Passion for the environment

I grew up in country Victoria with a keen interest in environment and the Department of Sustainability and Environment’s cadetship program was an ideal way to kick-start my environmental career.

After completing my VCE from Rainbow Secondary College, I headed to the city and studied Natural Resource Management at the University of Melbourne hoping to realise my ambition of “saving the world”.

In my first year of university, I successfully applied for a cadetship with the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE). The Department manages water, fire, forests and public land in Victoria, including our native plants and animals. The Department’s mission is to ensure a healthy environment for future Victorians.

The cadetship program is open to year 12 and first year university students who are, or will be, studying a science or environmental course at university. Cadets are paid $9000 a year to support them in their studies (which is very helpful when you have to move away from home to go to university). Each year cadets do six to eight weeks’ work placement within the Department. Cadets are guaranteed a job with DSE after they graduate.

For me, work placements were an invaluable learning experience. As a cadet, I worked at different DSE offices across Victoria (for example, Horsham, Bendigo and Wangaratta), with a focus on threatened species fieldwork. While on placement, I visited some beautiful places and met inspiring people.

The placements fuelled my passion for biodiversity conservation and also my interest in the social side of environmental problems. Importantly, work placements provided me with a variety of experiences, which helped me to narrow in on the field in which I wanted to work, and allowed me to tailor my degree accordingly.

This meant that by my final year of university, I knew where I wanted to work after I graduated, and what is more, I had the skills and knowledge, and had made the contacts, that allowed me to line up a job in this area. Currently, I am working in Melbourne, as part of a team reviewing threatened species legislation.  But I am also excited that I will have plenty of opportunities to work in regional DSE offices, doing more field-based work, in the future.

I encourage anyone who cares for the environment and plans to study a science course at university to apply for the cadetship program. It is a fantastic opportunity.