Employment initiatives boost student experience and graduate outcomes at Griffith University

A new range of career-focused initiatives will give Griffith University graduates a sharp competitive edge to improve their job prospects.
Griffith aims to include real-life industry experiences in all its degrees and programs.
Its students also have access to an e-mentoring program, a high-quality ePortfolio platform. Griffith is the first Australian university to operate a franchise of Unitemps—a recruitment service providing paid work opportunities for students.

These employability enhancing services have proved invaluable for recent mechanical engineering graduate Sebastian Speak, who has been employed full-time by Scout Aerial to design a drone launcher for an anti-poaching device, which will be used in Africa.
“I designed one launcher as part of a twelve-week internship and now I’m making thirty ready to be used in Africa to specifically target the illegal poaching of rhinoceros and elephants,” he said.
“I moved to Australia to specifically study at Griffith because I had heard it focused on preparing you for working in industry and I couldn’t be happier with my outcome.”
Griffith University Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) Professor Debra Henly said this year approximately 22,500 students were enrolled in courses that facilitate internships, work experience or work placements within industry professionals locally, nationally and globally.
She says there are almost 400 subject areas with a specific industry placement course option and that the University also assists with work experience and job placements outside of specific courses.
“Students across all study areas at Griffith will experience a range of opportunities to build their professional identity and career readiness throughout their degree,” she said.
“We are also moving to three 12-week trimesters in 2017, which will allow students greater flexibility to balance work and study, or to accelerate their study in some degrees.”
Griffith School of Education and Professional Studies academics Professor Glenn Finger and Dr Paula Jervis-Tracey recently published research about internships in the education industry in a book titled Teacher Education: Innovation, Intervention and Impact.
This quality research reinforces Griffith’s position as a leading university for graduate success and graduate employability, and is based on Griffith’s Employability Framework.
Professor Finger says internships are designed to inspire students to achieve their dream career: “Strengthening the connection between university and industry is the key to the success of internships,” Professor Finger said.
Griffith’s work with education internships has seen approximately 90 per cent of our graduates working in schools in Queensland.

Griffith’s key employability initiatives

Industry experiences – Griffith University has internship opportunities in every study group. It also offers up to 250 exclusive internships with the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games organising body (GOLDOC) through our official partnership.  Students completing internships with GOLDOC have the unique opportunity to earn 40 credit points, allowing them to fully immerse themselves in the organisation and apply their knowledge throughout their placement. Each year hundreds of students also travel overseas to enhance their degrees through global learning experiences, which are available in 48 countries.
Griffith Unitemps is the first Australian franchise of Unitemps, a UK-based student employment service providing paid work opportunities for students on campus and in South East Queensland businesses while they study.  It offers a broad range of general and degree-related vacancies aimed at improving employability before and after graduation.
Mentoring – Griffith Global eMentoring focuses on global engagement. It aims to support career development learning, global citizenship and graduate outcomes for Griffith students by connecting them to industry professionals beyond Australia’s borders. GGEM mentors not only assist Griffith students to gain a deeper understanding of their disciplines, they connect them to a world of opportunity. Griffith also runs the Industry Mentoring Program, and Griffith Business School is piloting eCareerCoaching.
Supported ePortfolio platform – Employers are increasingly looking for quality online portfolios when hiring, and ePortfolios allow students to document their professional and academic development as their studies progress. All Griffith students have access to build a high quality ePortfolio during their degree.
Professional profiling on LinkedIn – Students are encouraged to build and optimise their LinkedIn profile and enhance their employability prospects by connecting with industry professionals, employers and alumni. Griffith’s LinkedIn eModule provides expert guidance on developing an exceptional professional profile, including selecting the right photo and addressing the headline, summary, experiences and more.
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