Luke Couzens
Charles Darwin University’s Indigenous Apprenticeship Pilot Program has moved into its second year and continues to provide a range of employment opportunities to Indigenous people in the Northern Territory.
Stemming from CDU’s Indigenous Employment Strategy, the program provides apprentices an excellent opportunity to gain skills and knowledge through hands-on experience while earning an income.
Launched in July 2007, the apprenticeship program currently employs 12 apprentices at its Casuarina and Alice Springs campuses in a range of areas including Business Administration, Children’s Services, Financial Services, Horticulture, Information Technology and Warehousing Distribution.
Senior consultant, Indigenous Employment Programs, Camille Marshall said the apprenticeship program represented an excellent opportunity to obtain a nationally recognised qualification through on-the-job training.
“CDU is committed to improving the economic position of Indigenous people in the Northern Territory by building a pool of trained and educated Indigenous people ready for employment in the Northern Territory, elsewhere and at CDU,” she said.
Second year Horticulture apprentice, Luke Couzens said the hands-on nature of the program was fantastic.
“I’ve been given the opportunity to work at a range of events including the Darwin Show and the annual Garden Spectacular,” he said. “It’s been a great learning experience for me so far.”
Indigenous participation is a major benchmark area of CDU’s Futures Framework which describes the focus of the University’s efforts and commitments over the next 10 years.