…for engineering students, grads and young professionals.
Bridge building is hardly the most common dream job for school-age girls, but this was precisely the career path that Louise McCormick was inspired to pursue.
Now working in the field of structural engineering she has been involved with the design and construction of hundreds of bridges through Queensland and the NT.
Have a read of her profile in the Brisbane Times.
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‘Anything is possible when you follow your passion…’ That’s the message from the new campaign from the South Australian Government designed to encourage students to study maths and science and look to future careers in the field.
The campaign includes an interactive website, career ambassadors and a competition to win an ultimate worksite visit.
SA Deputy Premier, Kevin Foley announced, “We need more students thinking about careers in science, engineering and technology, as well as the mechanical, electrical and construction trades.” Adding, “Choosing the right subjects in the final years of high school is a vital prerequisite to working in these dynamic sectors.”
South Australia has a high demand for these industries, particularly due to defence, research, information technology and mining sectors.
This is an excellent resource for anyone considering their future. This campaign has the same core goals as EngVibe, so we’re big fans. Check it out, the main site is here:
Overall, this is an outstanding initiative by the SA Government.
(Source: SouthAustralia.biz | Image: TheresMoreToIt)
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An OECD report has shown that 35 percent of Aussie students that top the class in science have no interest in pursuing a career or further study in a related field. The data comes from a 2006 survey of 15 year olds and found that this proportion is slightly less than the overall OECD average of 40 percent.
Is this to be expected? There is always going to be the group of top students who do well in a range of subjects and then settle on the area that interests them most. No doubt the contrast does also exist where some students perform well in English and then choose to study in engineering or science.
The proposed solutions include making the sciences more appealing and fun for student and to improve the understanding of the career pathways in scientific fields. Agreed.
(Source: AdelaideNow | Image: TheTruthAbout)
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Engineers Australia and Chief Executive Women (CEW) have announced a scholarship to support and develop female engineering leaders. The scholarships are to be used for professional development for women who hold engineering degrees.
There are four scholarships available, one to be awarded to a female engineer in each of four regional groups: NSW/ACT, VIC/TAS, QLD and WA/NT/SA.
Scholarship
Each scholarship is for $5,000 towards leadership development activities or programs.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible to apply:
Submitting an application
To apply for this scholarship, you need to provide the following information:
To apply, forward your application to: CEW WIE Scholarship Program, c/o The Executive Officer, Chief Executive Women, Level 12, 37 Bligh Street, Sydney.
Applications close: 31st May 2009
(Source: Engineers Australia | Image by LynasUK)
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Rory Stokes, a 15 year old student from the Australian Science and Mathematics School has put to rest the claim that goldfish have a 3 second memory.
He conducted an experiment where he associated a beacon with the feeding of fish. Over a period of three weeks he would feed the fish and activate the beacon. Six days later he returned the beacon and found the fish had retained the memory.
An interesting school science project - read the full article from the Sydney Morning Herald.
(Image by kakki)
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Queenslander Rhys Parry has been awarded a TJ Ryan Memorial Medal and a $2000-a-year scholarship - one of the highest awards for secondary students.
The award, which was selected on academics, leadership, community and cultural participation, will assist Rhys as he heads to Griffith Uni to study a Bachelor of Engineering.
“I’m very maths-science orientated,” said Rhys who chose engineering ahead of other options including medicine or humanities.
A high-achiever, Rhys already has his next major goal in mind - a university medal. We have no doubts he’ll get there.
(Source: Ipswich News)
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Simone Liddy, a 22 year old graduate from Charles Darwin University has been named the recipient of the Young Achiever Award for the NT.
Simone was the first indigenous student to graduate from the university’s Bachelor in Pharmaceutical Studies program.
Congrats to Simone, it is excellent to see young science types being recognised at this level!
(Source: NT News)
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The impact of the GFC is starting to be felt in Australia, with the announcement this week of unemployment reaching a five-year high.
Separate news reports over the past few weeks have shed some light onto how this will impact the engineering and scientific industries.
The first article from the ABC talks about jobs drying up for new graduates: “Four years ago there was a lot of demand for engineering places and I guess the market was growing a lot but now it’s the exact opposite, so it’s a bit of a shock to the system.”
The second article from the Australian, highlights the impact the slower market has had on school leavers, with universities showing a significant rise in applications: “In what will be seen as a welcome response to skills shortages in the national priority discipline of engineering, undergraduate enrolments are about 12per cent higher than last year. At 20 per cent higher than last year, full-year engineering enrolments for overseas students heave reached the highest level in recent years.”
It will be a tought time ahead for new uni grads and those currently looking for work. The increase of engineering students, however, will be a big boost for industry over the next few years.
Image by stuartpilbrow
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Opportunity currently open:
Australian university students with something “eco” on their minds are being asked to step forward with their ideas on sustainable energy solutions for the 2009 Bayer-UNEP Eco-Minds Forum, and be in with a chance to represent Australia at an International Forum in Auckland, New Zealand.
In partnership with the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP), the Bayer Eco-Minds program aims to foster awareness, thirst and passion for the environment amongst students from across the Asia Pacific region. In return, the winning students receive an all expenses paid trip to Auckland for the opportunity to present their ideas and participate in solution-orientated group work, cross-cultural activities and knowledge sharing in a bid to tackle real-life sustainable development issues.
In Australia, the initiative is being supported by leading environmentalist Jon Dee who believes the Eco-Minds Forum is an ideal opportunity for students to put their passion to good use.
“What better way for young Aussie students to get their suggestions for sustainable energy solutions out there,” says Dee. “Eco-Minds provides the perfect forum for tomorrow’s leaders to exchange ideas with each other in a proactive, pan-Asia effort to make a very real difference to the future of our environment, today.”
2009 will see the third bi-annual Eco-Minds Forum take place. At the 2007 Forum in Thailand, university students Rachel Cain from the University of Adelaide, Laura Joseph from the University of Western Sydney and Eric Knight from Sydney University represented Australia when the best minds from across Asia Pacific came together to explore real-life issues and sustainable development ideas for fresh water supply.
Rachel Cain, who has been involved with the Youth Environment Council of South Australia, as both a member and mentor, and has completed voluntary work in Central America, says: “Eco-Minds has helped to fast track my career by providing me with an unforgettable experience to work alongside students from across the region to try and solve issues of sustainability that affect all of us.
“Each student brought their own knowledge and skill-set which helped fuel the discussion and ideas and allowed each of us to learn so much from each other. It’s opened up doors for me and I’ve created some wonderful friendships.” said Ms Cain.
The 2009 Eco-Minds Youth Forum will focus on a topic that is of growing importance to the world - Sustainable Energy Systems: Challenges and Opportunities. As part of the week-long event, participants will look at some of the challenges around energy supply, including climate change, and the practical solutions that can overcome such challenges with a visit to New Zealand’s hydro and geothermal supply systems.
For those “eco-minded” students who have ever seen something and thought “I could do it better”, this is their chance. The Bayer-UNEP Eco-Minds is open to all university students aged 18-24 years with delegates from Singapore, Thailand, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, India, Indonesia and China attending.
For entry details and application forms, students can log on to www.eco-minds.bayer.com, or contact the Australian Eco-Minds Co-ordinator on
(02) 4736 0892. Entries close on 28 March 2009.
(image by ian.plumb)
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James Willcox, a seventeen year old student from the Hunter School of Performing Arts has had the NASA experience with another round on the horizon.
The youth astronaut program involved a science and engineering challenge held in California. This challenge involved the design and build of Mars Rover-type model vehicle capable of going over rough terrain. No easy task.
For James one of the highlights of the trip was the chance to see the neutral buoyancy lab used for astronaut training.
After impressing the staff at NASA, James has been invited back in a teaching role. This is hopefully the next step towards a career as an astronaut. Big goals, good luck to him.
Source story from the Herald.
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