'Pathways to Promotion' - Melbourne, VIC
Western Business School Business trainee Josh Kerr, 24, working at K&L Gates, says he was surprised by the progression a trainee can make in a company.
Josh had attempted university several times since finishing high school six years ago. He found that the type of study that university offered didn’t fit his learning style. While a traineeship within WPC Group taught him more about what it meant to be in the workforce and gave him the skills to progress in his field.
Josh tried university first, under the impression that VET graduates struggle to find work. This opinion that university is the only way to a full time career is commonly held. Nearly 30% of people feel that the main reason Australians choose university over VET is because university graduates find work more easily. The fact is that VET graduates have a higher employment rate than undergraduates. More than 78% of VET graduates are employed after training. While undergraduate employment remains at a low 69%. (National Centre for Vocational Training 2016).
Josh applied for his traineeship with K&L Gates in May of 2017, keen to start a job in an office environment. He came across a WPC Group online advertisement and jumped straight on that. He thought that it would be an amazing opportunity to complete his Certificate III in Business while also earning an income in a job that he enjoyed.
“For near on 6 months I was trying to find a job in an office environment and I wasn’t having luck and that’s when I came across the WPC Group traineeship.”
Since Josh started his traineeship with K&L Gates he has worked in client services, office services, and reception. “I was fortunate enough to be given a number of roles that I could excel in while also honing my craft in an office environment.”
Just recently, Josh has been promoted to a Coordinator in Office Services. Through this role he is tasked with training new WPC Group trainees which is rewarding for both him and the trainees.
“It’s not something that I expected when first starting 12 months ago in a traineeship. It really shows what this traineeship can do and what opportunities it can present to you.”
“Doing the traineeship with WPC Group and studying the Certificate III in Business, I really found that a lot of the activities and a lot of the projects that I completed related directly to the work environment.”
Whenever Josh had a query or a question about what his role should entail within the working environment he was always able to reach out to someone in the company, whether it be his WPC Group mentor Carol or people in payroll for finance related questions.
“If someone was thinking about doing a traineeship I would definitely recommend it. The amount of experience and the people that you meet just throughout this 12 month process will lead you down a really good path.”