Hundreds of students have flocked to the Sign & Print Career Connections stand at the Adelaide Careers & Employment Expo, providing another boost to the drive to attract new talent to the print, sign and graphics sector.
John Watters AusSIP, Sandy Aspinall Creative Juice SA and Diana Nikolic Ball and Doggett at the Careers Expo SA
The Expo ran for a few days at the Adelaide Showgrounds, and the initiative, which is led by Visual Connections in partnership with ASGA, FESPA Australia, the FPLMA, LIA and VMA, once again proved that, when presented well, industry careers are well-regarded by young people.
10,500 students, parents and teachers attend the Adelaide expo and the Sign & Print Career Connections team was on hand to greet them, with the bright, eye-catching stand attracting interest, a suite of ‘Try-A-Trade’ activities providing engagement, and the team from Australian Schools Industry Partnership (AusSIP), the local TAFE and industry volunteers on hand to talk to visitors about industry careers.
Tina Mavris from AusSIP says it’s a winning formula: “Having such an engaging display at these Careers Expos gives students a real feel for theexcitement and diversity of the visual communications sector and helps to get them thinking about how they might apply their talents to the opportunities available in print, sign and graphics,” she says.
“Once again, we’ve had literally hundreds of conversations with students who are keen to find out more about industry careers, and explore the training options and apprenticeship structures which can get them there. It’s been terrific.”
Students were encouraged to participate in the Try-A-Trade area which featured laser with Trotec, Ball & Doggett but TAFE SA with vinyl cutting, wrapping, sign writing, applying graphics and many more hands on opportunities.
Supporting the team’s efforts was the comprehensive Sign & Print Career Connections booklet, which once again proved to be a popular take-away, and online resources which students can use to connect to further information about training and employment opportunities.
The Sign & Print Career Connections program is made possible with the support of industry sponsors, including major sponsors Amari Visual Solutions, Ball & Doggett, Cactus Imaging, Fujifilm Graphic Systems, Graphic Art Mart, Mulford Australia, ORAFOL, Pozitive Sign & Graphics Supplies and Sign-a-Rama, and partnering sponsors Böttcher, FPLMA, Hero Print, MacDirmid Graphic Solutions and Spicers.
The Sign & Print Career Connections initiatives is now on its way to Brisbane, where it will feature at the Brisbane Careers & Employment Expo at the BCEC on 24 and 25 May. The expo is free to attend - click here to find out more and register. Download the Sign & Print Career Connections brochure here, or find out more about the Sign & Print Career Connections program at
https://visualconnections.org.au/careerconnections
