Caitlin, a Water Treatment Technician for Dunedin City Council (DCC), says just because you are smart does not mean university or a life in academia is right for you. As a Connexis Ultimit Ambassador, Caitlin is keen to open women’s eyes to the opportunities outside of the usual career pathways.

One of the biggest pluses of the work she does now, she says, is that it is in high demand. With the on-job training that is offered, she adds, employers are looking for workers who are keen to learn, not just those who already have experience on their CVs.

Caitlin found her lack of work experience straight out of university a major barrier. Years of studying for a degree proved to be no guarantee of a job. The market is full of ultra-qualified people, she says, but work experience is the clincher.

“I always seemed to be one rung under where I needed to be.”

She had to resort to accepting unpaid work experience, filling her spare hours with three part-time paid jobs outside of her field.

The other risk you take when you choose the university path, Caitlin says, is that when you do start working, you may find it is not what you want to do after all.

That is the situation Caitlin found herself in, becoming increasingly disenchanted with the lab-based research she was qualified for.

Lucky for her, early on in her job search she did a month’s volunteering for DCC in the Water Treatment division. This opened her eyes to a new direction her career could take.

“I saw there was so much more out there, beyond academia. It was absolutely fabulous…nothing like anything else I’d ever done previously.”

She said it was the blend of lab work and getting your hands dirty that sold it to her; being able to see the country and do something different every day.

“You weren’t stuck in your four walls.”

While that month of work experience made a deep impression on Caitlin, she clearly made her mark too. A year later, she was given a “heads up” about a job coming up within the division and jumped at the opportunity.

Caitlin has been with DCC for five years now and her enthusiasm for what she does is as strong as ever. The jobs her role entails is too long and varied to list but includes, as she says, “a little bit of everything”; electrical, mechanical, investigation, book work, vehicle and equipment maintenance, project management, building.

“You can’t plan anything. You’re winging it every day, never sure what will turn up.”

She has not left academia behind entirely either, making full use of the opportunities to train up within her job.

So far, she has achieved an apprenticeship and the New Zealand Certificate in Drinking-Water Treatment (Level 4). Now she is working towards her Level 5 Diploma in Drinking-Water Treatment. She figures she will probably move on to a Level 6 qualification after that.

Caitlin loves the training component of her job.

“Vocational training makes it so much easier to grasp concepts compared to academic study in a classroom. You’re not learning anything that’s non-essential. What you’re learning about is right between your hands and you’re using it in the moment. You can grasp it with all your senses.”

“I should have been doing this all along.”

It helps that Caitlin’s employer, DCC, sees the value of training and encourages its workers to keep skilling up, especially when its around health and safety. She describes herself as “trained up to the eyeballs” and says this gives her the confidence to do her job well.

Caitlin does not find it hard fitting all this training into her work life. She laughs that doing full-time work and part-time study is much easier, and better paid, than doing the reverse, as she had been doing throughout her university years.

“The evidence gathering and knowledge base is easily gained on-the-job and the theory is often online and easily done at home. And work sometimes provides time off for study.”

Caitlin also finds time to pursue her passions outside of work, heading into the hills with her hiking club or friends, often up to two nights a week. She considers anywhere within three hours drive of Dunedin fair game.

“Nothing stops you from doing what you enjoy.”

Work often helps with these treks into the bush too. Caitlin carries a cup on her belt and can tell just by looking at a river, pond or puddle whether the water is safe to drink.

Her job has also enabled her to pay off her “huge” student loan, racked up during her time at university; paid for overseas travel; and allows her to buy “all the treats”, which for Caitlin means top-of-the-line tramping gear.

Caitlin “highly recommends” the trades as a career choice for anyone wanting to avoid the humdrum of an office, and who wants balance and variety in their job.

To women considering a future in Infrastructure, Caitlin says there is plenty of room for women in the industries of Water, Energy, Civil and Telco. They can bring a stronger work ethic, she says, with better time management. Women also look and think about things differently, Caitlin says, are more open to collaboration and taking on others’ ideas, and can be more willing to try new methods and technics.

She adds that now is a great time to give the trades a go. Free Trades Training (aka TTAF, the Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund) makes apprenticeships and most on-job training free and is generating a surge in recruitment and vocational learning in Infrastructure.

Reforms in Caitlin’s industry, Water, are also creating demand for new recruits and giving urgency to a backlog of projects.

Once you are in the door “you’re away and off with unlimited pathways to choose from” says Caitlin.

“Supervisor, team leader, manager, engineer, project management. It doesn’t stop. There’s no roof over your head. It’s amazing to see where people end up.”

Where does she see herself ending up? Long term, taking her skills to Antarctica is on her bucket list. Right now however, she is content where she is and has no plans to go anywhere.

“I drive to work happy every day. Who can say that?”

The post Caitlin Robertson – Keeping life interesting and water safe and clean appeared first on Connexis | Infrastructure Training.

On the face of it, Will Halligan has quite enough to be going on with. As the Acting Maintenance Manager at Wairakei Resort near Taupō he is responsible for all of the resort’s water needs, from the intake of water downstream from world-famous Huka Falls (the water is tested daily for quality) to the waste water and sewage treatment facilities that help the expansive 187-room resort run seamlessly.

A year ago, with the support and encouragement of Wairakei Resort senior management, Will embarked on a New Zealand Apprenticeship in Wastewater Treatment with Connexis.

“I started at Wairakei six years ago as a painter and decorator,” Will says, “and after a couple of years I was asked to assist the wastewater manager, who has since retired. Things just grew from there.”

The growth includes Will’s recent involvement in a major renovation of the resort’s wastewater plant and equipment which dates back to 1964.

“Combining my management role with study was a challenge at first,” he says. “As a mature-age worker the computer-based study and the upskilling that went with it was a bit of a learning curve. And so was finding the time to study – but now I love it!

“The Connexis study programme is really good. It’s cool and interactive and the teaching videos are an especially good way to

explain and communicate things and how they are done. It’s very easy to apply all the learnings to my day to day work.”

Will says he is enjoying his apprenticeship studies so much that he has plans to tackle a second apprenticeship in water treatment. The study course, he adds, has given a new dimension to his work.

“I didn’t realise till now how large the water treatment sector is in New Zealand – there are facilities of various kinds right throughout the country – and how much scope there is for using the transferable skills that my studies are giving me.”

“Studying with Connexis has also made me realise what a satisfying industry I’m in. You are directly involved in delivering a vital resource for people, which is exciting. My studies are also paying dividends because I’m told that the plant at Wairakei Resort has never operated better. That spurs me on to keep improving things.”

The post Will Halligan – Water, water everywhere appeared first on Connexis | Infrastructure Training.

Now 23, Dylan is a Water Reticulation Technician in charge of his own crew for Allens United Drainage and Earthworks in Hamilton and is loving every minute of it.

It seems a world away from the career as a PE teacher Dylan began training for when he first left Cambridge High School. “I wasn’t really enjoying what I was doing, and I saw the ad for an apprenticeship online and just decided to give it a go. I didn’t even know what the job involved,” he says. What appealed though was that an apprenticeship offered the ability for Dylan to earn while he learned.

After a little research, Dylan decided the variety of work and the chance to work outdoors in different locations was just what he was looking for.

“I really love it. I like that you’re working in different places all the time and you’re not just stuck inside behind a desk,” he says. ‘This job opens up many doors and you can work anywhere in the world if you wanted to, which is awesome’.

Almost four years on from that decision to join Allens United Drainage and Earthworks as a trainee, Dylan is a highly valued and hardworking member of the team.

He has recently completed his National Certificate in Water Reticulation – level 3 through Connexis, the Infrastructure Industry Training Organisation and now looking at the New Zealand Certificate in Pipe Installation (Level 4), which will lead him to Civil Trade Certification. In April of this year, he was named Trainee of the Year at the Civil Contractors New Zealand Waikato awards.

It’s taken some hard work and commitment, but Dylan says it is extremely satisfying to have it pay off.

It wasn’t so long ago that I came in and just had to do what the bosses told me. Now I am the guy telling other people what to do. That’s quite a good feeling.”

He adds that he thinks the responsibility of training and now having more responsibilities in his work has led him to be more confident in all areas of his life.

Dylan is glad he found a job he really enjoys and is good at and would definitely recommend it to other young people looking for good career options.

“You have to be willing to work hard. But there’s heaps of variety and when you’ve finished, it’s really satisfying.”

At 23, Dylan owns his own home. “it’s a huge achievement, not everyone can say that’. ‘This job has also helped me support my family and being able to do that comfortably means a lot’.

“I think that opportunity to earn while you’re on the job and training is a really big benefit. I know lots of other people who are full time students and they’re always stressed and struggling with money.

“With a trade, you’re earning something straight away and there are lots of chances to move up the ladder.”

For Dylan, he’s looking forward to what the future holds in his own chosen trade. “I just want to keep training and learning and doing what I’m doing. I love it.”

The post Dylan Samson: Water Reticulation Technician appeared first on Connexis | Infrastructure Training.

Having grown up in Southland, Naomi had worked in several jobs before undertaking a role as a lab technician at a local MDF plant. It was in this role that she worked with water treatment inspectors and was exposed to their work.

“A job for one at the Branxholme Water Treatment Plant came up and I knew I wanted to be an operator. I knew that it would be a step-up from my current role and far more interesting. I found being a lab technician was a monotonous job.”

Naomi enjoys the variety on offer as a Water Treatment Operator and says it’s an interesting role, with every day being different.

“Whilst every day is different, on an average day the first thing I do is check the plant; so we first check if there’s been any floods overnight, check the chemical dosing is right, the filters are working well and the chlorine is going in. We also check and work on system equipment if needed.”

Having been in the role for almost two years, Naomi says taking tour groups through the Plant is one of the most rewarding day-to-day parts of her job.

“I enjoy educating people about the Plant. We take school and community groups through, though it’s open to anyone who is interested. Gaining my Level 4 National Certificate in Water Treatment was also a highlight; I’m now looking at starting the Diploma.

“The Level 4 Certificate was an apprenticeship style course, containing two two-week block courses. In it I learned why we did the things we did. You learn the theory and then the assessors test you through an onsite assessment.”

Naomi acknowledges the effort her predecessor invested into her when she started. “My predecessor was a wealth of knowledge that he was always happy to pass on. He also won the Operator of the Year Award in 2010.”

One of Naomi’s biggest achievements to date is being awarded the Young Operator of the Year Award.

“The award comes with a two week trip to Australia to attend the Water Industries Operations Australia conference later this year. I’ve been to the New Zealand conference and can’t wait for the Australian one. I will also spend the last week there working in a water treatment plant in the State of Victoria.

“I’m now looking at starting the National Diploma in Drinking Water Treatment, which will qualify me to manage a plant. It would be good to put my skills to the test as a manager,” Naomi said.

Naomi suggests that if people are interested in becoming a water operator, they gain relevant experience in the sciences, water industry or civil infrastructure. In her spare time Naomi enjoys water sports such as paddle boarding, kayaking and skiing.

The post Naomi Coatsworth – Invercargill City Council Water Treatment Operator appeared first on Connexis | Infrastructure Training.