Doors opened for schools

Busloads of Year 11, 12 and 13 ākonga (students) from schools around the maunga visited WITT Te Pūkenga recently (Friday 16 June) to get a taste of programmes on offer at WITT to help make an informed decision about their future. More than 300 ākonga from 10 Taranaki secondary schools took part.

“Our tutors have set up a series of fun, engaging, and informative workshops to showcase the range of programmes we can offer school leavers,” says WITT Te Pūkenga Marketing and Events Coordinator Samantha Legge.

The High School Open day has been months in planning. Each student chose up to three workshops from the 17 on offer covering everything from Arts and Design through to Engineering and Primary Industries.

“The hands-on learning that many of our programmes offer lend themselves well to a workshop format, it’s much more engaging than listening to people talk, and it helps ākonga to make more informed decisions about their future,” says Samantha.

SHGC Pathways Lead and Careers Expo Trust Chair Warwick Foy says it is important for young people to feel parity of esteem with their study and career choices: “If it’s right for them, it’s best for them.”

“With hundreds of tertiary courses on offer the more exposure students can have to what’s available the easier it will be for them to plan their subject choices at school and plan for their futures. For some it might even keep them in school knowing what prerequisites are needed for particular programmes,” he says.

The High School Open day leads into the WITT Te Pūkenga Info Day. The Info day takes place from 10am- 12 noon on Saturday 24 June and is open to all. It is another opportunity for the community to explore the campus and talk to tutors about enrolling in second semester programmes starting in July or start planning for next year. The student-led World Street Food market is always a highlight of this event!

“We pride ourselves on being accessible and flexible to meet people’s needs. If people can’t make it to our events, they can book a campus tour when it suits them or make a time to meet with our careers advisor,” says Samantha.