Students hungry for a powerful career
An eight-day ‘taster’ course has left a group of Eastern Bay high school students with a hunger for a career in the electricity industry.
The Eastern Bay Energy Trust, together with training organisation Connexis, delivers the annual Taster Course, providing selected Year 12 and 13 students with an overview of the New Zealand electricity sector and the career opportunities it presents.
The course, held in the Term 3 holidays, is based at Tarawera High School, where trainees stay in the school’s whare tapare, while taking part in daytime learning programmes, interspersed with outdoor team-building exercises and visits to electricity generation sites, power companies, large-scale manufacturing facilities and Hamilton’s Wintec.
Eastern Bay Energy Trust Acting Chairman David Bulley says the Taster Course was established as an investment in the sustainability of the electricity supply workforce. “A few years ago, the Trust recognised a serious shortage of young people coming into the sector, so we established education and training programmes to help attract new talent.”
“We’re very grateful to our industry partners who open their sites and workplaces to provide the trainees with an experience that’s life-changing for many.”
Course tutor Ewen Graves, Technical Director of the Training Generation, says one of the many highlights of the week was coming across two of last year’s Taster Course participants while on site visits. “At Horizon Energy and Fonterra, I was able to introduce trainees to former course participants now working in the industry. That sends a really positive message,” Mr Graves says.
The Taster Course wrapped up on Friday (30 September) with the trainees giving presentations to an audience of industry representatives, family and supporters.
“It’s wonderful to see the change in the group over the week. To see trainees, who on day one would hardly say a word, by weeks-end sharing their knowledge and experiences in front of 40 people was truly remarkable,” Mr Graves adds.
Each trainee achieved an NZQA Unit Standard, with the highest scoring student, Vincent Masse-Denicourt being named Trainee of the Week. Masse-Denicourt, a Year 13 student at Trident High School, is heading to Canterbury University in 2017 to study engineering.
“This week has definitely given me an insight into the area of engineering I want to study. I’ve learned so much, there was never a dull moment and I’ve met a great bunch of guys that I now consider friends.”
The Taster Course is just one initiative funded from Eastern Bay Energy Trust’s Education and Training grant pool, which in the current funding year has $240,000 to provide opportunities for energy education, including energy efficiency and safety in schools. Applications are currently open for the Trust’s Scholarship programme, which supports pre-trade, diploma and degree courses for study within energy-related fields. Full details of the Scholarship Programme are listed on www.ebet.org.nz