NPP Projects

Creative Industries Careers – Re-imagining Regional and Remote Students' Opportunities

DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.6983990.v1

 

Abstract

This project addressed the decline in farming, mining and manufacture in regional and remote areas by supporting and educating high school students to aspire to work in the creative industries. A Creative Industries Roadshow engaged university academics, research assistants and university student mentors to inform high school students, career advisors and teachers about the creative industries through information sessions, discussions and hands-on digital media workshops.

Project outline

• The project was to support regional and remote high school students from farming, mining and manufacturing regions to re-imagine their futures and aspire to work in creative industries.
• This was implemented by designing a Creative Industries Roadshow rolled out as a staged project targeting three distinct research populations: regional and remote high school students and their career advisors; university students studying the creative industries; and young creative industry innovators who used tertiary education to develop their skills and launch their creative careers.
• The research team targeted New South Wales (NSW) regional high schools in the Central West, New England, Mid North Coast and the Hunter regions.
• The stages of the project included:
  • recruiting university students as mentors to tell their personal stories to high school students and teachers to help in the re-imagining of creative industries careers
  • recruiting graduates as young creative industries innovator volunteers to explain their educational pathway from high school to tertiary study
  • evaluating information sessions and surveys for careers advisors, teachers and high school students (these evaluations informed the Creative Industries Roadshow)
  • piloting a Creative Industries Roadshow at Kurri Kurri High School in the Hunter Region, which proved it was possible for one school to act as a hub and host the roadshow
  • the launch of the roadshow over two months to seven regional areas of NSW
  • developing a website housing all the creative industries content that provides a breakdown of the project deliverables. https://www.creativeindustriesroadshow.com/

Key findings                                               

• The research team ran eight Creative Industries Roadshows, adding two more during the project — the pilot for the Hunter, and the Indigenous Roadshow for Tamworth.
• The eight roadshows toured 13 principal networks in regional and remote NSW, engaging 40 high schools. This allowed over 602 high school students, career advisors and teachers to learn more about the creative industries through information sessions, discussions and hands-on digital media workshops.
• The Creative Industries Roadshows became an event where six university academics, two research assistants and 16 university student mentors provided information to participants about creative industries career options and university life.
• Other outputs from the project were career advisor and teacher information sessions about creative industries career opportunities.
• In addition, mobile technology creative industry workshops were held for groups of 20 students.
• As of 21 November 2017, the website created as part of the project had been visited 786 times, and 2,575 page views were recorded.
• The project was a successful collaboration between the university sector and the Department of Education schooling system and strong partnerships were established with high schools and career advisors. The project engaged a collaborative and inter-disciplinary approach to delivering impactful and meaningful shifts in the perceptions of regional and remote students. The research project has had widespread school and community impact, developing a strong narrative of future career possibilities within the creative industries sector in regional communities in NSW.
• The creative industries roadshow is a model that could potentially be rolled out nationally to both government and independent school systems.
• The findings indicate that the project has been successful in shifting career advisors’ and teachers’ perceptions of the skill sets required at the secondary school level for a pathway into careers in the creative industries.

Summary prepared by the NCSEHE.

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Posted 30 May 2018