The word ‘jobs’ was trending in 2020 when hundreds of thousands of Australians were stood down at the beginning of the pandemic. With JobKeeper and an improving economy, the employment rebound was 5.3% between May and October. In 2021 ‘jobs’ is trending for more positive reasons. There are predictions of worker shortages in several industries over the next few years – welcome news for high school leavers contemplating their study or career prospects. Occupations Tipped to Boom The Department of Employment has listed four industries predicted to boom by 2023. Health Care and Social Assistance ..read more

For many adolescents, the thought of choosing a career path induces stress and anxiety. The pressure can last for years as students move through their last years of high school and following without a clear path to a fulfilling career. In past years, many high school leavers deferred the decision until after a gap year. But with overseas travel not available, the gap year isn’t as enticing and career seekers are bringing forward career choices. Why Decisions on Career Choice are Stressful Everyone has a unique experience in deciding their career. For some, it’s a simple decision. From an early ..read more

Changes to the cost of some university courses could affect the study choices of students across Australia. STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) degrees will be cheaper in 2021, while the cost of humanities courses will rise sharply. Students are now considering the cost of their studies more than ever in the past. For some, the reduced cost will entice them to change their course preferences and career path, but some will stay with their passion. Why Course Prices Have Changed The Australian Government contributes part of the cost of a commonwealth-supported university place, and ..read more

School leavers in 2020 have endured uncertainty and setbacks. They had to contend with remote learning, not knowing if exams would proceed not to mention cancelled schoolies celebrations. But for many, the greatest disappointment is the loss of a gap year spent travelling overseas. With the COVID-19 virus raging in most countries and Australia’s international borders closed, students no longer have the option of backpacking their way around the world. Students are being forced to make career decisions before they leave school rather than defer the decision for a year. And it’s not just 2020’s ..read more

Well-being is a vital component for both happiness & work effectiveness. Below are some useful quick tips to help busy people cope with everyday stresses. (* See below when your situation is more serious.) Take a 10 minute break, preferably outside and away from work pressures. Ideally you should do this every hour or so. Far from being a waste of time, brief breaks actually increase work efficiency & effectiveness. A brief meditation break will help clear your mind. Neural pathways, just like muscles, can’t keep working indefinitely. They need regular recovery time. Relax, shut your ..read more

What lies ahead beyond education? How do you start developing effective, realistic and suitable career plans? Planning Based on Educational Attainments In the past academic attainments have been a foundation of much career decision-making. While educational success is still important subject grades are not sufficient for good career planning. Jobs are many, varied and changing. Educational subjects on the other hand are relatively few. Furthermore there are plenty of examples of very successful people who had weak academic backgrounds or were even drop-outs. Richard Branson, Walt Disney, Elton ..read more

What happens when people start each day facing work they believe is meaningless, and in some cases actually makes the world a worse place? They get frustrated, demoralised, angry, and even depressed. And then there’s the BIG issue of productivity! For many people, work appears to serve no purpose whatever. In his new book “Bullshit Jobs”, David Graeber (anthropologist at the London School of Economics) sites recent surveys showing 37% of British people think their jobs are meaningless, and in the Nethelands 40% believe their jobs had no reason to exist. (It would be surprising if Australia was ..read more

“Gig” workers are those who work on a contingent basis, ie consulting, freelance, temporary, or casual. Their numbers have risen dramatically, and continue to do so. This is the fastest-growing category of new jobs. It offers seductive benefits to both consumers and workers. For workers advantages include flexibility, independence and freedom to choose when and where to work, ability to develop new skill sets and determine own future career directions. There’s also the opportunity to build up a business or consultancy. Significantly there are also challenges and downsides for workers. Temporar ..read more

In this fast changing digital world, students need reliable resources to help plan their future career.   Here are our top 10 tips for successful career planning for the future of work.   Keep up to date with contemporary changing work patterns. Predicting the future doesn’t have a good track record. Many surprises occur, and will continue to do so. Even though it’s far from perfect, present day trends are the best we’ve got, so keep up to date and in touch with them.   Be clear and realistic about your own goals, abilities, potential and career plans. Use the Career ePortal ..read more

Planning your future career is tough. You need to be taken into account personal factors (eg interests, abilities, potential, values, etc), the ever changing world of work, education and training, credible decision-making models: all these and more. Just jumping into something you stumbled across is not likely to be optimal. Strange, but some people think all you need is information. Especially for young people who are experiencing career planning uncertainty, more information typically means more confusion. Yet we still hear the advice: “Can’t decide? OK here’s more information!”. That’s just ..read more