Pathways to Success

For the first time in its history the City of Gold Coast has launched a program which aims to attract more university graduates to help shape the city’s future. There are 25 positions available across a wide variety of streams, including engineering; digital and data; business and management; environment; sustainability; and planning.

The City’s Graduate Academy is a 12-month structured early career development initiative providing professional development training and on-the-job experience opportunities for enthusiastic university graduates. 

With over 20 years’ experience in construction, Amanda Bulow is a pioneer in that industry and is now helping other women to follow in her footsteps through her not-for-profit organisation Awesome Women in Construction.

“I grew up on 80 acres of farmland near Ipswich where there were no ‘boy or girl jobs' – just jobs, and you had to do them. It was my first experience of equality, without knowing what that was at the time,” Amanda says.

“I was lucky to have many great female role models as leaders when I was growing up. I was taught that I could do whatever I wanted and be whoever I wanted to be, and if that door’s not open, we can kick it open.”

Study Gold Coast’s Careers Alliance Network connects professional career influencers with industry to leverage and optimise career pathways for students. The program widens the scope of employment options for students and graduates through the creation of professional networking and partnership development opportunities.

The most recent Careers Alliance event focused on the Gold Coast’s advanced manufacturing sector and was held at the Australian Industry Trade College, an industry established institution that helps young people to pursue their chosen careers through apprenticeships and traineeships.   

Representatives from three Gold Coast based advanced manufacturers were guest speakers at the event, all shedding light on their businesses and the career opportunities in their industries.

If Pico Play’s newest interns learn only one thing during their three-month, paid work placement, it is that work can be fun. But the 14 second-year Malaysian university students who started their internships with the Gold Coast company are learning so much more.

They are gaining a richer understanding of how their skills and knowledge can be put into practice after graduation and with their boosted confidence they’re experiencing what teamwork feels like. Some may even be rethinking where their degree can take them.

The one goal that every student wants to achieve is a career once they’ve attained their qualification, which is why educational institutions are increasingly investing in experienced professionals to support and guide students with the essential knowledge to find the right career education and employment pathways.

And while the job titles of these professionals may vary from guidance officers to department heads and industry liaison officers, all have the same objective - helping students to make informed choices in reaching their goals.

In recognising the vital role these professionals play in the education sector Study Gold Coast created the Careers Alliance Network, providing opportunities to discuss career and employment related topics, share best practice knowledge and facilitate networking connections with likeminded professionals.