Why school students shouldn’t feel pressured into going to uni

THE best of the best in the trade industry have told Aussie school students not to be pushed into going to university.

Australian Training Awards 2016 Australian School-based Apprentice of the Year Leuwin Andrew. Picture: Supplied

DON’T feel pressured into going to university if your passion is in a vocation.

That is the message that came out of the Australian Government’s 2016 Australian Training Awards, which were held last night in Darwin and acknowledged the country’s best of the best in the vocational education and training (VET) sector.

Awards were presented in 18 categories for individuals, businesses and registered training organisations.

One winner was Shane Dealy, 22, who was named Australian Apprentice of the Year having completed a Certificate III in Carpentry.

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He had started out at university before making the switch into vocational training.

“I’d been interested in carpentry growing up and it’s what I wanted to do at school but I was talked out of it by a careers adviser,” he said.

“But I went back to it and I’ve been working in the family business with my Dad.

“Don’t be discouraged. (Vocational education) definitely provides a lot of opportunities. There is no reason you would be any less successful choosing a vocational pathway over university.”

Australian School-based Apprentice of the Year Leuwin Andrew, 18, echoed this sentiment.

VET Trainer/Teacher of the Year Donna Colombini has taught hairdressing for 16 years. Picture: Supplied.

“I think a big part of why I won is that I am so passionate about the VET sector and everything it has done for me,” he said.

“I want to inspire people down pathways they want to take rather than the pathway they are forced to take.

“There is a lot of negativity affiliated with VET and apprenticeships and people telling you to go to uni but if you really want to do something, do it no matter what someone says ... take it with both hands and run with it.”

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Mr Leuwin, who started his Certificate III in Commercial Cookery while in high school, said school-based apprenticeships suited passionate people who wanted to get a head start on their career.

“It’s not an easy task but, for me personally, it helped me improve my school work and made me a better student,” he said.

“I was a bit of a drop kick (beforehand) but I pulled my head in and it made me more mature. It’s been good for me.”

The 2016 Australian Training Awards winners

INDIVIDUALS

Douglas Wright AM — Lifetime Achievement Award

Denise Stevens — National Achievement Award

Leuwin Andrew — Australian School-based Apprenticeship of the Year Award

Carla Willcox — Vocational Student of the Year Award

Indi Clarke — Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student of the Year Award

Ben Nedwich — Australian Apprentice (Trainee) of the Year Award

Shane Dealy — Australian Apprentice of the Year Award

Donna Colombini — VET Teacher/Trainer of the Year Award

Isabel Osuna-Gatty — Excellence in Language, Literacy and Numeracy Practice Award

BUSINESSES

Bond Hair Religion — Small Employer of the Year Award

ProBuild (NT) Pty Ltd — Medium Employer of the Year Award

Metro Trains Melbourne — Large Employer of the Year Award

REGISTERED TRAINING ORGANISATIONS

Academy of Interactive Entertainment — Small Training Provider of the Year Award

Box Hill Institute Group — Large Training Provider of the Year

Northern Adelaide State Secondary Schools’ Alliance (NASSSA) — School Pathways to VET Award

Read more training and employment news in the Careers section of Saturday’s News Corp Australia metropolitan newspapers.

Originally published as Why school students shouldn’t feel pressured into going to uni