Kate Tangas: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to our first Career Advisors' Briefing for 2021. Thank you for joining us all this morning. We're coming for you from Storey Hall, which many of you will remember this is the venue that we host you all in March normally, and we look forward to hosting you again in May in person. And for anyone who doesn't know me, my name is Kate Tangas. I'm the manager of the domestic student recruitment team. And I had the pleasure of working with the brilliant domestic student recruitment team who you all know.
But to start off the session, I'd like to acknowledge the people of the Woiwurrung and Birrarung language groups of the Eastern Kulin nations, on whose unseeded lands we meet today. I'd also like to acknowledge their elders past and present. And we'd like to acknowledge the traditional custodians and the ancestors on the lands and waters across Australia where we meet. Okay. So we have a really jam packed agenda for you this morning, that we'll be going through. We have lots of excellent presenters to tell you all about programs and things that RMIT offers. So I'm not going to rabbit on too much. We're going to get straight into the session shortly. The domestic recruitment team are all online now in the chat. We know that there's going to be a lot of chat that's going in there. So we'll get to it as soon as possible. If there's any questions we can answer, our excellent speakers are going to come out and they'll help answer those questions afterwards. So maybe get all of those answered for you. And so let's get started with our first presentation.
So I'd like to introduce Dr. Jessica Danaher. She's a lecturer for nutrition. She's also a accredited practicing dietitian. So without further ado, I'll introduce her.
Jessica Danaher: Wominjeka. Thank you for joining me this morning and hearing about our wonderful undergraduate program for Food Science degrees. RMIT University is one of Australia's leading food science, education, and research institutes. We are the second oldest Department of Food technology in Australia. And today we are ranked as one of the top providers of high quality, work-ready food scientists and technologists in the Australian Food Technology Association. Studying Food Science and Technology at RMIT give students plenty of practical experience thanks to our strong links with major food industries as the well equipped laboratories. Our courses do allow students to specialize in food technology and nutrition. And our double degree with business prepares them for leading roles as food industry professionals.
So at an undergraduate level, RMIT offers two courses in food technology. First, our highly sought after singular degree in the Bachelor of Science through technology and nutrition. This degree prepares our students for career pathways such as food technologists, product developers, food regulators, food safety managers, researchers, and nutritionists. The training that we provide here is underpinned by scientific knowledge for advancing technology capabilities within the food industry. Our second program is our double degree, it is a niche double degree where we offer a Bachelor of Science in food technology, as well as a Bachelor of Business in business management. This provides our students with a combined skill set, and puts our graduates in a really high demand as food technologists that have a deep understanding about business and managerial practices, as well as managers that have a deep understanding about the scientific principles that govern our food industry. Equipping students with both of these skill sets, allow them to oversee the development of large scale food production facilities, and work for food processing companies that go on to have a global impact, making the Australian food manufacturing industry more competitive.
So let's take a look at our singular degree. This is all about the science of large scale food manufacturing, making food safe and nutritious for the consumers, and meeting our consumer needs. In this degree, students learn a range of theoretical and practical aspects of food science, technology, and nutrition. The study plan that you see here on this slide provides graduates with the necessary hands on experience. So they come out having had practice developing novel healthy and functional food products to meet the needs of consumer demands, as well as comply with government and industry strict safety and health guidelines. In the first three semesters, so the first year and a half, students will undertake foundation courses such as chemistry and microbiology, and they'll be introduced to some processes about food technology and nutrition. Later in their studies, they get to choose a major. So the nutrition major focuses on human health and nutrition, whereas the food technology major deals with the traditional and novel technologies employed by manufacturing of food products. It also looks at sensory evaluation of food, product development, and quality assurance.
For those interested in being able to progress to top managerial positions as leaders of the food industry, it's important to be equipped with a strong understanding of the business aspects of food operations. As such, our double degree with food technology and business management encompasses a four-year degree, designed to teach the core aspects of each of the singular degrees. In the first year, it begins with some broad courses in chemistry, nutrition, and scientific skills and communication, allowing students to develop fundamental science skills, as well as some core courses in business information and management and analysis, which really lays the foundation and professional knowledge in business. In our second and third year, students then undertake courses and learning activities to expand on these broad foundations. So in food, we've got courses such as food toxicology, allergens and health, chemistry and life science, and our new foundations of AI STEM course which we're really excited about. In third year, we have more food courses as well as our business courses there to such as creative innovative design and food industry management. In our fourth and final year of the program, our capstone experience course called management in practice, provides students with the accumulation of knowledge skills and applied work practice experience that can prepare them to transition into the business world. And the course product development gives the students experience in developing and engineering food products.
Our state-of-the-art Food Innovation Center is where our students apply their knowledge and develop practical skills in an industry standard setting. This includes a food production facility, commercial kitchens, sensory labs and suites, and food and nutrition research labs. We have a modern pilot plant that will stimulate the needs of an industrial production, as well as a range of food preparation, sample testing, and processing equipment. So all of these together are essential for developing food production and safety skills. Here we have a testimony from a student that I had the pleasure to work with, Rebecca Shuttleworth. She completed the Bachelor of Science in food technology in nutrition, and chose that because she loved food science so much, and understood that link to the food that she ate in everyday life. Beck has now graduated the course, and she continues at RMIT as one of our hedge tutors, whilst she explores the potential of pursuing an honors degree in food science to learn more from a research perspective.
So our students also have the opportunity to engage with industry, and that includes work placements and industry based projects. Our teachers like myself, are experienced practitioners, and we collaborate closely with industry to ensure that our graduates have the latest technologies and training to make them work ready. Graduates of our degree have later worked with major industry partners, because they have engaged with these industry links in their courses. And these include Nestle, Cadbury, Simple, Heinz, and Monda Lays. Our industry connections occur through stimulated WIL. So WIL stands for Work Integrated Learning, if you haven't heard that acronym before. These experiences as well with our industry placements will enable our students to engage with industry early and prior to graduating. Our students have opportunities to work with industry, and past projects have involved working in research or the development and design of new processes or creating new food products. So our students created or helped to create the product UP&GO by Sanitarium. Just last semester one of my projects for a student undertaking industry linked project with me, was to create food labeling and nutritional profiles for a company.
Additionally, some courses within this program have industry people come in as guest lectures, so our students have the opportunity to engage with industry early in that way. But we also have a strong focus on authentic assessment, assuring that all of our students are engaging in assessment items that prepare them directly to go into the real world as food technologists and business managers. So from production to plate, the food industry is the largest in the world. And there is a consistent demand for graduates who have relevant science and technology knowledge. And our degrees cover a wide range of food technology and nutrition science, preparing students for a number of career pathways. So our graduates from our food technology stream, they find jobs with large food processing companies in research and development, marketing and quality assurance. Our graduates from our nutrition stream work for companies in areas such as food production, marketing, or work as nutritionists. And some use our undergraduate degree to go on to further studies in dietetics as a postgraduate option. Many of our graduates, particularly those coming out with our double degree skill set, have progressed to managerial roles in food companies, while some have taken up roles in government departments or regulatory bodies.
So globally, food production is the world's largest industry, and it is still growing. And employment prospects of food scientists in Australia are excellent. So if you think that this career pathway would be something that would suit one of your students, please send them our way for more information. Thank you for listening. And I'll take any queries.
Kate Tangas: Thank you very much. We do have one question. What are the contact hours like for this program?
Jessica Danaher: The contact hours will vary based on the subjects. So we do have courses that have practical lab based components, in that students will be expected to have two to three hours per the weeks that they are on engaged in that as well as some lectorial and tutor activities. As a round about, we expect 40 hours of study per course throughout the 12 weeks semester. But how that is made up and how that is directed by the coordinator, is different based on the courses. So that's direct time. We also expect students to take self directed study as well to ensure that they are well prepared for any assessment items, or final examination processes.
Kate Tangas: Excellent. Thank you so much.
Jessica Danaher: Okay. For our next session, we have Professor Claire Macken. Claire is our Associate Deputy Vice Chancellor for learning and teaching in the College of Business and Law. And she's here to talk about the future of business. Welcome, Claire.
Professor Clair...: Thanks so much, Kate. And thanks, everyone. It's great to be here today. And I'm really excited to discuss with you our colleges business and laws refreshed Bachelor of Business, and to highlight the changes that you'll see in this degree. We're planning a refreshed Bachelor of Business with majors, minors, and electives. And, of course, hopefully, our slides work awesome, I think you know that for those leaving school today, there's a lot happening in their world. These learners are Generation Z. Characteristically, they're ready to take on the world and they're thinking about their own future, and they're looking for strong career outcomes. It's in a world that's constantly changing as we know, it's technologically enhanced and globalized. And for these learners, the new normal is uncertainty. These learners have just experienced firsthand, their learning environment changed radically, literally overnight for most, to online learning as a response to the global pandemic. And I'm sure you're aware, as we all went through it.
Even if COVID hadn't happened, these learners were already part of a context involving huge global shifts that were already having a huge impact on the economy, and traditional ways of work. Today's businesses are really demanding leaders that go beyond commercial success. They require leaders that have a knowledge of business, but can also think innovatively across disciplines and understand the realities of a technical and digital future. Importantly, they are real world problem solvers that can translate sustainable and ethical solutions into commercial outcomes. And at RMIT, we are shaping our business degrees to create graduates for this future. To do so, we're planning curriculum changes as I've mentioned, for business 2022. This includes a business degree with three key features.
First, of course, knowledge. Of course business discipline, knowledge is the heart of business education. And we will continue to focus on multiple discipline areas of marketing management, human resource management, accounting, logistics, blockchain-enable business, business information systems, economics and finance, to name a few. And we are also going to focus on cross and interdisciplinary knowledge to allow students to gain new perspectives, and for disciplinary business areas to collide with each other and create new knowledge. We're planning two new majors in social impact and the intersection of business and technology. This combination will provide options for students for both breadth, business generalization and depth, discipline based study. Second, our business degrees will offer an integrated skills and capabilities framework.
In business education, our focus is on assisting students to contextualize business education and learning. This is where students can develop capabilities such as creativity, commercial acumen, business leadership and justice. It is also where students can develop human skills such as collaboration, influence, relationship management, critical thinking and confidence. This focus on skills recognizes that the business professional of the future needs to be quick to act, flexible, forward thinking, innovative, and able to lead and adapt to changing business environments both locally and globally. Graduates need to apply cutting edge knowledge and skills, and be able to solve complex challenges, steep change and feel empowered to make a positive change in business and society.
And third, our business degree will have industry partnered learning as our distinct pedagogy. Our business degrees also are focused on professional and experiential learning in the business curriculum to engage with industry. This aspect of the curriculum encompasses concepts such as authentic learning and assessment, industry engagement, and opportunities for students to learn in the context of work. And as soon as we can, global travel experiences for students will again be embraced as a learning opportunity, including with our RMIT Vietnam campuses. In terms of industry partnership, high achieving school leavers and students in our business degrees will be offered the new Bachelor of Business advanced professional program, an applied degree or additional fourth year of study. This academy style program is a multi discipline professional, personal, and entrepreneurial learning journey with direct industry connections throughout. Students will apply business knowledge into complex problems in the context of multiple professional work opportunities. In the fourth year, students might choose to, for example, deepen partner connections with or without research, start a business with RMIT activator, or travel for study to gain a wider and global context with our offshore academic partners. In addition to our general business degrees, high achieving students who wish to deepen their learning after a three-year Bachelor of Business can also add a new four and undertake an independent thesis based research engagements through studying our Bachelor of Business Honors.
So we all know business is a general degree. With so many career outcomes, working in a business, obviously, managing a business, specific careers in a discipline area, or becoming an entrepreneur, just to name a few. There's so many more. Yet it's also the case that our business degrees must be directly positioned to provide higher education that reflects a different world of careers that graduates will enter today and tomorrow. Our business programs will provide the kinds of knowledge, skills, and competencies graduates require to succeed. This includes striking a balance between creating curricula that addresses the immediate needs of work, whilst also projecting to a future and future occupations that are, as yet uncertain. Most of all, it is our duty in higher education to create a culture and learning environment within which students are not just capable professionals, but also are ethically centered, sensitive individuals and critical citizens. This recognizes that students must have the capability to create new knowledge, challenge debate, and have thoughtful engagement in wider society. And this needs to take place within both a local, national, and global context where students can engage with important issues facing business and facing our world. We're so excited about our plans to refresh our business degrees. And we're really looking forward to engaging with you further. Thank you so much.
Kate Tangas: Thank you so much. That was excellent. I'm going to welcome our next presenter. We have Dr. Thierry Demathieu, who is our program manager for building surveying and land management. And he's here to talk to you today about our surveying programs, from boots to suits. Welcome, Thierry.
Thierry Demathi...: Thank you. Thanks for giving me some time to talk to you today. So we'll just talk about surveying. Surveying offers students the ability to extend their knowledge with increased practice and engagement with digital technology and surveying tools that map and display information from multiple databases. So at RMIT, we've got vocational education and higher education as well. And we start here with Certificate IV in Surveying, which is part time for people that are not really academic to get a survey assistant type of role. Or the Diploma of Surveying coming for year 12. They do one year, three days a week, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. And then the Advanced Diploma of Surveying is the other, the second year, and that's Thursday, Friday. So for employment, it is really good for business because they can have a first year student Thursday, Friday, and a second year student Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. So they job share, they can have an employee for the whole week.
Now, Cert IV is two days per week for one year. Diploma is three days per week, for the year. So Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. Advanced, Thursday, Friday, a week. Advanced Diploma will be Thursday, Friday, two days. The pathway. Cert IV will lead to the diploma and advanced diploma, taking three years, the Cert IV is really for people who are not really academic. So they get into it. And then if they get comfortable with it, you can just go and move to the diploma. Or the path where the two years in vocational education and three years in the degree, direct entry. And when your credit as part of the articulation agreement. Very successful. Over 25 students do that every year. So the facility with a GPS antenna, state-of-the-art total station, laser scanner, we got the state of the art, it's really expensive, [inaudible] financial backing to get us the best that we can get, it is exactly what the industry uses. Free software as well, remote desktop, so that they don't even have to install it on a computer, they can just use a virtual machine and run it and use it.
Georgia Moore there is a student that we nurture. And she came from doing some work in Canada working. And then she came back here, and like geography, like mapping. And then she got into the diploma. And then she got a job in that first year into the mapping that she wanted to do. And she's a perfect example of anyone coming from anywhere just wanting to get ahead, you get a job, and then you can just continue on. And now she's in the degree course continuing.
Now the industry connection, we've got all these industry, surveying taskforce that promote surveying to the community and as curious advisor exactly the surveying Task Force. So there's a website live without limits.com [inaudible] 87 work placements when we did the last three years, so these jobs were not there. And the student went to your survey firms, and just spent a week there. And there was 97 of them that we organize, and they lead to employment, which is really good. Because the business could you actually see what the students like and so. And we are the fifth graduate employment rate in Australia. So I mean, it just, we gear for that. And the global opportunity. Surveying can be done all around the world, you don't need to really communicate. It's about technical skills, using your hands, using the computer. So you can go in Europe, and Aussie kids are very popular because they've got a strong work ethic, and you can go anywhere for that.
So now the career survey technician at the end of one two years draftsperson so in the field in the office, choice operator in the office. A GIS analyst will be a bit more when you do more mapping. A special officer and surveying assistant which is the entry level for all our students starting. In the first two months, we teach them all the skills they need to get a job as a software system. So they want to get their hands dirty, that's the right career for them. And I think that's all I have. Thank you.
Kate Tangas: Thank you so much. Now, I do have a couple of questions for you. Do you feel that students should enjoy subjects in specific areas like math or science before considering surveying programs?
Thierry Demathi...: Yeah. Well, I think there's a lot of different subjects, as you may or may not know. We got 12 subject, office subject, and depending on what's happening with the student, you will just get towards an office type of role which is more GIS mapping, or just a more of a field role into surveying cadastral surveying. So you can decide when you do the degree after the diploma, you can decide which stream you want to go to.
Kate Tangas: And what's the job outlooks looking like for survey industries at the moment?
Thierry Demathi...: That's a good question. Job outlook, the last two weeks since we started in vocational, we had about five different businesses coming with more than one job. And so we just working with three to just get the transition between being a student to being an employee, because that's really daunting to a lot of our students. So we just make sure that we just go through that with them. But there's a lot of jobs and I don't have enough students to give to the industry, and haven't been able to do that for four or five years at least. So I'm trying my hardest. We're trying to prepare them as much as we can to give the best teachers. But it's still a transition between being a student to being an employee is really hard, but the work is there. So there's no issues.
Kate Tangas: Fantastic. Sounds like surveying is where it's at. Thank you so much.
Thierry Demathi...: Thank you.
Kate Tangas: We really appreciate you talking with us today. Our next presenter, we're going to be talking... Sorry. We're going to be talking about creating transformative experiences in industrial design. Our next presenter is Caroline Francis, who is our program manager for industrial design here at RMIT. Welcome, Caroline.
Caroline Franci...: Wonderful. So my name is Caroline Francis, and I'm the program manager from RMIT for industrial design. And today I'm going to be speaking to you about the industrial design undergraduate program. So before I start, I would like to acknowledge the Aboriginal lands, and the people of past, future, and also present. Sorry, my slides just changed. Thank you. So just to get started, what is industrial design? Industrial design is not your knee jerk reaction to product development and manufacturing. We actually do a lot of different types of services. And it's exciting career. So we also look at service focus, we also look at technology development and usage, and application of those new technologies that drive innovation. We also obviously look at product development and objects, and also the digital realm. And obviously, a lot of the digital space is now merging with industrial design. So we can have embedded technologies, such as smartphones and smart homes. So industrial design is where aspiring designers develop the skills to invent, visualize, and prototype design solutions for complex problems. Our studies are centered around learning through design studios. And that looks more like a workshop in the university where we actually get designers to actually come up with ideas in the studio, in the classroom, and work together. So it's a lot of bringing your ideas together and thinking through problems, and then developing solutions from that ideation process.
The way to get into industry design at RMIT is minimum you must complete through 12. And there needs to be a minimum of an ATAR of 54. But then also, obviously, the reliability of our selection process is through a statement that you're talking about your interests of the program, why you think it is for your education. But then also, most importantly, your portfolio. And that could be from education, like through high school, you could have projects that you've developed and you showcase that. But it also could be potentially through hobbies and other aspects where you've actually developed projects on the side or even within industry, who knows where you've come from. So that portfolio is a showcase of your capabilities to us.
There are many different pathways as well. So for instance, industrial design can also take in different people that are mature age students, or even people that have done an associate degree. And they can come in through the furniture, or product development associate degrees. And so we've got many applications. So I refer you to the RMIT website to actually look through those opportunities. This is just a showcase of the breakdown of our cost structure. You can see the dark sections are core subjects. But that also introduces you to user centered design, industrial design drawing, we do prototyping, we do computer aided design, interactive design, and looking at systems and social innovation. But the heart of our core course, is mainly about studios. And studios really important because we really believe that students can learn from each other, not just from teachers. So we don't actually do a lot of talking in those studios, we actually get you guys to discuss and think through ideas together.
Our facilities are showcased here in the picture. And we use CNC machining, laser etching, we also do CNC cutting. We've also got 3D printers and 3D scanners. And we've got state of the art equipment in our workshops. And what we do is, we allow students to interact and learn these machines that hopefully they can use that to develop their products and create 3D artifacts, or test their prototypes, whatever that might be. We also use our 3D modeling, we do sketching, obviously, that's important, but it's not essential for coming on board to the course. But also there's 3D modeling. And we use webcams screens as well to do high renderings as well. We also work in robotics and equipment at RMIT. And there's lots of different opportunities to marry up with different disciplines, so that we can actually work together. So there's some people that are working in theater, and there's others that are working in business, and there's others working in robotics, is as an example here. We've also got an expansion, a campus in Brunswick, which is a design district that's been established from the Moreland Council. And we're also expanding that over the time that we've established in 2019. And our first year's program is run out of there. And there's many different opportunities to get out and meet the students there.
So just an example of our alumnae, we've actually got an example here of a Beatrice who actually through obviously, she completed the degree, she worked in industry, but then she's now the predominant packaging designer at Aesop. So that's just one example of some different applications in industry. Our partners, also the National Gallery of Victoria, Sustainability Victoria, Australia Post, even the City of Melbourne, even the in Barcelona, we have a campus as well. So these type of partners also allow us to integrate them into our studios and our projects as well, so that we are working with industry. Some examples of student work. This is a system design. It's called SWARM. And it's an automatic, smart navigation system for scooters in Barcelona that utilize real time crowd tracking to navigate these scooters around the city to enhance public safety. So that's a system design. But it also works in product development. This one's ATMOS Orb, and it's a multi sensory retailing system. It sends out different signals, light, smells, and visual stimulus to enrich customer experience.
Our career outcomes not only is industrial design, but also product development, service design, user experience design, and furniture design. But that's not it. There's many opportunities for industrial designers to actually move into management in many different spaces. So for instance, industrial designers can be specialized in user centered design, which is well sought after in even banks and accounting. So we are decision makers and problem think through's. So overall, thank you for listening. But I refer you again to the RMIT website to just check out the options to how to apply. Thank you.
Kate Tangas: Thank you so much. And that was excellent. Can I ask you a question? In your opinion, does previous experience in art design necessary? Is it necessary before starting this program?
Caroline Franci...: Sorry, I can't hear you.
Kate Tangas: Is previous experience in art or design necessary before starting this program?
Caroline Franci...: Thank you for that question. That's fantastic. So is art necessary to apply? Not at all. A lot of people think you need to have a lot of art background. Definitely that is a great thing to have. And that helps to develop your portfolio. But you might be in design and technology developing things in wood, or maybe you are just fantastic at maths, and you just also love to tinker at home, you love to play with Lego and pull things apart. I like to go to the shops to bring my kids just to pull things apart, look inside and see how it's made thing, get them to try and put it back together, which is always a tricky task, those type of things. It doesn't matter what it is. But if you like to, if you're inquisitive, if you're a thinker, if you want to see how things are made, or how you can solve problems, this is the career for you.
Kate Tangas: Excellent. And one last one, what do you think is the main difference between an industrial design student and a student that studying another form of design?
Caroline Franci...: Another form of design? Absolutely. So industrial design obviously, works in the realm of developing 3D products. But again, we also look at system designs as well. And there's many different aspects that we can work in. But for instance, we might even work with fashion designers, because when I was working in a consultancy here in Melbourne, I would hire people so they had fabric experience, and people that worked in plastics and wood and different types of materials. So that For instance, if I was going to design the next baby born baby carrier, I need to make sure that person knows how to sew and create things in fabric. So we partner with different designers as well. But yes, our focus is developing solutions for today's problems that we can actually do with 3D or systems mainly.
Kate Tangas: Fantastic. That was a great answer. Thank you very much.
Caroline Franci...: Thank you so much for having me.
Kate Tangas: Thanks for coming. Our next speaker is Gillian Vesty. Now, Gillian is an associate professor in our school of accounting, information systems, and supply chain. Gillian is going to be talking to us about emerging technologies in accounting, ethics, and serious games. Welcome, Gillian.
Gillian Vesty: Welcome, everyone, and lovely to talk with you today. So I'm here to tell you how exciting accounting is, and hope that you can all come and join me in my first accounting core course that I take in our undergraduate accounting program. So I'm going to explain some of the changes, some of the innovations, and some of the work that we're actually doing in our course. So as you know, RMIT is very much industry focused. And we as an accounting school, engage a lot with our partners with the accounting profession. We have amazing firms that we're working with who are dealing with cutting edge accounting developments and changes. We work with companies like Zero as well who also have technology. So we very much try and embed technology in our programs. We also have a dedicated team that work in the blockchain hub. So together, all of this group, all of the activities that we're doing in our accounting courses, are helping to make sure that we're focusing on the cutting edge technologies that were ahead and working with all the changes that are happening in the profession.
We're working also with Claire, she might have mentioned earlier, our plan sort of refresh changes in the Bachelor of Business. And we're also working very much in line with these plans to ensure that we're ahead and ready to launch exciting new developments in the future. But I'd like to tell you a lot more about the work that I do as well in the course and the popularity that we're actually having in our program now, which is just fantastic. And I think a lot of it is to do with the innovations. The main thing for us with accounting is that we must consider accounting not just a technical practice, but very much a social practice as well. And it has very large implications for everyday society and the actions that we undertake as a result of accounting. So we do focus a lot on accounting for sustainability, we connect with the Sustainable Development Goals, and we also make sure that we consider a lot in terms of emerging trends and issues in society. And this is why following the banking Royal Commission, there was a lot more emphasis on the notion of business ethics and accounting ethics, and this has become increasingly important. And so, as part of our accounting core course, we actually introduced this to students. And we use a lot of simulations and serious games. And I'll show you more and explain a little bit more about that.
But there's some diagrams, this picture in the background, Bogart Technologies, is a serious game that we have developed with industry partners, we've engaged with the serious games profession. And I'm also part of the Games for Change movement, which has come from New York, and has grown around the world, which very much focuses on games for change, and for social change, and for environmental and social well being as well. So following the banking Royal Commission, we've partnered with the professional bodies. We've worked in, there's a new restructured code of ethics and accounting. And we've actually brought that to life in our serious game, Bogart.
So what do I mean by serious games? Well, these games with a purpose. So as I said, games with change in mind. And we have the educational background, which is the purpose, but we also use game to solve wicked problems. Sometimes these can't be addressed adequately in textbooks and in our traditional modes of teaching. So what the serious gains and the simulations do is actually immerse the student in really student centered learning. And so as you can see in the diagram, I'm there working with some students, and you can see the interface, the students click on the interface, just like they're playing a digital game, but this time, it is a game with purpose. And the students in this game of Bogart actually become a new accounting employee in an organization. And then they work through their own journey and their own pathway of decision making, and start to slowly learn about the ethical decisions that they need and some of the dilemmas that they might be faced with in a firm. So this is really exciting. And it's a very, very new innovation. And we're really pleased to actually have that in the class and engage the students in the class.
We also have, you can see on the screen at the side, Lucro Island. This is an animated game that we actually use in the classroom. And this teaches students about budgeting. And so it gives some initial insights into how companies budget and how they might manage operational budgets over the year. And in this Lucro Island, this game, they actually compete with other students in the classroom. So it's actually really fun, really engaging, and the students love it, and they create their fictitious hotel, they're competing against each other to manage their hotel. There's a leaderboard that comes up on the screen that tells the students if they've won, or if they've come right down the end. But they can change and adapt and learn. And again, we've had a lot of success with that, and the students really enjoy it.
The middle slide is another area that we really like to focus on in the classroom. And that's using the Sustainable Development Goals to teach the students about accounting as both social and technical practice. And this aligns very much with the philosophy and the mission of RMIT, to ensure that we also embed Sustainable Development Goals in our teaching and in our research. So we're really proud of that digital tool that the students create. They actually create a business plan, which is a digital artifact that comes out of their work through the whole of the course, and students can be really proud of their work. They can put this on their CVs, and show some of the cutting edge work that they are doing in accounting. The last little circle is a mobile app that teaches students how to do debits and credits. And this is Count 50. And they download that app and work through it in the classroom. And again, this is a lot of fun and another way to teach sometimes challenging issues for the students learning accounting for the first time.
So this is the course structure that we have at the moment. And the top one accounting organizations in society is the core course that I coordinate and I manage. And I think we're really proud of that course. And we get a lot of student numbers, increasing student numbers, choosing it as an elective. So, feel free to work through all the program, and inquire and ask to our dedicated team that we have here to talk about the programs in more detail. And we do have some really exciting initiatives and programs throughout the whole of the program that we have in our financial accounting courses. Students get embed into the Zero program, and learn financial accounting through working with technology. And likewise, we have some amazing micro credentials that we can include in the program. We also have lots of electives that students can also choose. And so we're very proud of our accounting program. So please feel free to ask more questions of the course structure. And I'm happy to answer any questions on those now at the moment. And again, our dedicated team will answer any questions for you that you might have in relation to enrollments, et cetera. So thank you so much for your time. And and I look forward to questions.
Kate Tangas: Thank you so much. The first question I wanted to ask was, what do you feel the benefits of an RMIT accounting degree are when you compare them to other institutions?
Gillian Vesty: The benefits of our accounting degree compared with others? Well, I think we are at the cutting edge with some of the the technology and very much a focus on the social and technical practice. So our accounting core course would be very, very unique. And I'm actually presenting some of the work internationally as well. The serious game that I showed you, the Lucro Island hotel game that the students play in the first course, that one actually won the Institute of Management Accountants Outstanding Case Award for 2018. And this was based in the US. And so everyone in the US were really interested. And that game is, we have a platform called [inaudible].com, which is available, and we have actually have educators using that around the world now. So we're leading in this space, which is really exciting.
Kate Tangas: Perfect. Over the last year, obviously lots has changed with COVID-19. Have you seen any significant shifts with the career outlook in accounting? Any impacts with COVID-19?
Gillian Vesty: Yes. Look, we we had to transition as everyone instantly to online due to COVID-19. And the most amazing thing is because we have a lot of these digital platforms, a lot of our activities are done in the classroom. So we very much have this student-centered learning approach. And we use the games to guide and engage the students. We actually did not have any drop in numbers in our classes. We had full attendance the whole of the time during COVID. The students were really excited to come to class. And the class worked really well, in both online, fully online modes. It certainly kept everyone connected. And we had group activities where students would pop into the different rooms through the LMS, and could keep in contact and in touch with each other. So for us, it was seamless, and we were really pleased that it worked really well. And now, of course, we're back face to face. And it's really nice to have the students in front of us in a classroom again. But we know that if anything happened, we can certainly just connect seamlessly. So we're lucky.
Kate Tangas: Excellent. We do have a question in the chat just in regards to AI's place within accountancy, and how that works for students moving forward in their careers.
Gillian Vesty: Yeah. The AI space is really, really important. And another aspect that I didn't touch on but we've also are doing a lot of work with our partners in this area, we've actually also introduced data visualization in our courses as well. And so the students can actually get to delve in with big data, play with big data, and manage visualizations, and do some of these accounting work that the accountants are doing and the future work. And embedded in that is this move to AI. And the work that I'm doing in my area connecting with the industry, is very much connecting in that space. And we have the blockchain hub as well, which we work with a lot in new course developments. And we're also working on hopefully another game in blockchain area. So we've got lots of exciting plans for the future.
Kate Tangas: Thank you so much, Gillian. That was fantastic. Our next presenter-
Gillian Vesty: Thank you.
Kate Tangas: ... is Paul Wyborn. Paul is a grade-one pilot instructor. He's also one of our flight training and aviation specialists. And he's going to be talking to us all about flight training and aviation at RMIT. Welcome, Paul.
Paul Wyborn: Thanks, Kate. Well, Wominjeka and welcome. My name is Paul Wyborn. I've been training pilots at RMIT for about three years. I'm one of the flight instructors at the Point Cook campus. And today I'm going to talk to you about our exciting aviation programs at RMIT. Aviation is a vast sector industry. It covers military, civil, and general aviation, and all the enabling infrastructure, including airports and air traffic control. The largest sector, civil aviation, connects people, goods, and countries, and is recognized to provide a vital role in both social and economic development. In 2019, commercial airlines logged over 45 million flights and carried over 4.5 billion passengers. That's more than half the world's population. This was made possible by approximately 5000 airlines operating 25000 civil aircraft over a global route network of several million square kilometers. I hope that's enough motivation for your students to get involved in this vast and exciting industry through one of our aviation programs.
Enrollment in either the Bachelor of Applied Science or Associate Degree in Aviation opens up opportunities to becoming either a professional pilot or undertake an exciting career in a range of operational, managerial, and planning roles. RMIT have been involved in aerospace and aviation for over 75 years, and RMIT flight training has been training pilots for over 25 years. With this rich history, we are able to offer a practical and industry focused approach, which provides graduates with the skills and behaviors they need to be effective and successful. One of the ways we deliver this industry focused approach is through our partnerships with the various organizations you see on the right of the screen, Qantas and Jetstar. And I'll be talking a little bit more about our partnership with Qantas later in this presentation. Today, I'll be talking mainly about our pilot programs. But for the non pilot program you see on your screen, the aviation management stream, this is a three-year program which allows considerable flexibility through a total of six electives that enable you to follow a particular theme such as developing language skills, should you so wish. So why RMIT for pilot training?
RMIT is a globally recognized University. We ranked 55th globally on the graduate employment rate. And students have the choice of two flight training locations; one in Mountains West, and one in Bendigo, 90 minutes on the CBD. Both have excellent proximity to airspace necessary for flight training and good all-year weather conditions for flight training at our Bendigo location. And I'll be talking a little bit more about these locations shortly. The pilot programs involve full time study, either at Point Cook or Bendigo campuses. Students will graduate with a CASA or Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority issued recreational, private, and commercial pilot license. Those completing the associate degree will in addition get to choose between either a command instrument rating or a flight instructor rating. That's what I do. During the programs pilots have taught everything, from navigation to the behavioral aspects of aviation required to operate in a commercial aviation environment, such as critical thinking, decision making, leadership, teamwork, and threat and error management.
Our fleet is a modern fleet of 21 aircraft, with a new fleet arriving later in 2021. All of our fleet have modern instrument packages and what's known as a glass cockpit configuration. We also have four flight simulators training devices split across the two bases. The Associate Degree in Aviation is conducted at Point Cook or Bendigo. Our Point Cook campus is located at the oldest operating Air Force Base in the world. We occupy part of the Royal Australian Air Force building. Apart from the occasional military and civil aircraft, RMIT flight training are the main users of the airport, giving RMIT students a unique advantage over the type of airspace usage you might find at other busy airports. Our Bendigo campus has seen recent local government investment in the airport. And which has seen upgrading of the airport facilities including the terminal building, as well as a brand new 1500-meter long runway. Our campus features a two-and-a-half thousand square foot hangar and classrooms and the same technology seen at Point Cook campus to deliver theory classes either remotely or face to face. The Bachelor of Applied Science Aviation is carried out at Bundoora campus. At Bundoora campus we see lots of space with modern facilities and lecture theaters, lots of open space, landing itself for opportunities to fly drones. And they also have simulators but these are primarily used for research purposes.
Let's now meet Kerry Phillips, and take a look at her experience of undertaking the course. Kerry took part in a Airbus-sponsored Fly Your Ideas competition. Her team made the finals in France. They had proposed a novel firefighting aircraft based on the Airbus A400 M. They were flown to Toulouse and hosted by Airbus. And after all five groups had presented the concept studies, Kerry's group came second. There was a cash prize and of course a whole bunch of kudos for Kerry and the team, and of course RMIT. Kerry's now chosen the piloting stream, and is working towards a commercial pilot license. Kerry is a stem advocate, which aims at promoting the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to members of the community who are underrepresented in those disciplines. She's also women in aviation advocate which aims at the promotion of women's involvement in aviation from Eric labs through the airlines. Kerry is also involved in the educational promotion of STEM with indigenous people.
Whilst COVID-19 has seen a downturn in the industry, this appears to be temporary with industry recoveries set to get underway over the next two years. Boeing forecasts over 248000 new commercial pilots will be required by 2039. And that's just in the Asia Pacific region alone, and over 763000 pilots required globally. Of course, this is good news for those considering commencing their studies in the next year or two. Our partnership with the Qantas Future Pilot Program is through the Qantas... Sorry. Our partnership with Qantas is through the QFPP or Qantas Future Pilot Program. This is a two-year mentoring program which gives eligible candidates exposure to Qantas personnel from the chief pilot of Qantas Link, captains and first officers of their Q300 and 400 operations through to flight operations personnel. They run development programs throughout the duration of the course. Successful candidates who meet the eligibility criteria may be offered an opportunity to attend the Qantas airline transition course. And upon successful completion, they may end up with a letter of offer for employment at Qantas Link.
Post pandemic domestic demand for air travel is likely to recover first. So now's a great time to launch a career in aviation. From pilot to chief pilot to airline management and airport planning, these programs create great pathways into some very exciting careers in aviation. Let me end by saying thank you for taking the time to hear about our aviation programs at RMIT. Thank you.
Kate Tangas: Thank you so much. Just got a couple of quick questions for you. How were the flight training units and courses run throughout COVID-19 with all of the lockdowns? How did that all run?
Paul Wyborn: That's a great question. So we were initially locked down. We couldn't commence, we couldn't continue with flying operations. Once we had our COVID safe protocols in place, which involves all the usual government restrictions as well as the wearing of masks on board, we were able to continue with the actual practical components of training. In terms of the theory, well, we came up with new and innovative ideas, which students were adhered to pretty quickly. So we switched to online remote learning. And some of the creativity from some of our instructors really worked well with our students. Any plane nerds out there will know that there was a new virtual flight training simulator, which was released in September last year. So our instructors actually got on board with that and started virtual training simulations with their students, which was a great way of teaching just the basics.
Kate Tangas: I've seen those. They look excellent. Do you feel like students need to have an interest in maths or science to go into flight training or aviation?
Paul Wyborn: That's another great question. So the answer is yes. The recommendation is to take maths and science, preferably physics, and really to excel in both of those subjects. Both are fairly important in order to successfully complete the training outcomes required in flight training.
Kate Tangas: Excellent. And what would you say, what do you think sets RMIT apart in flight training and aviation?
Paul Wyborn: Sure. Well, again we're located at locations which allow our students pretty unrestricted access to runways, taxiways, and airspace, unlike other airports that are more busy, so there's no waiting time. Of course, time is money. We have many, well over 25 years of training pilots, we've trained over 3000 pilots. A lot of our pilots are now working in airlines in Australia and around the world. And we own all of our aircraft. We're about to refleet, so we're about only 21 brand new aircraft later this year. So I think that's a great selling point for our students, or for new enrollments.
Kate Tangas: I agree. Awesome. Okay. Well, thank you so much. We're going to introduce our next session. Now, our next session is a panel. So we have a panel of experts for you, all to talk about what degrees for a changing world look like in communication. So I'd like to welcome to the stage, Janak Rogers, our associate lecturer and broadcast journalist, Dr. Julie Bilby, Senior Lecturer for advertising, and Dr. Deborah Wise, lecturer and program manager for public relations. Welcome.
Associate Lectu...: Thanks very much. And the pleasure to be here, and welcome to Julie and to Deborah. My name is Janak. Again, I'm from journalism. But we're joined by Deborah Wise, who is a senior lecturer in public relations, and by Dr. Julie Bilby, who is the program manager for the master of advertising. Pleasure to have you both.
Maybe first question to you, Deborah, to talk a little bit about public relations, and what you're seeing is changing at the moment in that industry, and I guess how RMIT is responding to those changes.
Dr Deborah Wise: Thank you for your question, Janak. So a lot of the talk around changes to the public relations as a career tend towards digital conversations and also AI. But what's really interesting is that the basic skill set have always sort of been, what public relations is built upon, as still as relevant today as they ever were. And so we see studies that have been done recently looking at the growth of AI. But still, the most important thing is actually having people with emotional intelligence to interpret and guide AI systems and processes. And the same with digital, you actually need a person that has those sorts of human and emotional skills to interpret the data and make sense of it. So it's great if you love data analytics, and you're that kind of a person.
But the great thing about a PR career is that it has scope for people with a wide range of interests. So you can be that really analytical, data mindset, kind of a person, or you could be more of the sort of person that's what we would typically say, is a people person, although that's not even necessary, either. So yeah, there's a lot of growth in terms of data social. And of course, a lot of people want to come into PR, because that's where they want to work in that digital social space. But at the same time, there's still some really basic human skills that PR practitioners need to bring to the job.
Associate Lectu...: I imagine Julie, there's a lot of overlap between public relations and advertising. And some of those same skills I'm sure would be in play, but plus a range of others. So what sort of changes do you think are happening at the moment in the world of advertising? And how is RMIT I guess working with it?
Dr Julie Bilby: Thank you, Deborah, for answering a lot of my question because yes, there is a lot of overlap between PR and advertising, but they are not the same thing. So in terms of the challenges, the biggest changes and trends that we're seeing in the advertising industry in particular, of course, it's around digital technology, digital connectedness in every way, every sense, the ability to reach people at the most intimate or surprising times in their lives, wherever they are, whatever they're doing, we can notionally interrupt them with an advertising message. And of course, we also have data analytics and depth analysis that tells us exactly where they are, what they're doing, and what they're likely to be interested in at every point in time. But of course, with that, comes a lot of responsibility. And so this is another change that we're seeing in the advertising discipline. And in fact in our students as well, this real interest in ethics. And what just because we have the power, doesn't mean we should use it, and how should we use it wisely and well. And with that also comes the opportunity for greater creativity. And that's one of the things that our advertising degree really focuses on, creativity in the way that we message people, in the way that we deliver messages to people, in the way that we think about our audiences, and so on.
But how to create messaging, that's welcome, that's interesting, engaging and really relevant to people. And then, of course, one of the biggest challenges too that the industry is facing, and this is something that we are really seeking to address in our student cohort, is diversity. Because the advertising industry, and the advertising messaging that we do, really, really needs to reflect the richness and texture and diversity within society.
Associate Lectu...: Coming from a journalism perspective, again, there's overlaps, it's what's nice about I guess, our trade, we're all in the communication business, coming from a slightly different angle. And things like diversity are huge challenge in the media at the moment, and something that's really exciting to see students from diverse backgrounds take up these professions, and be really desired by employers. So I think it's a really great opportunity for diverse students, at the moment as well. And so you talk about artificial intelligence from a journalism perspective. We're also really interested in that, but partly to fight disinformation, to fight all these new forms of deep fakes that are coming out as well, that's using these technologies, and these new disciplines of fact checking and verification that are coming into that, just with the amount of data that's coming through. But I think the technological changes that you're seeing are very similar to what we're doing in journalism, and it's both exciting and a real sort of challenge.
I guess, Deborah, if you're a student today, I mean, what's the big pitch? Why study public relations? And why study it here at RMIT?
Dr Deborah Wise: Okay. So well, I'm a bit biased. But public relations is such an exciting career path. Because while we do social media, and yes, we can organize events. We do much, much more. And on any given day, someone working in a PR role can't be sure what that day will look like. And it also offers opportunities to work in a broad range of sort of businesses and organizations. So you can work and not-for-profits, and do advocacy work, you could do legal PR, you can do issues, risk and crisis communication. So there's a whole range of opportunities. A big part of what PR people do is internal communication. And I mean, the old saying is, is that communication is the glue that holds society together, and it holds organizations together as well. So you play a really central role, both inside the organizations and outside organizations.
The other thing is, is that you could actually work for a big company or a big not-for-profit, but you can also work in agencies and do boutique work and have a lot of clients on your books. So you can work in sports promotion, fashion, you name it, whatever your passion is, you can probably find a career path that suits you.
Associate Lectu...: And, Julie, I guess a similar question. You're a student today, trying to think about which career to choose. Why advertising, and particularly why advertising here at RMIT?
Dr Julie Bilby: That's a really good question. And one of the reasons that keeps coming up as to why people would choose to study and embark on a career in advertising, is because it brings both a business sensibility together with a very creative sensibility and ways of thinking. So our advertising degree at RMIT differs from a lot of other degrees, in that it's situated in a communications school, and its focus is very much on creativity. So our students study copywriting, they study art direction, they look at design, they bring it all together, they create very practical, industry-led, industry-driven campaigns, but very much with a creative focus. So not all of our students go into creative roles. But they all come out with this ability to think creatively, again, in terms of their audiences, but also in terms of the way that messages are delivered.
Dr Deborah Wise: I didn't answer the second part of that question. So building on what Julie just said, look, the fabulous thing about RMIT is that we're situated in the city, and we're surrounded by PR agencies and big companies. And we have these really strong links with industry. That's one of the things we most provide proud of are as part of the PR program at RMIT. So we have people coming in giving guest lectures, we do work integrated learning. So all throughout the course, we've got these real world practices embedded in the program. And that's a huge asset for students going out into the world.
Associate Lectu...: Again, I think we're lucky to be at RMIT in that way too. Journalism, where we take a really similar approach, it's very, very hands on. We get the fundamentals, right, but then we do journalism. We don't just think about it, we don't just critique it. It's very much going out and reporting and having great access to studios, to microphones, to cameras, to all this new tech that's part of doing this, and then coming through that with great internships. I think that's where RMIT is sort of, we call it work integrated learning, which is a fancy word for actually just getting students into different organizations. And those industry skills, I think, are a real point of difference with RMIT, and that practical focus. And I think that's something we share within the department, which is really lovely.
I mean, we've all gone through this slightly crazy year. I'm curious, in your disciplines, I guess what the challenges, but also the opportunities that have arisen from this last year of the pandemic, and trying to respond to that both in your teaching, but also, I guess how the industry has maybe changed over this last year. Let's start with you, Julie.
Dr Julie Bilby: Of course, there's a much greater need and opportunity for online and communication that happens through a device. But there was happening anyway. So in a way, the pandemic has accelerated the inevitable change in our industry, but also in the way that we are having to respond to it both as educators and as our students are having to respond to it. So I think in our teaching, it certainly made us more creative. But it's also made us much more comfortable with operating in a digital and online space. As well as, at the same time really highlighting the need for connections and human connections and human contact, and the importance of human to human communication. And I think if nothing else, if that remains at the heart of what we do, what we teach, how our students think, then that's really valuable. I mean, one of the most important things that we keep trying to convey to our students, is to not underestimate your audience, not underestimate the people that you're talking to. Remember, they are human beings at the end of the day. So if you're thinking like that, you're not going to insult them, you're not going to demean them, you're not going to use unnecessary stereotypes.
So I think just that reminder that we're all humans, and that we need real connections. And real contact is probably a good thing.
Associate Lectu...: Deborah, what were your thoughts on that?
Dr Deborah Wise: Well, with one thing COVID has shown us is the importance of communication. There's never been a more important time for good, clear strategic communication. And I should have mentioned before, that's one of the key assets of studying public relations, is that you become a strategic communicator. And we've seen currently a huge growth in jobs for people who want to work in professional communication, slash public relations. So that's, I mean, everybody now realizes that when there's a communication gap, then there's a problem. And so that's really highlighted the importance of good strategic communication, be that political, be it health. And as I say, we're seeing real growth opportunities in those fields at the moment for public relations practitioners.
Associate Lectu...: Yeah. I think it occurred to me during the pandemic that it played to our strengths a little bit as communicators, because a lot of the big pivot to online teaching but just online world is something we trade in quite a bit. And we know how to use cameras, we know how to communicate with people who aren't necessarily in the room. And I feel like it's a really important core skill set that you'll get for advertising from public relations and journalism. That would be applicable to anything you go on to do at the moment. And increasingly important, if these changes, lock in which they seem increasingly likely to do.
I'm curious as well, I appreciate our audiences. As careers advisors, we're talking to people coming out of school. I'm curious, when when you were coming out of school, did you know that you would be coming into this profession? And how did you make those choices to come into it?
Dr Julie Bilby: Well, I actually studied what was the precursor to advertising when I came out of school. So I knew what I ended up in was what I was hoping to get into. And for me, as I mentioned earlier, it was that idea of being able to combine a business sort of analytical type of thinking, strategic thinking, with creativity. So for many years, I worked as an art director, which was an absolute joy. I was drawing and thinking conceptually, and designing in my day to day work. And it hasn't changed that much since. I mean, creative thinkers, creative students can still get a lot of delight out of what they study and what they do in the profession and industry.
Associate Lectu...: And how about you, Deborah?
Dr Deborah Wise: Like, Julie, I have a creative background. I began working life in the fashion industry. And then about midlife, I was a late bloomer, I just thought that, what is this? Because when I left school, there was no kind of careers that was called public relations. So anyway, I've always been really interested in what makes people tick. I've always had a really curious... I'm really, probably a bit nosy, I would say. So that creativity, as Julie was saying, combined with... Yeah, it's just really, and that's one of the core things that if we were saying to someone, is PR a career for you, one of the core things that we would say is A, that creativity, because you do have to develop a range of content, but also just having a curiosity about people and a curiosity about the world. Because you do need to be a curious person, and you actually need to... You don't have to be outgoing. That's a fallacy. We see television shows where we've got these people at some bit over the top. It doesn't take that type of person at all. You can be quite a quiet person, but you do have to have an interest in people.
Associate Lectu...: And again, I think this is something that we get to share as disciplines as well. What I loved about coming into journalism was, you just chase your curiosity as much as possible. And you can really pitch ideas. And if you've got an idea and you can chase that down, you get the opportunity to go places and meet people and do things, and then and create work off those experiences, which I think is quite a wonderful thing, and not something that a lot of professions give, where you've got that journey from what I'm curious about something, to I can go out and interact, meet the people, have that contact, and then actually create work off the back of it, that you're proud to put out in the world. I think it's a really lovely, sort of shared part of these three disciplines, whether it's advertising, public relations or journalism.
I think we're out of time at the moment. So thank you very much, once again, for coming in. That's Dr. Julie Bilby, who's from the Master of Advertising. And Dr. Deborah Wise, who is a senior lecturer in Public Relations. And I'm Janak Rogers from the Department of Journalism.
Dr Deborah Wise: Thanks so much, Janet.
Kate Tangas: Thank you so much, panel of experts. That was excellent. It was definitely a great session with lots of good advice. So we have a few more updates before we finish that we wanted to make sure that we share with you. The first one is the launching of our Discover What's Next webinar series. So last year, we launched the series, when we weren't able to see you face to face. This year, we're combining our digital and our physical events, as my boss keeps referring to is, digital. So that's what we're discussing now. This is going to be in combination with our physical events. So this series is going to be running through April to July. And it really gives our students, give your students, the opportunity to explore the program areas. And to find out more about what's on offer, to find out how it's ran. It's going to have advice from staff and from our students. And the calendar of events and registrations will be in the chat for you coming up. So these worked really well. We had really positive feedback from students last year. So hoping that, that will be the same for this year.
The next thing I wanted to mention is our domestic degree and diploma guides have now been delivered. So you are welcome to all of them online, the table, pop that into the chat now for you, so if you do want that. Our international student guides are very, very close to being ready, and we'll let you know as soon as they become available, and let you know how you can order them.
Now, as I mentioned before, the fabulous recruitment team who I had the pleasure of working with, you would know our recruitment officers Christie, Theresa, and Tarika. They're your contacts for lots of the career groups. So I'll go over them so you know who to contact and who's in your region. So Christie looks after Campase Cohuna region, Eastern, Geelong, Hamilton, Northeast Victoria, Northwest Peninsula, and the Waverleys career groups. So Christie is your rep for that. Theresa looks after the Bendigo, Central Gippsland, Central Murray, Dandenong Valley, East Gippsland, Maroondah, Moreland Darebin, Sunbury-Gisborne, and the Whittlesea Career groups. And Tarika looks after the Ballarat, the Banyule Nillumbik, the Bayside, Brimbank Careers and Pathways Network, Knox, Sunraysia, the Warranmbool District and the Wimmera, WRICA, and the Southern Mallee Career Groups regions. So you probably are very familiar with these girls. But if you're not, here's who your contact is.
Now, I think most of you... I know Daniel has gone out to his career groups, and Daniel has let them know. We have both good news and some sad news that Daniel has taken as secondment within RMIT. So he's staying with us into our business partners team. Now, Daniel has been with us a number of years, and he has made such a huge impact in recruitment, and he wants me to pass on how much he has enjoyed working with you all. And we are sad to see him go. But we are happy because we do work with our business partners quite a bit. In fact, they help us work with in the our colleges with all of the academics. So Danny will still be working, doing things for you. He'll just be behind the scenes for the next 12 months. So he's taking a secondment. So Daniel looks after the Shepparton, and Aubrey, and Yarra Careers Groups. Will be sharing that amongst the team in the short term. So I'm going to take some of them, and the ladies are going to take some of them as well. And we will be coming in the short term. But we also we'll have a new person joining us very soon as well. As always, feel free to contact me. I'm always here for any questions or emails or phone calls. So please do.
I also wanted to include Cathy Doe, in as a contact as well for you. Kathy works at [inaudible] Center. She can help with any questions you have. For any Indigenous students that might be looking at programs or admissions or scholarships, she's here to help out. So feel free to contact Cathy at any time. And I also wanted to introduce our fabulous new marketing recruitment assistance. So we have Alec Pangalidis and we also have Britney Jeb. Now, they are working with us, they are our marketing recruitment assistants. So they're current RMIT students that are doing a Bachelor of Business Marketing applied. So they're actually working for us for a full year, getting lots of experience in recruitment and marketing, doing lots of hands on activities. You may have even seen Alec up on stage once or twice today in the background, doing bits and pieces. So they are helping out. They've only been with us a couple of months, and they've already started to make a huge impact. So we're very thankful to have them. [inaudible].
That's it. We've had lots of information, lots of panels, lots of people coming up and answering questions. Hopefully you've had all of your answers questions, either from me asking them during the sessions or in the Q&A. If you do have any further questions, please let us know. As always, there is a Career Advisors portal on our page that has lots of resources for you on the RMIT website. And we also have a joint email account, a joint phone number, so feel free to contact us via that. We will be sending out the recording post this event. And it usually takes a day or so for us that to come through. So that'll be all sent out early next week. We will also be posting the individual recorded sessions on the Career Advisors portal once they become available.
We'll also send out a survey. We always want your feedback on how this should run, what sort of sessions you would like to see in the future, all of that. So we'll be sending that out with the Thank you. But that's it. Thank you so much for joining us this morning. We really value you giving us your time. And have a great weekend. Have a great Friday. Thanks, everyone.
