Vocational Training opportunities ‘light the fire’ for next generation of tradies
Fourteen MIT Trades Academy students were presented with Prime Minister’s Vocational Excellence Awards at our recent prizegiving.
The award including a $2,000 grant to support the winners’ paths towards their chosen trade recognises the country’s top high school students while raising the status of vocational education to inspire the future generation of builders, electricians, plumbers, chefs, IT technicians, automotive engineers and more.
“It was unexpected,” says recipient Dominic Lo of One Tree Hill College. “I didn’t think I was going to get an award. When I did it was awesome. It motivates me to try my best.”
“It was surprising. I never expected to get an award like this,” says Tuakau College’s Lisa Guite. “I can spend it on my tools or when I go to train to become a qualified builder.”
The Trades Academy initiative allows high school students to gain vocational skills through a tertiary provider like MIT while they complete NCEA. The pathway engages learners who thrive in a ‘hands-on’ training environment.
The positive impact of taking part in the initiative for students can be seen in the 96% of last year’s intake who either returned to school, undertook tertiary study, or entered employment or apprenticeships.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do until I started going to Trades Academy,” says Dominic, who is studying automotive engineering at MIT Tech Park next year.
“I knew I wanted to be an engineer but I didn’t know what path I wanted to take. I thought, ‘I really like this.’ This is something that I love to do. It was all the lecturers that really knew what they were doing. They lit the fire for everyone in the classroom,” he says.
“At MIT, it was great having a teacher who cared about our future and us getting somewhere,” says Lisa, who is taking up a building apprenticeship next year with the long-term ambition of studying architecture. “It makes me have a set goal on where I want to go and what I want to do.”
Caption: Dominic Lo from One Tree Hill College (left) and Lisa Guite of Tuakau College receive their awards at MIT Trades Academy Prize Giving.
MIT’s Trades Academy also offers a range of experiences to students supporting work readiness. These include visits to suppliers, workplaces and trade expos. Whānau evenings are held to support learners and their families to make informed decisions about transitioning to study.
The academy is also a proud partner with local schools, IBM and The Warehouse Group in PTECH digital technologies programme designed to pathway, particularly Māori, Pasifika and female students towards employment in the IT sector. Currently, these groups are underrepresented in the field. In 2022, the programme expanded to deliver to more schools and attract new business partners.
“The number of awards students received at prizegiving only tells part of the story about what Trades Academy does for our young people,” says MIT Head of Secondary-Tertiary Pathways, Gaynor Matthews.
“The opportunity for students to try trades training and start their chosen pathway while still at school gives meaning and purpose to learning,” she says.
Our Trades Academy continues to go from strength to strength, connecting learners to rewarding careers in essential trades with strong demand for the 862 places available for 2023.