Some career paths
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Here are six young people who have worked out what to do after leaving school. Click
on each photo to hear their stories.
Image 1: Petra
In Year 11, after a trip overseas, Petra began to think that a job to do with travel
might be what she'd like.
Transcript of audio file: Hi, I'm Petra. First, I'll tell you how
I came to realise what I wanted to do when I left school. In school, I was unsure
of what I wanted to do. Then when I went on an overseas trip with my family at the
end of year 11, I began to consider working in the area of tourism or travel. I
was thinking maybe I could work as a travel agent. You could say that I definitely
got the travel bug!
In Year 12, I spoke to the Careers Advisor about my interest
and we looked into study options. I studied hard for my HSC and got a good UAI.
I decided that I would do a uni course—in something to do with tourism and marketing.
But not right away. I decided I would work for a year first—to try out a job in
Tourism. Just to make absolutely sure that Tourism was what I really wanted to do—and,
also to get some money of my own. I registered with a Job Network agency that assisted
people with a disability. I’m a good communicator and could get a job on my own
but I needed the Job Network agency to help to set the employer up with workplace
modifications to assist with my vision impairment.
We eventually found a job with a travel agency. When the employer realised how keen I was to work in the industry
she offered me a traineeship in Tourism. I was rapt because it meant I got paid
and would get a Certificate at the end of it! The Job Network agency helped the
employer set up my workstation and install screen magnifier software on my computer.
The screen magnifier allows me to zoom in and out, making text and images bigger
or smaller. It meant that I did not have to rely on other staff which is really
important to me. I was working full-time and doing my Certificate in Tourism.
Time went by very quickly, as you can imagine. Well, I completed my traineeship six months
ago! After getting my TAFE Certificate in Tourism, I still wanted to go to uni.
I wanted to do a Business degree in International Tourism, and specialise in the
marketing of tourism. I am now at uni part-time. I still work at the same travel
agency—part-time. Enrolling and attending uni has been a lot easier with the help
of the Disability Advisor. She helped me sort out my enrolment and recently got
me exam adjustments for my end-of-semester exams. Some weeks are really busy and
stressful, but as busy as it is I wouldn’t give it up because I am doing something
I really like!
Alt text of slideshow images: There are a few photos are of Petra
who is a young woman with long hair and a big smile together with her friends, two
young women and a young man. The young women have their arms around each other.
There are also photos of holiday destinations, mostly mountains, an island, Uluru
(Ayres Rock) and the Opera House.
Image 2: Dianne
Many of Dianne's photos are of people and nature, including photos taken close
up. She also enjoys manipulating images on her computer. She now works as a web
developer.
Transcript of audio file: I'm Dianne and I'm a web developer. When
I was in school, I realised that my interests were in the areas of art and computers.
I was spending a lot of time on the computer—emailing and chatting as well as surfing
the internet. I also love taking photos with my digital camera and then using computer
software to edit and add effects to these photos. Most of the photos I take are
of nature and people.
The careers counsellors at school helped me to look into uni
courses to do with art and computers. When I finished Year 12, I chose to do a degree
in Media at university. I got help from the Disability Advisor at uni. Because I
rely a lot on lip-reading, my main concern was how to deal with lecture theatre
or tutorial groups where I would not be able to see to read people’s lips. With
assistance from the Disability Advisor, I got an Auslan interpreter and copies of
lecture notes—which worked really well. I was able to resolve other little problems
with the help of my lecturers and the Disability Advisor.
When I finished uni, I was lucky that I had a great portfolio of my work. I just needed help to find a
job, as I couldn’t ring up for interviews. Once I get a job, I would need an Auslan
interpreter at the beginning—that is, during the critical induction and training
period—while I'm learning the job. I did a bit of research into the funding that
an employer could apply for to help provide support for me at work. I went into
the JobAccess website and was able to find out a lot! My employer applied for funding
and got it and this paid for Deafness awareness training for my co-workers and supervisor.
The training helped them appreciate the language and culture of the Deaf community.
It also gave them ideas on how to communicate effectively with me.
Communicating at work is fine—I can lip-read and I use SMS and email as well as the telephone
typewriter. And I'm glad my co-workers and supervisor have done the Deaf awareness
training—they're very good at communicating with me now. I usually do my own research
into what support, services and funding is available but one of my friends, who
is also Deaf, went through a job agency. He has just got a job through the agency
and the agency also got his employer money to pay for interpreters—which is great.
Alt text of slideshow images: The slideshow consists of photos
taken by Dianne and are mostly of nature and children. There is a close-up photo
of a spider's web and another of a fern.
Image 3: Jake
When Jake was at school, one of his favourite subjects was woodwork. He also enjoyed
helping his uncle with carpentary tasks. So it was not surprisng that it was an
apprenticeship in carpentry that interested Jake.
Transcript of audio file: I'm Jake. I did OK in my School Certificate
but it was hard work—reading and writing do not come easy for me like it did for
my brother. I knew I wanted to work straight away—I didn't want to go to Year 12.
When I was younger, I remember Mum took me to do some tests and they said I had
a learning disability. Mum said it means I just have to work twice as hard as other
kids.
My favourite things about school were my friends, sport and woodwork. I love
building things. My uncle is a carpenter and sometimes on weekends and on my Year
10 work experience I worked with him. I knew when I left school that carpentry was
what I wanted to do. We had an information night at school about employment agencies
and that’s where I met Kath from a disability employment agency. She helped me get
the apprenticeship with a small construction company my uncle recommended me to.
My boss has always been really helpful and he could tell I really wanted a job—but
after a few weeks, he wasn’t sure he could spend enough time going over things and
training me. I need people to show me a few times before I get it. Kath or someone
else from the employment agency would drop in to check how things were going and
give me some tips on organising myself. Kath told us about money my employer could
get to help reduce the cost of training—it's called DAAWS .... D. A. A. W.S...and
I think it stands for 'Disabled Australian Apprenticeship Wage Support'. The frustrating
part was that I had to do a test again—it was to make sure that I really needed
extra assistance in my apprenticeship. But in the end it was worth it—my employer
was able to get the money.
I got the job and was going to do a Certificate III in
Carpentry. I had to go to TAFE one day a week. I found parts of the course really
hard (especially the maths part) but the Disability Consultant at TAFE got me a
tutor and that really helped me to understand the work. I’ve finished my apprenticeship
now and have a full time job with the same company. It’s hard work—especially working
outside when it’s really hot but I love my job and my mates at work. And now I get
more money because I finished my apprenticeship. It’s great. Soon I’m going for
my licence. I've just finished a TAFE course where they helped me to learn all the
road rules. I can’t wait to get my licence because then I won’t have to get up so
early to catch a train and wait at the station for the guys to pick me up in the
work truck.
Alt text of slideshow images: The slideshow has photos of Jake
looking at carpentry plans and working with wood as well as a building site.
Image 4: Alec
Alec left school in Year 11 to take up a traineeship at a nursery. When his triaineeship
ended, he continued working at the nursery.
Transcript of audio file: I'm Alec. I work in a nursery three days
a week. I’ve been with this nursery for four years now. Sometimes it gets really
busy and I work extra days. During Year 11, I was diagnosed with depression and
I had to start taking medication and seeing a counsellor to manage my depression.
I couldn’t cope with full-time work or study. So when the opportunity to do a part-time
traineeship in Horticulture (Retail Nursery) came up, it sounded right for me.
I had done some lawn mowing and gardening on the weekends and I had liked it. I thought
it would be good one day to own my own gardening business. At first I found it overwhelming
doing both work and study. But after a few months of the traineeship, I got into
the routine and it was a lot easier to get out of bed in the morning. I started
to look forward to going to work.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing, I had a couple of
bad patches but I had someone from the agency dropping in occasionally and their
support was great. They also got my employer assistance while I was on the traineeship
so that it didn’t cost them as much, which was good because without it they might
not have been able to give me a go. Early on in my apprenticeship, I had decided
that I would tell my employer about my depression. He did not know much about depression
then. But he decided to find out. He used to ask me about it.
Well, I'm glad he's taken the trouble to learn more about depression and how it affects people. I know
that not every employer has the same level of awareness that he has. He's glad too
that he took the trouble to find out...as now together we can work out ways to help
me do the work. One of his family members has just recently been diagnosed with
depression so that's another reason he's glad he knows quite a bit about depression
now. He usually asks me how I feel and if I need anything. I feel that I can tell
him if I'm not well—because he'll understand.
For example, there are days when my
confidence level is really low and I really do not feel like talking much to customers.
On days like that, he doesn't ask me to serve customers. He also doesn't give me
a new task that I have to learn. He gives me work I'm already really familiar with
and have confidence doing. There are always lots of other jobs I can do at the nursery—we
just work around how I'm feeling on the day. I can check the tools and equipment
and clean them. I can water the plants. I can take cuttings and do weeding, trimming,
staking, seed sowing... I can help with stock control as well.
The staff enjoy the variety that comes with rotating the tasks and, over time, we get to learn just
about every aspect of nursery work. We get multi-skilled. The nursery continues
to run smoothly. And everyone's happy. I have completed my traineeship and I'm still
working at the same nursery. The people at work are great — so I have no plans of
going anywhere right now.
Starting my own business one day is still a dream that
I have. I'll be going for a week to the Daintree Forest this year. It's apparently
home to the largest range of plants and animals on earth. I'd like to visit Madagascar
one day and check out all their unique plants and animals.
Alt text of slideshow images: The slideshow consists of photos
of plants as well as people watering and re-potting plants.
Image 5: Maria
After she left school, Maria completed a TAFE course and worked in a number of jobs
before she found out that she wanted to be a Counsellor working especially with
children and young people.
Transcript of audio file: I'm Maria. I did well in Year 12 but
was unsure of what I wanted to do after school. I had always been interested in
helping other people—and so I decided to enrol in a Community Services course at
TAFE. It took me 12 months to complete.
Moving around in my wheelchair was not a
big problem as my TAFE campus has ramps—and wheelchair access in the buildings is
good. The TAFE Teacher/Consultant for students with disabilities assisted me with
the support I needed. He got this typing aid for me...it's a kind of wand used to
strike keys with on a computer keyboard. This was helpful as my muscles are often
tight and this affects my co-ordination and movement. He'd check that I had a supply
of pen grips—these really help reduce strain on my hands. He would check that there
were always footrests and arm rests in those rooms I go to for classes. He also
made sure that there was an adjustable work station at the library and the computer
lab and he had a chat to the staff to ask them to keep an eye out to see if I needed
any re-adjustments made to the workstation when I was there. He was very helpful.
It was a great course but when I finished I had trouble getting a job. My cerebral
palsy means that I have some physical limitations so it took me a while to work
out exactly what sort of jobs I would be best suited to. I registered with CRS so
they would help me find a job. They help people with a disability, injury or health
condition not only to get a job—but also to keep the job. It was frustrating not
being able to find a job straight away. I took this time to look in to different
kinds of jobs and decide what I would be suited to.
I finally decided I wanted to
be a counsellor so I enrolled in university to do a Bachelor of Social Work. I get
support through the Disability Advisor for exam adjustments— I was able to get a
scribe and also extra time to finish my exam. I also use voice recognition software
as I find it faster and easier to type all my assignments as I have limited use
of my right arm. I have completed some placements and now my goal is to be to a
social worker working with children and young people. When I finish university,
I hope to get help from CRS again to look for a graduate position. Now that I am
in my final year, hopefully, I'm not too far away from reaching my career goal.
Alt text of slideshow images: As Maria would like to work with
children and young people when she completes her social work degree, the slideshow
consists of photos of childrena nd young people.
Image 6: Lee
Lee is has one more year to go in his apprenticeship before he becomes a qualified
baker.
Transcript of audio file: I'm Lee. I'm a bakery apprentice—in my
third year. This is my last year of study at TAFE. Then I’ll only have one more
year of working as an apprentice. I'll be a qualified baker! My TAFE course has
been hard because of my learning disability. I’m not confident about maths. However,
maths has been easier now that I get tutorial help after class.
I went to see the
Teacher/Consultant for students with a disability—and she arranged the tutor for
me. I am glad that while I am studying, I am also working part-time in the bakery.
The things that I learn at TAFE make more sense when I have to actually do them
at the bakery. I am the kind of person who has to actually see something demonstrated
before I can learn how to do it. When someone just explains verbally, I don't always
take it all in. So when my TAFE teacher explains things, I try to understand but
I learn better when we actually go into the kitchen and do the practical...that's
when things really start to come together for me.
I'm glad I'm also working at the
bakery—there, I get to actually prepare the ingredients and do the baking. My boss
knows that he's got to show me how to do things—not just tell me. The boss would
give a demonstration for us apprentices and then the others would go off to actually
carry out what he had demonstrated—like, calculating and weighing the ingredients
for the various products... With me, he's got to demonstrate a few more times—and
he demonstrates only one or two steps at a time. I then have a go...and then a few
more gos. Then, before I know it, I'm able to master the task.
It's really good
that the boss doesn't hurry me when I'm learning something new...because I need
time when I'm trying to do it myself. This is the way I've learnt to work out the
amount of ingredients needed for our baked goods—the cakes, breads, buns, custard
scrolls... I also have problems with things that are written. The TAFE Teacher/Consultant
knows this about me. She says I've got my own ways of learning. She said there are
many ways to learn something. We can learn from textbooks and lectures—but there
are other ways. Like learning from demonstrations and trying to do it yourself.
She got me a few videos that have demonstrations of things I'm learning in class.
I watched them many times and I'd rewind after each step that's demonstrated.
She
tells me to always try to practise as much as I can at home. She says that I, myself,
will become more and more aware of the ways in which I can learn best. She was right.
Over the years, I have come to realise that there are some ways which I learn best.
Like, I know that I have to break down a task into smaller steps. And I know I have
to take my time and focus on getting it right—instead of worrying about taking too
long to do it.
I think I found this job at the bakery quickly because of help from
Joe. Joe's from the employment agency. He helped me find the job. He also helped
settle me in. I also get visits from someone from the apprenticeship centre. They
got me to do an assessment—it was to see if I need extra help for my training. If
they think you do need that extra help, then they can give financial assistance
for your employer. It's called DAAWS—and my employer was able to get it. With the
money, my employer can provide me with the extra support. I think that the money
really helps—as I don’t have to worry if I need to ask a few more questions. Or
take a bit longer to learn something new.
After the training, I don't think I'll
need a lot of support—well, I really hope that I won't. I know that once I learn
how to do a task, I'm able to do it with confidence. I might take a lot longer than
many other people to learn the task but, in the end, I can do the task correctly.
But, I was thinking: What if, after my training, I still find that I need some on-going
support to keep my job? Well, I have heard that people with a disability may be
able to get this ongoing support. I wanted to know more and so I went into the JobAccess
website and that's where I found out about Disability Employment Networks. I think
they call them 'DENS', for short. They can provide on-going support to help you
keep your job. I think I'll call them one of these days and find out about more.
A new apprentice has just started. Her name's Reema and I'm helping her learn to
do the job—I really like doing that. When you're new, you can feel alone and lost
(I did). You also struggle with early mornings but you get used to it. I usually
finish work by 2pm and I have the rest of the day to do whatever I want as long
as I don’t get to bed too late. I've just started practising with a band but I always
try to get home early—otherwise I really suffer the next day.
Alt text of slideshow images: The slideshow has photos of cakes,
pies, fruit flans and big loaves of crusty bread. There is also a photo of blueberries
and another of Lee putting cream on pastries.
