Archive for September 29th, 2010

The University of New England’s Parliamentary Internship Program offers curious students, with or without a political career in mind, the opportunity for hands-on work experience in the office of a NSW Member of Parliament.

This internship program runs twice a year, in Semester 1 and Semester 2, and UNE students from all disciplines who meet the criteria can apply for consideration in the selection process.

“Participating in the Parliamentary Internship Program was the most satisfying experience of my university life,” said Myee Gregory, a Bachelor of Communications student. “It was so exciting to have a speech I wrote delivered in Parliament and to play a major role in the creation of a Bill. The MP I was placed with – Peter Draper, the Member for Tamworth – was encouraging and supportive and gave me the opportunity to develop many new skills.”

“The magic thing about the internship was that it was such a great opportunity to put my academic learning into practice – and the skills and confidence I developed from the experience have opened a lot of doors.  It has directly led to my getting a part-time job at SportUNE and winning a travel scholarship to the United Kingdom. There are so many different aspects to politics, and students of any discipline will get immense value from participating in the program.”

Katrina Carlon, a final-year Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Laws student, tells of a similarly rewarding experience. “Having been interested in politics from the age of about 10, I thought the program would be a perfect fit for me in terms of where I was aiming for my future career,” she said. “I have to admit I was extremely nervous the first day I met with my local MP and his staff. Since then I have learnt that politicians are just normal people who (despite some popular opinion) really just want to help the people of their electorate. The MP I was assigned to could not have been more helpful and supportive. During my time in and around the office I wrote media releases, attended public and official functions, wrote speeches, compiled an electorate mail-out, and sat in on interviews – among  many other daily activities.”

The highlight of the internship for Ms Carlon was a trip to Parliament House in Sydney where she met other interns and politicians and observed Parliament in action. It was then that she “got that feeling that this is where I want to be when I finish university”.

“I recommend the Parliamentary Internship Program highly to anyone hoping to enter politics or government, or even thinking about these as a career option,” she said. “The opportunities and connections and experiences are simply invaluable. I now have some direction and career prospects, and have gained such a new outlook on the value of my UNE degree.”

More information on UNE’s Parliamentary Internship Program, and an application form, can be found at: http://blog.une.edu.au/unepip/. Applications for Semester 1, 2011, close this Friday (October 1) at 5 pm.

THE PHOTOGRAPH of Myee Gregory with Peter Draper MP displayed here expands to include the Speaker of the NSW Legislative Assembly and Member for Northern Tablelands, Richard Torbay.

A shared emphasis on the overall university experience was one of several areas of common ground to emerge when a delegation from the University of West Georgia (UWG) visited UNE to sign a memorandum of understanding recently.

The MOU followed a visit by UNE lecturers Dr John Scott, Dr Jim Maher and Dr Wendy Beck to UWG in April 2009.

Prof Bill Shaniel and Prof Theresa Orr from UWG held fruitful talks with UNE’s Vice Chancellor, Prof Jim Barber, as well as UNE academics in a range of disciplines.

Prof Shaniel and Prof Orr also enjoyed tours of UNE’s campus and residential facilities, as well as close-up encounters with Australian native wildlife.

Dr Maher, a lecturer in the UNE’s School of Humanities and one of the organisers of the visit, said there were excellent opportunities for staff and student exchanges between the two institutions, noting common teaching and research interests in archaeology, anthropology, political science, sociology and music. He also noted both institutions’ shared love of football.

“I’m sure some of our college rugby players would love to try their hand at American football, and vice versa,” Dr Maher said.

Dr Scott likewise noted the institutions’ similarities, adding that he also saw fruitful links in rural criminology.

Profs Shaniel and Orr also met Armidale Dumaresq Mayor Peter Ducat and General Manager Shane Burns, raising the possibility of formal friendship status between Armidale Dumaresq Council and the Council of Carrollton, Georgia, where UWG is located.

Named by The Princeton Review as one of the Best Southeastern Colleges and one of America’s Best Value Colleges, the University of West Georgia provides 116 programs of study, including 59 at the bachelor’s level, 42 at the master’s and specialist levels, three at the doctoral level and 12 at the certificate level.

Like UNE, UWG also offers courses via online and blended delivery for students seeking flexibility in time and location.

Media contact: Dr Jim Maher on 6773 3810 or email emaher@une.edu.au.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of New England, Professor Jim Barber, joined the Federal Member for New England, Mr Tony Windsor, on campus on Monday and undertook tours of the work under way around the University as part of the initial phase of the National Broadband Network roll-out.

The Vice-Chancellor and Mr Windsor were on site with UNE’s Infrastructure Manager, Brian Munro, and the Construction Manager for the NBN project Armidale, Mr Peter Meyers, to receive an update on the project’s status. Works currently include placing directional bores under roadways, installing cable and joint housing pits, and installing FDH cabinets for distribution of fibre-optic cable to the local area.

“It’s pretty remarkable how little focus has been placed on the tremendous benefits that such an initiative as the NBN will deliver Australia-wide,” Mr Windsor said.

Professor Barber agreed that more emphasis should be placed on the delivery and long-term prospects offered by the NBN rather than on the short-term bean counting.

“There needs to be more dialogue surrounding the immense opportunities this infrastructure presents, and to communicate the huge benefits clearly to the wider community,” Professor Barber said. “I appreciate Mr Windsor’s advocacy on this issue. It shows great foresight into the needs of regional and rural Australia.”

He said that having such a strong advocate for the NBN was integral to its success, as this was the most significant opportunity for regional Australia and the University of New England.

“From a Higher Education perspective,” Professor Barber said, “the NBN will provide all Universities with an equitable platform to deliver to our students a diverse, flexible and accessible education system – whether they choose to study on campus, from their lounge room on the other side of the world, or in the middle of a paddock 100 kilometres from their nearest neighbour.

“With this technology, our Rural Medical students could effectively take part in clinical pracs with their lecturers at UNE, in conjunction with a real-time video stream of procedures being undertaken remotely by leading surgeons in any particular field. Think of the tremendous inroads that we can make in addressing our regional and rural health challenges. And that’s just a single example of the endless possibilities.”

Both men supported the prospect of enhanced equity in the delivery of vital services such as health, education, and information access for outer metropolitan, regional and rural centres.

“From the outset, the NBN will streamline service delivery across metropolitan and regional and rural communities,” Professor Barber said. “Everything and everyone benefits. Why shouldn’t we be striving for this kind of equity?”

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows Professor Barber (right) and Brian Munro during the inspection on Monday. Clicking on this image reveals another photograph of the inspection tour showing (from left) Peter Meyers, Tony Windsor, Professor Barber and Brian Munro.