Emily lights up new career pathway
THE success of a Geelong High School bright spark has been celebrated in a new government resource.
Electrical apprentice Emily Gibson completed her Certificate II in Electrotechnology while knocking off her VCE, paving the way to a strong career pathway in the process.
The story of Emily’s successful Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification is included in the new Get VET resource, produced by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA).
“VET opened up endless amounts of opportunities and new challenges for my future,” Emily said.
“In VCE VET Electrical Industry, being the only female in the class was something to be expected as it is a male-dominated industry. I chose to use that as an opportunity to challenge myself and prove my abilities are no less than the others in my class.”
Get VET has been designed to introduce students to the wide range of opportunities offered by VET, and shows how the highestearning VET graduates can earn more than the highestearning university graduates and how more than half of all new jobs predicted by 2022 will be achievable with a VET qualification.
“VET gave me opportunities that I could not find anywhere else. Structured workplace learning gave me a foot in the door of the electrical industry,” Emily said. “By doing VET, I had an advantage over others seeking employment in the electrical industry.”
VCAA chief executive David Howes said more than 50,000 secondary students incorporated VET into their VCE or VCAL each year, “creating flexible pathways towards a diverse range of education and career goals”.