficiency. One approach involves ranking each task by ‘importance’ and ‘urgency’ before focusing primarily on tasks that are both important and urgent�

Eat the frog. Mark Twain once said, ‘If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.’ The frog is essentially the task

Always have a plan of attack. Break a large or complex project up into discrete, achievable subtasks before you start working.

that causes you the most anxiety and stress but also the one you are most likely to procrastinate over� Eating the frog means to just do it and get it over and done with, which means the rest of your day will seem like a breeze in comparison�

Keep a diary of critical dates set up with

reminders. You can use various tools (such as Microsoft Outlook) to share these appointments with other stakeholders, set up phone calls, distribute preparatory material and book meeting rooms�

Learn how to say ‘no’. Don’t take on further work if you know you won’t be able to complete it� Be upfront about what you can reasonably achieve�

Delegate tasks wherever possible and

appropriate. Remember though, this means not delegating tasks for which you ought to be personally responsible�

Update your timesheet. Avoid postponing this until the end of the day or week – it can be difficult to enter time accurately when you must first reconstruct your week in retrospect� Get into the habit of updating your timesheet each time you complete a task�

Take regular breaks to stay energised and

focused. Sometimes it’s easier to concentrate if you shift gears� If you feel like you’re hitting a wall, take time to clear your head and come back to your task refreshed!

Work on complex tasks when you are at your most

productive. Consider if there are certain times of the day or days of the week where you are most effective, and plan your tasks accordingly� Always have a plan of attack� Break a large or complex project up into discrete, achievable subtasks before you start working�

Learning how to resign

Resigning from your position can be daunting, especially if it’s one you’ve worked hard to acquire� However, circumstances do change and not every role works out� So, if you decide to resign, here’s how to do so in a way that will preserve your professional reputation�

Wherever possible, you should strive to leave your position on good terms� Your character and conduct are key markers of your professionalism, and more practically, the manner of your resignation may influence whether or not you can ask for a reference in the future�

Be prepared to supply a resignation letter when you inform your employer of your decision to leave the firm. In the letter, state the date from which your resignation is effective, your notice period, and your last day of work at the firm. If it is appropriate, you can The Australian Human Rights Commission defines workplace bullying as verbal, physical, social or psychological abuse by your employer (or manager), take the form of hurtful remarks, social or professional exclusion, the delegation of tasks that do not relate to your job, intimidation, pushing, shoving, unwelcome happens for a variety of reasons, none of which render it acceptable and may stem from prejudiced attitudes towards a person’s race, age, religion, sex, disability, socioeconomic status, education or sexuality� You should not stay silent if you are being bullied or approaching the bully, let them know their behaviour also include a brief positive statement about your time at the firm, referencing things you’ve learned, valuable experiences or meaningful professional relationships�

It is useful to prepare a list of issues that you may need to discuss with your employer when you resign� This could include how to complete any outstanding projects, manage an efficient handover, and notify colleagues of your decision� You will more than likely be asked reasons for your resignation� Being prepared for these questions will help you respond with constructive and thoughtful comments�

No matter how negative your experience with your organisation, do not insult your employer or spread rumours about them or the organisation� This behaviour will only reflect poorly on your own character� Remember, don’t burn bridges� Always try to

Dealing with bullying and discrimination at work

another person, or a group of people at work� This may touching or sexual harassment� Discrimination

discriminated against at work� If you feel comfortable leave on the most positive note possible! is unacceptable� Otherwise, speak to a colleague or supervisor about the situation, or report it to the human resources department� Many workplaces have strong and supportive cultures that can help you through these difficult times.

If you feel you cannot confide in a colleague, you can contact the Australian Human Rights Commission or Fair Work Commission for information on your rights and options� It’s a good idea to keep a record of any incidences of bullying�

Australian Human Rights Commission – 1300 656 419 or 02 9284 9888

Fair Work Commission – 1300 799 675

Maintaining mental health

Coping with stress

A healthy level of stress can keep you motivated, and may even be a proportionate and manageable response to your new responsibilities� However, in an intense working environment, it is not uncommon for stress levels to rise� Once this happens, stress can fast become a negative force that saps energy and if left unchecked, often leads to burnout and other mental health challenges�

Coping with the stress of working life starts with building resilience� You can give yourself space to do this by implementing strategies to help you maintain focus and motivation, and achieve your goals� Some useful strategies include:

Time management – keep a list of tasks you aim to complete each day� This will help you break a sometimes overwhelming workload into manageable goals and gauge what you can realistically achieve�

Preparation – whether you are scheduled to attend a meeting with a client or present to your team, make sure you give yourself enough time to prepare adequately so you can perform at your best�

Focus on solutions – accept that as a graduate, you will make mistakes� Ask your manager or team for advice on how to avoid repeating them�

Maintain a balanced lifestyle – to perform at your best, it’s important to look after your physical and mental health� This means eating well, exercising regularly, taking time out, being social and keeping a healthy sleep schedule�

Signs of anxiety and depression

It is vital that you treat your mental health just as you would your physical wellbeing�

This means familiarising yourself with the warning signs of anxiety, depression and other conditions, and intervening early if something is amiss� It also means learning the difference between a healthy (or proportionate) level of stress and its opposite, which can manifest itself as toxic anxiety� To help you identify any mental health red flags, below are some warning signs of nascent depression or anxiety:

Absenteeism or presenteeism (being in the office but being non-productive) Falling productivity and the occurrence of simple errors Bad or rash decisions Poor morale and uncharacteristic lack of cooperation Complaints of aches and pains or tiredness on a regular basis Disruptive, interfering or domineering behaviour to other team members Alcohol or drug use or abuse A general reluctance to socialise or participate in company activities An unusually sad mood that does not go away Loss of enjoyment and interest in activities that were previously enjoyable Lack of energy and tiredness Loss of confidence in yourself or poor self-esteem Feeling guilty when you are not really at fault Thoughts of suicide or self-harm Difficulty concentrating and making decisions Moving more slowly or becoming agitated and unable to settle Having sleeping difficulties or sometimes, sleeping too much Loss of interest in food or eating too much�

Support

If you require support or know somebody who does, there are many resources available including several services that will provide immediate support� For example, BeyondBlue and Lifeline Australia provide rapid and anonymous support over the phone and online� The federal government also subsidises selected mental health services, allowing patients with an appropriate referral to access Medicare rebates for up to ten therapy sessions a year� Your university may also provide counselling and support services�

Beyond Blue – 1300 22 4636

Lifeline – 13 11 14