11 October 2022
A group of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students started their engineering journey in our free Koomba Birdal Program last week.
The program runs three days a week for 10 weeks at our Midland campus and will see students graduate with a Certificate II in Engineering (Heavy Fabrication Pre-Apprenticeship(opens in a new tab) ).
Students are supported throughout their training by our Koolark Centre for Aboriginal Students and our Jobs and Skills Centre teams, who provide mentoring, study support and career guidance services.
Koolark Centre staff member Tim Gilbertson, who will be mentoring the students, said the program was a fantastic opportunity for these students to kick start their careers in an in-demand field.
“I regularly visit local fabrication businesses and the story is universal - they are desperate for new workers in this industry,” Tim said.
“The aim of this program is to provide these students with the best possible start, support them every step of the way, provide them with the skills that industry demand and see them gain meaningful, long-term employment.”
NMTAFE would like to thank program sponsors Certus Group, Perth Airport, Australian Steel Institute (ASI) and Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union, whose support has made this program possible.
- Certus Group kindly donated our students PPE and uniforms.
- Perth Airport generously donated $5000 towards tools and PPE required for the welding industry.
- ASI will support the finding of apprenticeships for the students that successfully complete the course.
- Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union are providing funding towards BBQ lunches and prizes for the students while completing their study.
Tyler Bain, Managing Director Certus Group said he knew from personal experience what it was like to complete an industrial trade in fabrication at a young age straight after year 12.
“You don’t know what to expect and you are thrust straight in to a very tough and sometimes lonely demanding adult world; these young men need as much support and positivity around so they keep going, their clothing and PPE is literally step one of the journey, so when we were asked if we would like to be involved, our commitment was immediate,” he said.
Perth Airport Chief Commercial Officer Kate Holsgrove said Perth Airport was proud to support the Koomba Birdal program.
“We are confident that this group of young indigenous students will use this opportunity to learn valuable industry skills and transition smoothly into the workforce, and we wish them all the best with their journey,” she said.
Good luck to our students in the Koomba Birdal Program and we look forward to continuing this program with the ongoing support from our sponsors.
Find out more about our Koolark Centre for Aboriginal Students(opens in a new tab) and our Jobs and Skills Centres(opens in a new tab) .