Study overseas while you're at home

Blogs (Career Inspiration Articles)

Study overseas while you're at home

Bianca graduated from university with a science degree and worked as a nutritionist. But along the way she discovered she was passionate about marketing.

Bianca is one of about 40,000 university graduates each year, who take the opportunity to study at TAFE NSW and add value to a university degree.

Bianca had already picked up great skills including research and spreadsheets at work and at uni. These helped with her TAFE NSW marketing course, and she even received credit towards her diploma which saved her time and money.

Then it was off to a new career via an internship organised through TAFE NSW, and… China. China?!

Many TAFE NSW courses are connected to study tours that add ‘real’ value to education. Bianca was selected to be one of ten talented business and marketing students who travelled to Guanghzhou as part of the Australian Government’s Endeavour Leadership Program (ELP).

“I never expected that doing a TAFE NSW course would lead to having an overseas experience and such incredible opportunities,” says Bianca.

“It has broadened my education and understanding of how marketing works overseas, as well as here in Australia. My TAFE NSW course has helped me to achieve real career skills that I can take with me into the workforce.”

Bianca gave us a quick-fire summary of some of the highlights of her trip.

Australian Consulate General in Guangzhou

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: “We learned that although the Chinese market is a large market, there is more competition. And of course it’s totally different. There are different laws and culture and approaches than in Australia," says Bianca (pictured on the far right).

Ogilvy

An iconic, fully integrated creative agency that has embraced traditional Chinese concepts in its Chinese operations: “Ogilvy is at the heart of Chinese beliefs and values. They believe in making brands matter and go by the saying that ‘people don’t buy what you do, but why you do it.”

Publicis

An integrated marketing and communications agency, and the the largest international agency in southern China: “This gave me another perspective of marketing in China and especially how to market to young people in China.”

AIA

A 100-year old private health insurance company, originally founded by an American, and the first company to introduce health insurance to the Chinese: “I learned the difference between health insurance in China and Australia, and the needs of the Chinese market.”

Yum Cha.

Oh, yum!

Haday soy sauce factory

The factory produces 52,000 bottles per hour, can find a box and put it on a truck in two minutes, exports to more than 30 countries, and is the most advanced packing line in the world: “Wonderful experience to get the bigger picture of what’s involved in the process of creating a product from beginning to end, and also about having a global company, setting up ethics of the company, distributing globally and giving an overall look on the processes.”

Dumplings

Little rolled bundles of joy! “It was a wonderful bonding experience with the Chinese students at Guangdong Industry Polytechnic (GIP). We learned how to make dumplings and fold them up correctly and they were then cooked and we ate them together.”