2012 Work Integrated Learning Awards

Staff shine at WIL awards

Rewarding excellence in and a commitment to Work Integrated Learning (WIL) is the aim of the annual WIL Staff of the Year awards.

Academic and professional staff shared in more than $4,000 of prize money by applying for the awards which were awarded by University of Newcastle Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Caroline McMillen at the University Gallery last month.

Winning and highly commended staff were selected from across the University, with the awarded staff acknowledged for achieving excellence in providing meaningful practical learning opportunities for their students, and $1,000.

Seven staff awards and highly commended certificates were awarded this year:

  • Faculty of Business and Law:  Winner, lecturer Christine Yap
  • Faculty of Education and Arts:  Joint Winners, Social Work lecturers Dr Tamara Blakemore and Lou Johnston
  • Faculty of Health:  Winner, Podiatry lecturer Fiona Hawke. Highly commended, Department of Rural Health and Rural Clincial School lecturer Laura Boyce and Joint Medical Porgram Health Selective administrator, Louise Morgan.
  • Faculty of Science and Information Technology: Winner, WIL placement professional administrator Debbie Cook. Highly commended, lecturer Associate Professor Mark Roxburgh.

WIL Students of the Year

Students were also awarded for their WIL achievements and for capitalising on the opportunity to improve their career-readiness through practical-based learning.

Seven student awards were given this year:

  • Faculty of Business and Law:  Winner, Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) international student Charmaine Lam. Highly commended, Bachelor of Business student Keira Bourke
  • Faculty of Education and Arts:  Winner, Bachelor of Fine Arts student Kylie Harris. Highly commended, Emily Rose Braithwaite. 
  • Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment:  Winner, Bachelor of Construction Management student Luke Carrol. Highly commended, Bachelor of Construction Management student, Anthony Samuels.
  • Faculty of Health:  Winner, Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences students Brianna Bassett and Evan Williams and Bachelor of Medicine student Matthew Rowlandson. Highly commended, Bachelor of Occupational Therapy student Alexandra Dickson.
  • Faculty of Science and Information Technology: Winner, Bachelor Science/Bachelor of Mathematics student Sean Jamieson. Highly commended, Bachelor of Visual Communication Design (Honours) student Brooke Hall and Bachelor of Communication student Emma Fischer and Development Studies students, Cathy Forbes, Sherelle Hendriks, Grace Bell, Kristen Anderson, Rosy Rose, April Almond and Gemma Neil.

Master of Business student Ruth Hartman, was the winner of the inaugural WIL Postgraduate Student of the Year Award. The working mother was awarded for her placement with electricity generator Macquarie Generation.

The highly commended WIL Postgraduate Students of the Year were: Master of Pharmacy students Kate Blanch, Lisa Fluetcher, Janis Safar, Emily Vincent and John Jones.

Student videos sell WIL

For the first time this year the WIL Student Video Competition was held, with winning students sharing in $3,000 in prize money.

The winning students had three minutes to shoot a video that captured their WIL experiences and highlighted how their learning has benefited from taking part in practical learning.

Bachelor of Communications student and aspiring director Chris Butler was the inaugural winner of the competition and won $2,000 for his efforts. Yak! student magazine Feature's Editor and Bachelor of Communications student Clarie Young was the runner-up winner of the competition and won $1,000.

Chris's video Working Knowledge: A Day in the Life of an Engaged Learner showcased his placement when he took on various roles in the production of the play Act of War. This was the first acting experience for Chris, who also took on the role of assistant director and created video used in the performance.

Check out Chris's video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPym_28SBAE&feature=youtu.be

Runner-up Clarie's video can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kXMoVdtt28

The highly commended winners of the WIL Student Video Competition were Bachelor of Education/Bachelor of Arts student, Eric Figuerora and Bachelor of Visual Communication Design (Honours) student, Brooke Hall.

To find out more about the WIL Staff of the Year and WIL programs visit http://www.newcastle.edu.au/business-community/work-integrated-learning/