Real Job Outcomes for our RSA Students

What great news to start the new year. Three students from our Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) course, delivered in partnership with Cape Byron Distillery, were offered full-time and part-time positions at the Distillery whilst doing their training in December last year.

“We are thrilled to be delivering real employment outcomes for our students while providing employers in the Northern Rivers with a qualified workforce amidst a hospitality crisis” says Kate Kempshall, NCCC’s CEO.

A New RSA Course for the Northern Rivers

Formed from an ongoing relationship, the new collaboration with Cape Byron Distillery, located in the Byron Hinterland, is a first for the region and will provide the local community with a refreshed, current and exciting training opportunity. In early December, fifteen school leavers attended the first RSA course at Cape Byron Distillery. Upon completion of the course, three students were offered positions at the Distillery as bar and promotional staff. How’s that for landing a job!

Alongside this, The Aussie Hotel in Ballina and the Lennox Hotel have said they will be offering employment to students of our RSA and Responsible Conduct of Gambling (RCG) courses. There is no better time than the present to be upskilling and applying for work in our region, especially the hospitality sector, which is struggling to find qualified staff across the board.

Kate adds, “it’s an exciting time for the hospitality job market and our students, with so many jobs available for qualified applicants”.

Travel restrictions have provided opportunities to work

Lockdown and social distancing restrictions in our region have generated an industry-wide crisis for the Hospitality sector. Further to this, tourists who were relied upon to fill hospitality positions are no longer around, leaving behind a significant work-skills gap in the Northern Rivers. It’s from this crisis that our partnership with Cape Byron Distillery was born. The new RSA course has not changed in terms of learning criteria. It’s just more of an exciting day, being at the distillery and supporting another local business. This course will support job seekers to upskill and qualify for hospitality jobs. An additional benefit from this is that employers will have a larger pool of potential employees who are already trained for the job and ready to start work immediately.

About the New RSA Course

The RSA training at Cape Byron Distillery is delivered to participants over a full day, from 8:30am to 5pm. As well as receiving accredited RSA training, students tour the Distillery’s rainforest, learn about the distilling process and enjoy cocktail-making at the end of official proceedings. This specific training is open to over 18s, however other RSA training at the college is open to all ages. Units covered in this RSA training are: SITHFAB002 Provide responsible service of alcohol. This new RSA course is approved by Liquor and Gaming NSW and NCCC is an approved training provider in NSW 2020/2021.

2021 is the Year to Learn!

No one could have ever predicted the effects COVID-19 has had on our everyday lives. Although, it has allowed us all to press the pause button on our lives and reflect, which has been refreshing, for the most part. With the new year approaching, motivation is at an all-time high. Make sure you use this energy to do some good, make change and grow your knowledge. And, with 2021 looking like a normal-ish year in Australia, it’s a great time to focus on yourself and learn something new, make a career change or upskill to land a job.

A Gap Year Alternative

Year 12s experienced a disruptive year from both a learning and social perspective. University students also had a full-on year, and it hasn’t been great for those who planned to travel either. If you’re contemplating a gap year in 2021, be prepared for continued restrictions on travel. Nevertheless, if you’re prepared to be flexible, there are plenty of opportunities to make a great gap year out of 2021.

Any work, whether related to a career path or not, will put you ahead of the game. Part-time work in a bar or café is great experience, and you’ll earn some extra cash too. The best part is that there is demand for employees to fill hospitality positions in the Northern Rivers, so finding a job may not be so hard, if you’ve got your RSA & RGC certificate and Barista Training.

Receiving training from a recognised training organisation such as North Coast Community College gives your qualification credibility and is a good move if you want to work overseas at some point too. This way you can prove with a certificate that you are qualified to be behind an industrial coffee machine or pouring drinks at a bar. With overseas travel pretty much out of the equation for 2021, use next year to set yourself up as a more attractive employee to Australian and international employers for now, and the future.

Make a Career Change

Feeling like you need a complete refresh for 2021? A career change might be something you’ve been putting off for a while, but 2021 is the year to tackle it head on. North Coast Community College has many options when it comes to qualifications that will change the direction of your career path.

Getting out of the office 9-5 is a popular reason why people choose to take a career change. Finding a more meaningful job that makes positive change is also a big one. With Australia’s ageing population growing, Aged Care is one of the few industries where job security and new opportunities are almost guaranteed. The college runs a CHC33015 Individual Support (Ageing) in collaboration with Whiddon Maclean. It’s a six-month course, preparing you to with real world and practical skills for employment, starting on 1^st February 2021.

If learning about the environment, agriculture, land conversation and/ or bush foods piques your interest, look no further than North Coast Community College. The college has recently launched a new training facility and a series of qualifications that will give you practical, hands-on skills to set you up for a career in the primary industries.

Maybe construction is where you want to go next, and if so, you’ll need a ‘CPCCWHS1001 – Prepare to work safely in the construction industry’ (aka White Card) before you jump into any role. White Card training is required by anyone who wants to carry out construction work, including site managers, supervisors, surveyors, labourers and tradespeople. The course at North Coast Community College is accredited by SafeWork NSW and is a general induction training for anyone entering the industry.

Upskill to Improve Yourself

Education is an investment in knowledge that pays the best interest. Having qualifications in First Aid, CPR and Emergency Response is a highly valuable quality for anyone. No matter the situation, feeling confident knowing what to do if someone around you requires a first aid response is an advantage in any industry, especially if you’re wanting to work with children or in Aged Care. Having this in your back-pocket when going for any job, in any industry is a nice bonus too.

Learning something new just because it’s something you’ve always been interested in is an excellent reason to start a course or qualification in 2021. North Coast Community College have a series of courses in self-development, from learning how to excel at Excel, to basic bookkeeping and managing workplace teams. Learning keeps our brains healthy and it’s important we never stop.

2021 might just be your best year yet! Challenge yourself and try something new, set yourself up for success and reap the rewards with accredited and non-accredited training at North Coast Community College.