Survey released for Bendigo professionals, educators and young people to have say on education to workforce gap

In order to help the 50 per cent of young people not able to find work and fill the 300,000 jobs left empty, local committees are working on a survey to see how these issues can be solved.

Bendigo Tech School director Graeme Wiggins said the Your Voice survey will analyse the needs of students, community, and local industries and guide key stakeholders as they strive to identify disconnects and develop projects and programs to address the disconnects.

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"Many students entering the workforce are under-informed regarding the variety of local career pathways that are available to them, while our local industries are unable to fill vacancies," he said.

"As an educational institution, it is our job to assist in the development of creative training and educational opportunities."

The survey has been developed in partnership with Bendigo Tech School, Bendigo TAFE Skills and Jobs Centre, and the Department of Education and Training (DET) and seeks to review the current career pathways and education models to find a way to collaborate to fill in the gaps and find opportunities

"This survey will allow us to assess the needs of students, their families, and industry more easily as we work with our partners to develop opportunities for young people," Mr Wiggins said.

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Local student Marcus Anderson said his desire to study nursing has been made difficult over the past few years, leading to a change in future plans.

"There's definitely barriers, and not just COVID-19," he said.

"I know there are pathways for me, but you definitely have to poke and prod to find them.

"Because of COVID, getting into healthcare to complete work experience has been difficult and I think that's an important step to take before going into the workforce.

"So for now, I'm looking at moving into something else and then hopefully I can go into nursing in the future."

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A business owner, who has completed the survey, said having a way to connect to potential employees could be a useful tool.

"Having a central platform that can help promote the different industry sectors, linked to jobs, rather than just having jobs advertised would be ideal," they said.

"Linking to virtual tours that would help our youth and their parents develop a broader insight as to the opportunities within given industry sectors, particularly manufacturing."

Community members are invited to contribute to the conversation by taking the Your Voice Survey at bit.ly/YourVoiceVictoria

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