Inside Golf, Australia. July 2014 | Page 39

pga igi PGA IGI opens Sydney campus David Newbery traineeship with the PGA of Australia. [email protected] A “This is a great next step for those players maintaining a handicap of less than three,” O’Brien said. “With the right playing standard, the pathway through to the PGA Professional Year Program takes four years”. NYONE contemplating a career in the golf industry now has the chance to study in Sydney. The PGA International Golf Institute (PGA IGI), based on the Gold Coast for the past 20 years, recently entered a partnership with International College of Management, Sydney (ICMS) to establish a combined curriculum of golf and business courses. The Sydney campus is only in its infancy, but six students started the program in May – four from Australia and one each from Vietnam and Turkey. PGA IGI Dean and Executive Officer Dominic O’Brien said the Sydney campus was identical to the Gold Coast campus, which delivers golf and business courses and practical golf skills to its 60 first-, second- and third-year students. “It (Sydney) is set up in the same model as the Gold Coast,” he said. “We went to Sydney because when we looked at our (Gold Coast) student numbers we found that the majority of our domestic students came from southeast Queensland. “Even though we had a lot of interest, the interstate students weren’t necessarily travelling to join the program so we decided to open a Sydney campus to meet the market demand.” O’Brien said the Sydney students first partake in a Diploma of Golf Management over two trimesters with options to go on and complete a Bachelor of Business PGA IGI Sydney campus students with Dean and Executive Officer Dominic O’Brien (second from right) and PGA IGI Sydney coordinator Anna Booth (far right). Management with International College of Management, Sydney (ICMS). or HELP), meaning no upfront payment is required to enter the program. The academic classes are at ICMS, which is located at Manly atop the hill overlooking the Northern Beaches, provides a stunning backdrop. “During each trimester of the Diploma of Golf Management, students are involved in weekly PGA IGI golf competitions and weekly group skills classes with PGA professionals (two per week), which are held at Monash Country Club.” O’Brien said PGA IGI was strongly linked with its education partner ICMS, which shares the PGA IGI’s focus on post-study employment. “As part of their bachelor degree studies with ICMS, students complete an industry work placement. This prepares students for the workplace following co