Steph on Studying at TAFE

Steph’s Journey

School 

I was born in Seymour in country Victoria and lived my earliest years in Yea, a small country town about an hour and a half from Melbourne. My childhood was very lovely due to living in a friendly and welcoming community with only just over 1000 people! 

I attended one of the small primary schools in the town and Yea High School for my secondary education. Through this time I was always involved in my community by playing sports such as netball for the Yea Tigers and participating in many swimming events for the Yea Water Tigers. Life in my town was always very quiet and slow paced, but the tight knit community and knowing nearly everyone made it a home. 

Major Moment

Another significant part of my life was the moment my Mum and step Dad told me they would like to become foster parents and that my family would welcome foster children into our lives! I honestly didn’t know what to expect, but having new kids in my family showed me that I can be accepting of strangers and turn them into family. Being 16 years old at the time, this new experience greatly encouraged me and my future and helped pave the way for me to make a decision to get involved in a similar field for a career. After over 5 years of having me and my family involved in the fostering system and seeing dozens of children’s lives positively impacted, my family has now taken on a larger role of permanent care for 2 beautiful young boys that I can proudly call my brothers! 

These days I reside in Kinglake as my family moved to Ballarat when I was 18, and I spend lots of time visiting my family and also seeing my partner. I’m currently studying to attain my Diploma of Community Services at Boxhill institute, which I’m hoping to have completed by July of 2021. I am currently undertaking placement with a program called ‘Project Ready’ which helps youth re-engage with their education at school in Gisborne, but with the current covid-19 climate I am doing this online. 

VCE 

Every person deserves to be presented with the greatest array of options possible when it comes to finding a career that they can be proud of. This is why completing VCE, even unscored like myself, can be quite beneficial, especially to those from rural communities. Having a VCE certificate makes you feel a great sense of achievement and keeps the door open to many vocational studies to tailor your study to the career you want. Rural students are already disadvantaged due to the lack of resources available to them and are only given limited options, which is why I give praise to options like TAFE! Because of this, you don’t have to have a VCE score, you aren’t just limited to university and you can complete a course that leaves you job ready and confident in a field that you enjoy. 

Aspirations

I have many dreams and aspirations when thinking of my career, each and every one involving helping disadvantaged people and making an impact on their lives for the better. However, working with DHS or becoming a youth drug and alcohol counsellor stand out to me the most, as I want to help kids and teenagers turn their lives around and point them in a successful direction. Helping kids and teenagers at the most pivotal point in their lives, is exactly where I see myself. It’s just something I’m very, very passionate about and is what I believe will help me feel like I’m achieving my goal of helping others and helping create a better world. There are still many other career options I’m interested in and I plan on continuing to further dive into more jobs throughout my life and continue gaining more education to help more people.