With employment prospects in the Geelong region in a state of change, what better time to hear from two large employers about what jobs looks like in the growing education sector.
Deakin University has a strong presence in the Geelong region with a campus at the Geelong Waterfront and at Waurn Ponds. Deakin is ranked in the top 1% of universities globally by the Academic Ranking of World Universities 2018. This rating indicates world-class facilities, research and teaching, as well as employability, innovation and inclusiveness. Deakin also prides itself on student satisfaction and is a leader in graduate satisfaction
The Gordon is one of the largest regional TAFEs in Victoria and has been skilling people in the Geelong region for over 130 years. With two campuses in Geelong and three smaller campuses in Wyndham, The Gordon is experiencing a period of growth, which is also supported by the Free TAFE program being offered by the State Government.
Think jobs at Deakin and The Gordon are just for teachers? Think again! Today we were joined by Christine Shaw (Talent Acquisition, Deakin) and Aida Kapetanovic (HR Generalist, The Gordon) to learn more about the recruitment process at both organisations and boy, they couldn’t be any different!
Deakin’s recruitment process has recently become a centralised approach with 20 Talent Acquisition staff responsible for sourcing candidates. When a job becomes available, the Talent Acquisition team meet with the Hiring Manager and go through the position, identify the skills required and commence the recruitment process. Aside from academic roles, listed below are the seven key support areas that Deakin recruit for.
- Student Experience and Support – enhancing the student experience throughout their lifecycle
- Campus Services – maintaining the world class grounds particularly at Waurn Ponds
- Human Resources – 120 staff involved in recruitment and staff life cycle
- Lab Tech – supporting teaching delivery across the education Faculties
- Faculty Admin – organising travel, providing admin and finance support to the Faculty team
- Hospitality – Waurn Ponds estate hosting conferences, providing accommodation and cafe
- Library – assisting with online study and resource development
The Gordon’s recruitment process also follows a similar style with recruitment handled by a HR representative in conjunction with a representative from the program area. Jobs at The Gordon are divided into Teaching and Non-Teaching roles.
- Teaching roles – need to have a vocational qualification (“your trade”) and a TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. There is a particular need at the moment for Community Services, Carpentry, Electro Technology, Plumbing and Automotive teachers
- Student support – includes administration roles across a variety of professional functions including Finance, Executive, Student and Industry Engagement and Facilities.
With administration roles often attracting between 150-200 applicants, here’s what you need to know to make your application stand out.
Make sure your resume is SCHMICK!
- Keep it to two pages
- Include a brief profile which is your elevator pitch and highlights how your skills align with the role
- List your most recent position first
- Make sure there are no spelling or grammar mistakes.
- Use dot points to make your resume easy to read
- Keep the content current, anything over 15 years old is not relevant
- Don’t include a photo
- Consider inserting a hyperlink to your LinkedIn account
- You don’t need to list referees and their contact details
How to ace the interview!
- Tell a great story. Have a generic opening line which address the question and then provide a specific example.
- It’s okay to repeat the same example at interview that was used in your application, preface it with “I already gave my best example…”
- Be authentic and be specific with your examples. Write down dot points to prompt you.
- Have questions in mind to ask at the end of the interview
- What would be the focus for the first three months?
- Tell me about the team I’ll be working with…
- I saw that Deakin/The Gordon recently did this…
- Don’t forget that you got an interview because you can do the job, now you need to convince the panel you are the right person for their team
Both organisations encouraged potential applicants not to wait for a full-time position to be advertised. Both organisations have a lot of internal movement within roles, so if you see want to work for either Deakin or The Gordon be prepared to apply for casual or contract positions. Our sincere thanks to both Aida and Christine for their insights and tips
| Deakin | The Gordon |
| Require a one page Cover Letter | Do not require a Cover Letter |
| Do not require Key Selection Criteria | Must address Key Selection Criteria |
| Applications don’t have a closing date. Resumes are reviewed as soon as they are received | Applications will not be reviewed before the closing date |
| Desirable candidates will undergo a preliminary telephone screening interview | |
| A secondary interview will most likely be an informal coffee catch-up |
Need help with your Key Selection Criteria? Come along to the Key Selection Criteria Workshops held monthly on or book a 30 minute appointment to review your Key Selection Criteria
Need help building your LinkedIn profile? Come along to the Creating a LinkedIn profile held each month.
Please visit Skills and Jobs Centre to book your place at our range of monthly workshops
The Gordon Skills & Jobs Centre 