News

Work Exposure in Government

Year 12 Tennant Creek Star, Kirsty White, recently took part in the Work Exposure in Government program in Canberra.

After a rigorous application process earlier in the year, Kirsty was selected to be one of 70 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to take part. She had the honour of being the only student from the Northern Territory.

Work Exposure in Government (or WEX) provides an opportunity for high-performing Indigenous students in Years 11 and 12 to learn firsthand about careers in the Australian Government.

Kirsty and the other students travelled to Canberra for a five-day interactive program of activities designed to give them a taste of careers with a range of organisations, including the Royal Military College and the Australian Federal Police (AFP).

Although it was difficult being the only NT student and not knowing anyone, Kirsty was able to make the most of the opportunity and says she learnt a lot.

“It was pretty cool. I didn’t really know what a public servant was until I went to Canberra! The program gave me a pretty good vision of what I might be able to do in the future,” Kirsty said.

“I really enjoyed visiting the Military College because we got to do some of the training activities, like completing the obstacle course. For me, it was also good to visit the AFP because I have an interest in becoming a police officer.”

Kirsty was lucky enough to meet some Members of Parliament, including Minister for Indigenous Affairs Senator Nigel Scullion.

“When the Minister heard that there was someone from Tennant Creek in the group, he asked his assistant to find me so we could have a yarn, which was pretty cool! He was nice – just like a regular bloke.”

Kirsty returned to Tennant Creek with a renewed excitement about the future and is now thinking about what life might hold for her after she completes Year 12 at the end of 2018.