Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Professor Rorden Wilkinson explains: “Our new approach is designed to support students to make the successful transition to tertiary study. It is crucial that our commencing students feel a sense of belonging to our community right from the start. We want them to know that we are as invested in their success as they are.”

To foster this sense of belonging, our orientation and onboarding experience has been redesigned and now comprises three elements: an online pre-arrival module, a ‘kickstart’ program and a refreshed orientation week.

Orientation will now begin with ‘MACQ2023 – Your student starter guide’, an online, self-paced iLearn module that all commencing students will complete prior to the start of session. This module is a practical introduction to iLearn that also provides students with information about their academic journey, their safety and wellbeing, as well as the employability services available to them throughout their studies. Students will be able to revisit this information at any stage during their time with us.

The new Kickstart program runs from 13 to 17 February 2023, and has been designed to provide a soft landing and focused transition for our domestic and international undergraduate and postgraduate students. Kickstart will feature face-to-face and online sessions that provide our students with in-depth information that complements and builds on what they have learned from MACQ2023. This includes important messaging about expectations for academic integrity, and fostering a safe and inclusive environment, as well as practical guidance about writing at university, study techniques and important faculty-specific information.

Much of the content delivered during Kickstart will be presented by student peer educators from later years to ensure that the material is authentic and relatable. Scheduled social activities have been designed to foster connectivity and provide informal opportunities for students to learn about our campus.

Our new Orientation Week will run during the first week of Session 1, from 20 to 24 February 2023. One of the highlight events of the week will be Convocation, an official commencement ceremony held in our Graduation Hall and hosted by Vice-Chancellor Professor S Bruce Dowton. Other activities will include campus and library tours, a parents and carers information evening, student club stalls in the Central Courtyard, ‘speed friending’ events and a host of social activities that students can attend between classes.

Under the leadership of Dean of Students Professor Mariella Herberstein, the Macquarie Kickstart and Orientation team are engaging with key stakeholders and subject matter experts from across the institution to operationalise this new approach to orientation.

You can support Kickstart and Orientation Week by helping the team to recruit 150 current students as Student Belonging Activators. This paid position is an excellent opportunity for students to give back to the Macquarie community, develop skills and make new connections. If you know anyone suitable, encourage them to apply via our careers and employability portal Employability Connect.

Two students were recently put through their paces with Fuji Xerox Australia as part of the PACE FOSC300 Unit – Participation and Community Engagement in Science and Engineering.

“Working with Fuji Xerox Australia through the CitySwitch program was definitely a rewarding experience for me personally. Not only did I have access to work experience that made an impact on a real organisation, but I was able to contribute towards a program that promotes sustainability, which is a personal passion that will shape my future career. Hearing the positive feedback and reception of our solutions from the executive members has given me confidence in the changes I can make in my chosen career path in environmental management,” said Ju-Deh (Jude) Tan, third-year B. Environment student.

Jude and Alice Temblett, a third-year B.Sc. student, undertook a waste audit of Fuji Xerox Australia’s headquarters in March this year after being trained in sustainability auditing by Macquarie’s Sustainability team in partnership with CitySwitch. They analysed the audit data, presented a compelling business case, and produced communication materials for kitchens and printing areas.

The students developed an office-wide waste management strategy to reduce waste going to landfill and presented their findings to staff, who were impressed with the results and have been implementing recommendations. Data collected will be used as a baseline for future waste auditing when they move to their new premises soon.

“Jude and Alice delivered a professional presentation that met all of our desired outcomes from the waste audit. Their recommendations highlighted some areas for improvement and have already been adopted at our new office,” said Michael Wicks from Fuji Xerox Australia.

As Professor Sherman Young, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching) said while offering his heartfelt congratulations to the 2016 Professor Judyth Sachs PACE Prize recipients: “These experiences demonstrate some of the fantastic stories we see every year of students engaging in real-world learning with real-world impact.”

The benefits of PACE’s work-integrated learning and its impact on student employability were demonstrated at a recent, well-attended forum delivered by the PACE team.

Check out these highlights videos:

• Associate Professor Denise Jackson from Edith Cowan University highlights work-integrated learning research that demonstrates how important it is to the student experience.
• PACE Director Lindie Clarke delivers the latest Macquarie research on the difference that PACE makes.
• Dr Tanya Evans speaks on the impact PACE has on students’ lives.
• A panel of students and our long-time PACE partner, Wesley Mission, provide some heartfelt insights into the lasting impact of PACE on graduates and employability.

Want to know more about the forum? Read Lauren Bacigalupo’s write-up of the event on the Teche blog.

A love of science can be born in the heart of a child in Baulkham Hills or Bourke. But for school children in rural or remote locations, access to enriching and engaging learning opportunities can be limited. Here, LEAP Projects Coordinator Casey Featon explains how Macquarie is changing that with our innovative virtual classrooms project.

‘Drones, Droids and Robots’ was the schools theme of 2016 National Science Week, inspiring students across Australia towards careers in science and technology.

This year, Macquarie academic staff volunteered their time to help high school students in rural and remote locations participate in National Science Week, through the Widening Participation Unit’s LEAP-Links Virtual Classrooms program.

The LEAP-Links program offers distinct video conference presentations that are interactive and offer high school students – wherever they are – an opportunity to ask questions directly to some of Macquarie’s most exciting thinkers and STEM communicators.

The aim of the program is to provide curriculum enrichment, increase higher education aspiration and engagement opportunities for students with little direct access to university facilities.

The theme of the 2016 LEAP-Links National Science Week Virtual Classroom Series was ‘21^st Century Technologies.’

The following Macquarie staff gave presentations that focused on the use of autonomous technology in our society and the impacts of this technology on our modern lives:

• Carl Svensson – From Arduino to Self-Driving Cars and Shipping Port Automation
• David Inglis – Accessible Automation: How to use an Arduino to sense, compute and act
• Wade Marynowsky – Creative Robotics: An artist’s approach to autonomous technology

Carl says it was fantastic to be part of the event and witness how technology can bridge physical distances.

“It was great to see such collaboration between schools and students,” he says. “Bringing people together in such a way can be so empowering.”

Over 30 academic staff members have been involved in the program to date, ‘virtually’ sharing their expertise on topics ranging from chemistry to creative writing. Each session has the aim to open high school students’ minds to the possibilities of further education.

For more information, or to be involved in the program please contact the LEAP-Links project coordinator Casey Featon. You can also visit the LEAP website for information on other fantastic programs offered by the Widening Participation Unit.

We invite staff to contribute stories – in their own voice – that celebrate the diversity, passion and collaborative spirit of Macquarie staff.

Early Lorkovic is a Project Officer with the University’s LEAP Mentoring Program, which supports and inspires high school students from refugee and Pacific Islander backgrounds to pursue further education. Here she reports on their recent University Experience Day, which saw students from all over Sydney getting a taste of life as a Macquarie student.

The LEAP (Learning, Education, Aspiration, Participation) Macquarie Mentoring Program is housed within the University’s Widening Participation Unit, whose priority is to raise the numbers of higher education students from areas that are currently under-represented in the tertiary sector. LEAP Macquarie Mentoring is part of a partnership that recognises the need for ongoing support of high school students from refugee and Pacific Islander backgrounds, in order to facilitate their successful transition into higher education and other future vocations.

The mentors are Macquarie University students who volunteer a few hours each week to travel to schools, inspiring and assisting the high school students by drawing from their own personal journeys, knowledge and skills.

University Experience Day was one day of their program where the schools travelled to Macquarie and experienced first-hand the educational environment of their mentors.

The day started with a casual welcoming ceremony. Professor John Simons officially welcomed the schools to Macquarie and offered some motivational advice of his own. Two current Macquarie students then bravely got on stage to tell their stories, with some of their experiences echoing those of the high school students. They told of their struggles, their dreams and their drive to succeed – the whole room was inspired!

Many of the University’s faculties and departments showed their support by hosting individual demonstrations in the Faculty Show portion of the event. Students were encouraged to get involved, having fun while learning about the various programs the university offers.

When I think back to the day, I picture a room full of students from various high schools and from all cultures, some in uniform, some not, chatting away with smiles on their faces to Macquarie students in their red t-shirts. Later, the room was full of happy smiles, dancing and singing along to an African drumming band.

Since the event, LEAP staff have received a great deal of positive feedback about the impact of the day. Many mentors and teachers said the day was the highlight of the program for the students, where the concept of attending university was further explored. Exposing the students to university life has de-mystified a lot of their preconceived notions of higher education, opening their minds to the real possibilities that lie ahead in their future.

We invite staff to contribute stories – in their own voice – for publishing in This Week. These stories celebrate the diversity, passion and collaborative spirit of Macquarie staff.

As a participant of the Aurora Indigenous Scholars International Study Tour, Hannah was given the opportunity to visit Berkeley, Stanford, Harvard, Columbia, and New York University in the US, as well as Cambridge and Oxford University in the UK.

“The tour was quite an incredible opportunity to explore what these universities have to offer. Not only this, I got to know the other scholars on the tour. They are some of the brightest people I have ever met and I know they will go on to be great leaders in their chosen fields.”

The study tour occurs in October and November of each year, taking Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander university students and graduates to visit the universities in order to explore postgraduate opportunities.

Hannah was able to explore a range of interests on the tour including law, political science and environmental economics – all of which she studied at Macquarie as a Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Laws student.

However, it was during a meeting at Oxford’s Department of Social Policy and Intervention that Hannah knew that she wanted to pursue postgraduate research in social policy.

“Macquarie provided me with a solid foundation upon which I could even contemplate studying at a place like Oxford. What I loved about Macquarie was that we weren’t just taught about the areas we were studying; we were also taught how to learn and to think about the big questions. These skills are precisely what Oxford looks for in potential students.”

These lifelong skills are what impressed the admissions tutor of the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, and Hannah was strongly encouraged to apply for a doctorate.

Hannah is currently preparing her application to Oxford to undertake a DPhil in comparative social policy.

Hannah says: “The study tour opened up doors to opportunities that I didn’t even know existed. Backed by my experience at Macquarie, I now also have the confidence to walk through them.”

Applications for the 2016 Aurora Indigenous Scholars International Study Tour open on 2 May.

The Lucy Mentoring Program is offered to female undergraduate students in the Faculty of Business and Economics, and provides them with the opportunity to engage with industry professionals from the private, public and not-for-profit sectors.

The students have one-on-one access with an industry mentor, getting to know them professionally and personally and giving them the chance to work through some of their goals together.

Two former Lucy mentees, Jacqueline and Julie Gerodias share a common thread. As sisters, they attended the same high school and are studying the same degree (Bachelor of Arts with Bachelor of Commerce).

They both participated in the Lucy Mentoring Program and have since secured full-time employment and a paid internship at their respective mentors’ organisations.

Jacqueline is majoring in Human Resources and Commercial Law and was paired with a senior HR manager at a well-known Australian airline. At their first coffee meeting, Jacqueline was pleasantly surprised when her mentor listened attentively and wanted to hear about her life, both inside and outside university. Their mentoring catch ups consisted of shadowing her mentor in her work environment, attending a weekly meeting, observing workplace culture and etiquette and interviewing her mentor’s colleagues.

The program has given Jacqueline the opportunity to meet with successful and motivated people, including her mentor. By being open to new perspectives she has gained a greater outlook on corporate life as well as an understanding of what she wants from her career and how she can best achieve this.

Her sister Julie is majoring in Marketing, International Communications and Human Resources. Her first meeting with her mentor, an HR Director at a multinational software corporation, was held at a local coffee shop. Prior to the meeting, she had prepared a list of her goals and potential questions in case there were awkward silences with her mentor. But the meeting was relaxed and they were able to find out about each other’s backgrounds and discuss goals. During the program, Julie received feedback on her résumé and discussed with her mentor her struggles in deciding whether to focus on finding a job or search for internships. While interning, Julie was able to sit near and speak with her mentor’s HR team, giving her a better understanding of what a career in HR would look like. A challenge for Julie was networking in the office. Learning to do ‘small talk’ with people within her team and in other departments seemed difficult at times but was a learning experience for her.

The Lucy Mentoring program is one example of how the University supports students in helping them achieve their aspirations and provides an incubator for the next generation of leaders.

As someone who connects the dots and matches students with industry mentors, I find it immensely satisfying seeing students like Jacqueline and Julie succeed.

If you are interested in finding out more about Lucy Mentoring, please contact me on christine.chung@mq.edu.au or phone 9850 4755.

We invite staff to contribute stories – in their own voice – to help celebrate the diversity, passion and collaborative spirit of Macquarie staff.