Australian First Virtual Career Experience Program Launched
Published 27 October 2022
Moreton Bay Regional Council has launched a free, new virtual career experience program to give high school students a taste of what it’s like to work across four (4) priority industries, while addressing workforce supply shortages.
Mayor Peter Flannery said the new My Future In Moreton Bay program was designed to give future employees a step ahead in the workforce and provide them with the suitable skills to have a career in Moreton Bay long-term.
“Moreton Bay Region’s economy is growing quickly but one of the lasting legacies of COVID has been the shortage of skilled workers in the labour market across Australia,” he said.
“Local industries have told us that it’s difficult to source and retain skilled workers, so we’ve responded by creating a local government-first online simulator designed to give high school students (year 10-12) a taste of the workforce before they start their careers.
“While it’s targeted at students, it will also be free to all Moreton Bay residents to use and we’ll be providing to Workforce Australia agencies to rollout with their clients.
“Through our Regional Economic Development Strategy (REDS), we have a commitment to create 100,000 new jobs and 16,000 new businesses by 2041, and attracting, developing, and retaining skilled workers is key to achieving that goal.
“We’ve created 10 modules covering 10 priority industries that were identified by Council as being key to Moreton Bay’s growing economy, including: Advanced Manufacturing, Food and Agribusiness, Tourism, Sport and Major Events and Innovation and Entrepreneurship businesses.
“Students across eight pilot schools can access these bite-sized modules to experience what it’s actually like to perform those jobs in a real-life setting.
“By providing this option to students, we hope to make that transition into the workforce as smooth as possible and help unearth the next entrepreneurs in those industries.
“Moreton Bay Regional Council is the third largest Council in Australia and our population and economy is growing fast, so it’s important we get this right now to develop our workforce to succeed for many years to come.
“The program was developed in partnership with The Forage, who is a national leader in virtual work experience programs, and this will be the first time they’ve worked with a local government to roll out a program like this.
“We hope to have over 3,000 enrolments in the virtual career experience program by the end of 2024 - a target I believe is beyond achievable.
“I can’t wait to see the fruits of labour taking on the workforce with the appropriate skills to succeed in Moreton Bay for many years to come!”
Each module takes approximately 1-2 hours to complete and is 100 percent online making it easy for schools to implement in career development classes and curriculums and making training modules more accessible and flexible for all participants to complete it in their own time and at their own pace.
On completion of the program, participants will receive a digital certificate to share with potential job prospects with the goal of this becoming widely recognised by businesses as a notable achievement and desirable prerequisite for potential new recruits.
The virtual career experience program is an extension of Moreton Bay Regional Council’s ongoing commitment to creating a brighter future for the younger generations and is an addition to their existing programs including the Mayor’s Telstra Innovation Awards, Create Your Future Jobs and Innovate Moreton Bay programs.
The program is open to all local residents in the Moreton Bay Region.
The new virtual career experience will be listed on the Forage website once it’s available: https://www.theforage.com/partner/moreton-bay-regional-council