Career Practitioners Forum 2017

Teachers and career practitioners gathered to hear professional and academic staff speak about what Victoria University has to offer students who are ready to embrace a new education experience in 2018.

Ian Solomonides, Pro-Vice Chancellor, Learning Innovation and Quality, and Andrew Smallridge, Associate Professor opened the 2017 Careers Practitioners Forum by sharing details about the First Year Model – an innovative approach to learning, and teaching based on a block mode of study.

The presentation was well received and concluded with lengthy question time, as teachers and career practitioners discussed flexible timetables, the advantages of smaller class sizes and creating lasting peer connections.

A teacher for nearly 30 years, Helen Lightfoot from Nagel College in Bairnsdale said,

“I thought the presentation was excellent. I really think the First Year Model idea is terrific. We have many students who move up to Melbourne, but have trouble adapting to university life. That first year can be challenging; students have so much to cope with; moving away from home, making new friends. I like the idea of immersing students in the subject and giving them time to meet their classmates and lecturers.”

Other sessions included Whose success is it anyway? with Jo Van Son (Director, Employability and Careers) and panel talking about unconventional career paths.

A personalised student experience with Naomi Dempsey (Director of Customer Service and Student Communications) and team emphasised the importance of student participation and welfare. An address by VU’s Vice-Chancellor, Peter Dawkins, reinforced his commitment to achieving the highest levels of student satisfaction among first-year students of any university in Victoria by 2020.