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Experience required
Swinburne to guarantee work experience for students .
Swinburne University has guaranteed real work experience for every undergraduate student from 2021 in a move to make its graduates more employable in an increasingly competitive tertiary education environment .
With the impact of COVID-19 still being felt by the tertiary sector and job market , it ’ s one of many initiatives from the university to enhance their graduate work prospects and provide future-focused courses . Utilising a network of over 1,100 government , industry and community partners , including Adobe , Medibank , NAB , Bendigo Bank , Metro Trains and the CSIRO , the aim of the Work Integrated Learning ( WIL ) program is to have students apply their academic learning in a practical workplace environment , gaining valuable insight and connections to better enhance their future employment prospects .
“ At Swinburne we are focused on investing in our students ’ futures by aligning them to the very best partners in industry – across sectors like science , technology , business , IT and others ,” Swinburne vicechancellor Professor Pascale Quester said .
“ We believe incorporating meaningful industry experience provides a more seamless transition to the world of work , by leveraging the intrinsic value of learning-by-doing .”
Swinburne was one of the first Australian universities to offer industry placements back in the 1960s , initiating a partnership with car manufacturer GM Holden .
“ Swinburne will build on this legacy and be the university where solid industry experiences are more readily accessible for students ,” Quester added .
Alongside its WIL program for undergraduates , Swinburne has also launched a series of short online “ bootcamp ” graduate certificate courses that will be available on-campus and through its online arm , Swinburne Online .
Focused on the digital and STEM skills of learners , courses include Professional Analytics and Programming , and Development and Product Management with the curriculum , including real-life projects developed by industry partners including Atlassian , Tableau and Dropbox . ■
Plastic diet
UQ scientists uncover microplastics in everyday rice .
Australian scientists have discovered rice can contain trace amounts of potentially harmful microplastics during a world-first study published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials .
Dr Jake O ’ Brien . Photo : supplied
Researchers from the University of Queensland ( UQ ) have detected an average 100g single serve of uncooked rice can contain 3-4mg of plastic .
The amount of microplastics is four times higher in instant or pre-cooked rice with an average of 13mg per 100g serve .
The study ’ s lead author , Dr Jake O ’ Brien , employed an innovative method of plastic quantification which UQ had already developed and used during past studies on seafood and sewage sludge .
Generic packet rice was used for the latest research and UQ ’ s groundbreaking technique was applied to seven different plastic types .
Researchers tested for the most common plastic , Polyethylene , as well as plastics used in clothing and food production , laminates , technical engineering , polystyrene , acrylics and tube piping .
The average grain of rice tested measured 8mm in length . Microplastics are defined as a plastic material 5mm or less .
Dr O ’ Brien said the study was not cause for concern but should prompt people to consider the products they bought .
“ I don ’ t think people should be concerned . I think people should be aware ,” he said .
“ Currently there are many unknowns about how harmful consuming microplastics is to human health , but we do know exposure can cause an element of risk .
“ We hope this study encourages further research on where plastic contamination of rice is occurring , so we can reduce contamination and increase community awareness of where plastic exposure happens daily .” ■
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