KEY POINTS:
Tuesday May 20 is the 14th annual national Workchoice Day, which will see about 6000 students spread out across the country to visit workplaces which could show the way to their future careers.
Kathy McCombe, CEO of Workchoice Trust, says Year 12 students will be hosted at 350 companies and institutions such as hospitals, law firms and engineering facilities to glimpse what life in the real world is like.
"The magical thing about Workforce Day is that students going into an industry feel very much that they're getting it straight from the horse's mouth," McCombe says.
"We have many students now with relationships with the industry they went into, either doing a gateway work-experience programme or have gone back and been employed after the day."
One sector popular on Workplace Day is health.
"Student demand far exceeds the placements we have in health. Geneva Health is one of our leading partners. We work closely with them within the health sector."
Geneva Health CEO Jo Wallis says Workplace Day is a hands-on experience for students.
"They take blood pressure and do as much interactive stuff with them as possible," Wallis says.
"They often hear from younger people who've joined an organisation that gives them a really relevant insight into what it's actually like working in a hospital or working in an assisted living situation."
Wallis says the company wants students to take an interest in health because the industry has a tremendous need for talented workers - and if they end up working for Geneva Health so much the better.
"Healthcare demand and the need for healthcare services is predicted to far and away outstrip the skilled health professionals available."
As is the case with many sectors, there are still not enough health institutions participating in Workchoice Day to satisfy the demand from students.
McCombe says the project could offer some practical solutions to skill shortages - but only if employers get on board.
"A lot of businesses are just using the Band-Aid approach. They just put a Band-Aid over it because it's a quick fix and they're not thinking of the future. They want instant."
The Government gives no funding to the scheme, so businesses pay a fee to host the students. McCombe says they not only fulfil a community service by participating, but are also able to cultivate future workers. Some 45 per cent of employers have been involved from day one.
Hearing real life stories directly from the front line may encourage students not to close the door on industries which might make for difficult study.
"It might make them think twice about dropping a subject before they make those choices and think about their Year 13, so they will keep on certain subjects so they can go on to that next level," McCombe says.
She adds that students today may seem like they have their lives all figured out but they can still benefit from mentoring.
"We often have these preconceived ideas that students know where they're going and they're all going off and getting their tertiary education and they're very determined, this Generation Y, about what their needs are ... [but] they would like to have more information on making their career decisions.
"A lot now are taking a double look at going on to tertiary. They think, 'Should we go into industry prior to making that decision?"'
Meeting people in industry who might one day be their colleagues gives students a glimpse into the industry that books can't provide.
"It's not work experience but it's going and talking about people within industry. People will talk to the students about the skills they have and what they do, why they were employed there," McCombe says.
Workchoice Day runs two sessions, with students split into groups of 10 to 20. One school comes in from 10-12:15pm, another from 12:45-2:15pm. Schools provide a teacher from the particular subject area to supervise the students while they're on-site.
McCombe says some industries are particularly popular with students, but they're not able to see them close up because of a lack of employer participation in the Workforce initiative.
"We could do with a lot more on the communications side - radio stations, TV stations. They're sexy and attractive and that's where [students] want to go."
There is also a lack of industry participation in trades and retail. In hospitality, there is plenty of interest from students, but - again - there aren't enough businesses to meet demand.
"Even though we know there are skill shortages, that industry has been slow in opening their doors to students. The hotel industry definitely has been encouraged to participate because they are the last to come forward."
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