Nathalie loved her time as a student in the Bachelor of Development Studies. Nathalie has since been employed in a variety of roles which highlights the diversity of the degree and the transferability of the skills she gained.  

WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO SINCE GRADUATING? 

Shortly after graduating Nathalie moved to Queensland and has worked in a number of roles. To begin with Nathalie worked as a Research Assistant at the University of Queensland with the Institute for Social Science Research. Nathalie worked in this role until she decided to leave as she wanted to work with vulnerable people more directly. 

Her next role was with The Benevolent Society where she was the Saver Plus Coordinator. Saver Plus is a program aimed at providing adult financial literacy. Participants attended workshops that were ran by Nathalie where they gained practical financial skills. Participants saved regularly during the program, and at the end of the program their savings were matched by ANZ, a program partner. When the project was delegated to Nathalie there were only a handful of participants. After just a year, Nathalie was working with 80 participants. To increase participants Nathalie contacted stakeholders and ran workshops, which was a lot of fun. Nathalie would tailor the workshops to the needs and questions of the participants present, and also encouraged people to share their own stories and saving strategies.

At present Nathalie is working for Carers Queensland in the Local Area Coordination Program in the Brisbane service delivery area, as the Team Leader Community Development. In this role Nathalie manages a team of nine people that acts as the community facing part of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). The main purpose of the team is to raise engagement and awareness around NDIS eligibility, provide information on how to access the scheme and what inclusion for people with disability could like look. Their work is primarily raising this awareness with community, government and business stakeholders and getting stakeholders to think about what inclusion for people with disability could look like for them, their programs and their locations. Nathalie’s role is managerial and she is responsible for providing support to her team, keeping their projects on track and problem solving with them. She has a general oversight on what each person is doing and how their projects fit in with the overall strategy.  

HOW RELEVANT HAS YOUR DEGREE BEEN SINCE YOU GRADUATED? 

When Nathalie started university she was enrolled in a Bachelor of Arts and she took GEOG1030 Global Poverty and Development. Nathalie resonated so strongly with the course that she promptly transferred to the Bachelor of Development Studies and continued to study what she was passionate about.  

As a mature aged student, Nathalie had reservations about her capacity to study. Along with her study she also needed to balance part-time work and being the primary carer of her three children. Nathalie did not let her feelings of inadequacy get the better of her; she identified her challenges and then followed these up with solutions. Coming into the degree as a mature aged student, Nathalie believes that she was able to really appreciate the information and associate the theory with life experiences and see the practical applications of what she was studying.

For Nathalie, the key takeaway from the Development Studies degree was the ability to identify and handle issues, whether personal or societal. When facing an issue Nathalie considers what an appropriate solution would look like, what  
resources does she have available and what collaborative opportunities are there to increase resources to reach the desired outcome. 

Throughout her degree Nathalie volunteered at Soul Cafe, an organisation offering support to marginalised people in Newcastle. Here Nathalie worked on administrative tasks and helped to organise a large annual outdoor fundraising event.  

Nathalie also completed the Work Integrated Learning in Development Studies and Human Geography course and chose to complete her placement with a social housing organisation linked with a program aimed at transitioning homeless or people at risk of homelessness into the rental market by developing their skills. 

Volunteering and work experience is important because it helps develop your network which is beneficial during your transition from university into employment. 

ADVICE: TRUST IN YOURSELF 

Nathalie’s advice to students is to trust in yourself and what you have learnt. Sitting in a lecture you might find it hard to visualise how the task at hand will help you get a job. Nathalie believes you need to trust in your own abilities, as the Development Studies degree is equipping you with skills that you might not realise you even have until you are in the workforce.  

As a manager, Nathalie has identified that there is a clear difference between employees with and without a degree. Degree holders are capable of completing a task with a higher level of independence, while her employees who do not have a degree require more direction.

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE 

A highlight of the Development Studies degree is that it is multidisciplinary and you are capable of moving into a wide variety of roles after graduating. Nathalie’s career to date has demonstrated this versatility. Moving interstate again is on the agenda for Nathalie, which will mean searching for another new role. Although she is not sure what that role will be, she is ready and excited for the possibilities that the Development Studies degree has opened up for her.

Nathalie networking with the Logan Financial Literacy Action Group. 
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Nathalie Gentle

Taking the opportunity to handle and understand issues, Nathalie has found the Bachelor of Development Studies degree to help in both personal and professional life. Read her story here.

Trust in your own abilities, as the Development Studies degree is equipping you with skills that you might not realise you even have until you are in the workforce

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