Career in ag: Year 12 students given early taste of life on land
A new agriculture program will allow Australian farmers to roll out the welcome mat to school leavers in their gap year.
Romy Ainslie has not let the axing of agriculture as a year 12 subject at her high school in the Hawkesbury River region become a roadblock to a career on the land.
The Lower Portland teenager will be part of a gap year program matching high school graduates with an on-farm job in a partnership between the federal government and National Farmers’ Federation.
While Covid is continuing to make overseas travel plans for high school leavers problematic, Ms Ainslie is determined not to waste her gap year when she takes up her on-farm placement in March under the AgCAREERSTART program.
“This is a great opportunity,” she said.
“I’m going into it with my eyes wide open.
“I didn’t really grow up with a lot of farm animals or anything.
“But I like getting my hands dirty, I like how farming keeps you really busy.
“If I had a choice I would really like to work with cattle, but I like all challenges.”
Mungindi grains, beef and cotton farmer Sam Heagney, who will be taking on a program participant, likened it to reinventing the wheel when school leavers would once spend a year working as a jackaroo or jillaroo.
“They weren’t always people from rural backgrounds, people from the city would go and spend a year working on a sheep station as a life experience and seeing another part of the world,” he said.
“That has fallen by the wayside over the years, but this program is a similar sort of thing.
“It’s just wrapped up a bit differently.
“For all the negatives of Covid it has created some positives.”
Mr Heagney has 10 employees and already has a high school leaver from Brisbane working for him.
AgCAREERSTART participants will receive safety training, on-farm induction and VET scholarships to upskill on the job.
NFF chief executive Tony Mahar said AgCAREERSTART would provide participants with an opportunity to explore new parts of Australia and learn farm skills.
“If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s to make the most of every opportunity,” he said.
“Travel may always be possible, but a program like this doesn’t come along every day.”
Participants will be employed on award wages and can access government funded relocation assistance.
Applications for both farmer hosts and participants are now open. For more information and to register your interest visit www.agcareerstart.com.au
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