Kristy-leigh McDermottVocational Student

Finishing high school at the end of Year 9 didn’t stand in the way of Kristy McDermott following her passion and gaining a dual qualification in horticulture and landscape design. Kristy’s partner has a lawn mowing business and she wanted to study in an area that would incorporate her passion while at the same time complementing the family business.

Lewis BrownVocational Student

Lewis Brown is a proud Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung and Gunditjmara man. He decided on a career in community services because he recognised there was an over-representation of the Indigenous community in the correctional system.

Kate HerbertVET Teacher

Kate Herbert has accrued more than 30 years’ experience in vocational education and training teaching, developing curricula and leading departments. As a teacher, Kate believes it is important to be flexible and adapt your teaching methods in order to connect with students and tailors her teaching delivery to suit each person’s needs.

Kathleen FensomTrainee

Kathleen was someone who struggled through school to maintain average to good grades. She found it difficult to put things into practice in a classroom environment. Realising a trade role was something that would suit her, Kathleen enrolled in a Certificate III in Telecommunications, hosted by Telstra.

Darwalla GroupMedium Employer

It all started as a small family business 85 years ago. Today, Darwalla Group raises more than 25 million chickens a year, making it Queensland's largest owned poultry producer. Darwalla began providing vocational education training (VET) more than a decade ago offering Certificates II and III qualifications in food processing.

Megan FeaverApprentice

Megan had an interest in electronics, so after years of searching for the right career, she decided to undertake a pre-apprenticeship in the electrical trade. Megan aspires to lead and encourage women into trades, knowing that undertaking a trade is not based on gender, but on a way of thinking.

Rekeisha VossTrainee

Cristopher MatkowskiApprentice

Cristopher Matkowski from The Star Culinary Institute will represent Australia in the 2019 WorldSkills competition in August in Kazan, Russia.

Daniela FeldmanTrainee

Chloe BaigentVocational Student

After ten years of experience working in horticulture, Chloe dreamed of a career where she could support and empower young people so she enrolled in a Certificate IV in Youth Work.

Andrew MansonApprentice

Cassandra BrownVocational Student

After several years in the Automotive Vehicle Body Painting industry. Cassandra had a car accident that resulted in life changing surgery. Cassandra then looked into a different career path, which led her to accounting. Cassandra chose to undertake accounting through vocational education and training as she had seen the benefits of it in her earlier studies.

Anthony Di CristofaroApprentice

Prior to starting a mature age apprenticeship, Anthony Di Cristofaro completed three years of a psychology degree, not necessarily because he wanted to pursue a career in that field, but more so that he had been conditioned from an early age that university was the only acceptable outcome after school.

Rebecca HudsonTrainee

After spending several years working in management roles in human resources, Rebecca wanted to change direction and try a new career. “I did once hold a passion for that industry [HR]; however it was lost over time. I felt stuck,” said Rebecca. “That was when I knew change was needed for a better quality of life for myself and my family, which is when VET came into the pic