VET success stories video

- [Kiah] Wait, do I start now?

- [Lauren] My name is Lauren. I studied Certificate III in Retail Services as an SBAT, and I'm currently studying my certificate IV in Leadership and Management.

- [Kiah] Hi, I'm Kiah. I'm in year 11. I'm doing an SBAT Cert II in Hospitality.

- [Mark] My name is Mark Sleiman. I studied Certificate IV Property Services at TAFE.

- [Hayley] Hi, my name is Hayley and I studied Cert II in Hairdressing in 11 and 12, which was an SBAT, and I'm currently doing Cert III at TAFE.

- [Kirsty] I'm Kirsty Ebzery and I'm currently in the Educational Pathways Program.

- [Lauren] What do you do now and what was your path to get there? I currently work as an area support officer for Apprenticeship Support Australia. My path to get here was a little bit difficult, as when I was in high school I didn't know what I wanted to do.

- [Mark] I got there starting as a professional assistant, found myself to be the worst PA in existence. Fast forward to now, 2022, I am the licensee in charge at PRD in Tamworth.

- [Kirsty] Basically, Kiah approached me and said that she wouldn't mind doing an SBAT, so then we went down, spoke with the owner of Polka Dot Cafe, and so we just progressed from there.

- [Mark] Were there any challenges along the way? Yes.

- [Kiah] Yes. A lot. A lot.

- [Lauren] Say when I was in high school, I was bullied, so obviously I was quite a shy little girl, and being an SBAT kind of created my skills and I could talk to customers and I turned into this outgoing person.

- [Kiah] Oh, I don't know where to start to be honest. I've dealt with a lot of family issues. Just personal issues, to be honest.

- [Mark] Like a lot of multicultural families in Australia, my parents weren't born here. When they were growing up, it was 'you become a lawyer or a doctor or a-' and that was success to them. You have to go to uni, study, do that. Mum and Dad, by the time I started enrolling at TAFE, they'd worked out that, ok, that's what he wants, and they supported me on that.

- [Lauren] The most rewarding part of my journey was getting on the stage in 2018 as a school based finalist. It just obviously boosts you a lot when you know your employer, your school, everyone, they put in the nomination for me. So my friends and family were extremely supportive, and just proud of the person that I’ve become because I'd stepped out of my comfort zone.

- [Mark] The most rewarding part of my VET journey is that 13 years down the track, I'm able to bring other VET students through the organisation, just like I was 12 or 13 years ago, and create the opportunity for them that was created for me.

- [Hayley] Stepping out of school into work straight away, and Mum, she was pretty set on me finishing year 12 and I wanted to complete, because not really anybody in my family completed year 12. So when I got the job, Mum was so happy, she was so proud of me, she was saying like every day her baby girl's, like, just finished year 12.

- [Kiah] I never thought I'd enjoy working in a team, but I do, a lot. I always thought I would just be a loner, all the time. I never thought that I would have somebody else there to help me. But it has been the best thing to ever happen.

- [Kiah] I thought that, like, I would give it a try, but I didn't think it would go anywhere. I thought I'd still be in the same state, that I've always been. I felt like my life wouldn't get better, and I wouldn't be proud of anything, and yeah, but now that I've actually done this, I just am amazed.

- [Lauren] I always thought I would be in an admin role sitting behind a desk all day, but I do a lot of travelling and I get to meet new people, and yeah, 15 year old me definitely would have been like- wouldn't have imagined this happening.

- [Mark] When I started VET, I honestly had no idea where it would take me. I never thought that I would own one of the largest real estate firms in the town that I live in, let alone what it's achieved for me personally and professionally, and for my family.

- [Kiah] Take it!

- [Lauren] Jump on it, and run with it while you can. It's not every day you get the opportunity to be given a School Based Traineeship or Apprenticeship.

- [Hayley] Yeah, it's really good to come out of school into something.

- [Mark] Learning doesn't start and end at TAFE. If you do get to the end of your VET course, and don't feel like it's for you, try another VET course.

- [Kiah] Just take it. You learn new things and along the way you meet new people. You get more, more confident, more brave, more strong. And yeah, just take it. Go for it! Don't just- don't give up. Go for it.

- [Kirsty] What's the worst that could happen?

- [Kiah] Yeah.

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