WA Food Industry Education Collaboration Program

WAFEC Program STEM internships - Online information session - Presentation only

0:02
Thanks for joining the call today to learn more about the STEM internship programme that we have for the WA food and beverage sector.

0:11
My name's Liz and I'm from CSIRO and I'll be leading today's session for you.

0:17
But before we get started and like many of you that are joining today, I want to quickly acknowledge the Wojak people of the Nunga nation.

0:27
So I'm on Wojak Nunga Buja today and we're currently in the Jittlebah season here in Perth, which is very slowly warming up.

0:36
Was It a touch stormy yesterday for those that are here and I'd like to acknowledge the Whadjuk people as the first scientists, innovators and traditional custodians on the land I'm joining you from and pay my respects to their elders past and present.

0:52
I'd also like to extend that respect to the traditional custodians of the lands where you're all dialling in also.

1:00
OK, so this is our program. This is the Food Industry Education Collaboration Program, which is quite long.

1:08
So we've taken it down to WAFEC, which is the acronym we're tending to go with.

1:13
It's a collaboration between CSIRO and our colleagues over at the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.

1:21
So over the course of today's session, I'm going to start by giving you an overview of the program.

1:27
Then we're going to have a wonderful SME join us who's hosted a student through the program, Rhys from Gourmania.

1:35
Then we're going to have a little bit of follow up information from the department and Kim and then we'll close out with a bit of extra time for Q&A.

1:45
So let's meet the team.

1:46
You can see me in the top left corner there.

1:49
I'm a facilitator in the program and basically my role is to help businesses scope their projects and also once they've lodged their applications, I look after the internships themselves.

2:01
So that's everything from recruitment to any other support that's required during or after the internship.

2:10
I'm joined by my colleague Roma Sharp, who's also on the line today.

2:13
Roma is a facilitator, it's at CSIRO and she's also helping businesses that are in the inquiry, internship, scoping and application stage for the program.

2:26
So, when you reach out to us at WAFEC, you'll either get Roma or myself to chat about the program.

2:33
George Feast is the director of SME Connect and SME Connect run programs throughout Australia which aim to link businesses with the R&D sector.

2:44
In fact, this program is actually based off another program that we run over in NSW for student internships.

2:52
And just at DPIRD, we're joined by our colleagues.

2:55
We have Kim Antonio, who is a manager in the food industry innovation team.

3:00
You'll hear from Kim a little bit later on this morning.

3:03
And we have Amelia who's also at the department and a project officer.

3:14
All right, So what is the program that we have here?

3:17
It's a hands on internship that pairs students in STEM with the WA food and beverage sector.

3:25
So basically what it is, is over 200 hours a STEM intern will participate in a real world industry project.

3:34
So that's a project that's selected by the business and run by the business.

3:40
The students are employed by the business because this is a paid internship program, but then the business gets a two and a half thousand payment back per student upon completion of the internships to go to offset some of those cost of hosting.

3:58
It's a fully facilitated program, so we look after and help the businesses with project scoping and we also undertake all of the recruitment.

4:07
So I draught up the job advertisement and go to market, recruit and do initial screening interviews for students.

4:16
I present the business with a short list of candidates.

4:20
And then from that short list of candidates, the business can decide if they want to just appoint, if they want to interview and do their own round, which is what I usually recommend.

4:30
Or if there's no one suitable on that list, they can even let me know and we can have another look at the market or have another look at the internship placement.

4:40
We try to be flexible with the structure because this program is all about the businesses and supporting them to get access to some STEM talent as well as giving students that internship in business experience.

4:54
So we do support virtual working arrangements.

4:59
So if you're a regionally based business and you have a project that could be done from a student based in metropolitan Perth, you can absolutely do that through the program.

5:09
And there's additional funding for students and businesses in that situation for a student to make 2 trips of regional travel over to the host business.

5:22
So that's the Cliff notes of the program itself.

5:25
So who is it for?

5:26
Who were the businesses?

5:28
We say food and beverage sector, and we're trying to keep it as broad as we can within the sector.

5:33
So it's anyone in food and beverage production or food and beverage technology industries.

5:40
So this includes processes and manufacturers, but also primary producers like our agriculture folks and anyone in the technology supply chain.

5:50
So that's food packaging or even some of the ag tech.

5:55
It just needs to relate back and be part of that food and beverage sector.

6:00
They do need to be either based in WA or have an office and be operating in Western Australia as the internship will take place here.

6:09
They need to have a STEM project or set of activities for the student to complete and they also need to have a mentor or a supervisor who can work with the student and help them as they undertake that project.

6:23
And lastly, they need to be able to employ a student in a short term arrangement.

6:30
So who are the students?

6:31
The students or any student that's currently completing A tertiary STEM qualification.

6:38
So this can be undergraduate or postgraduate university qualification or it can be a vocational education and training.

6:45
It just depends on the business and what their needs are and what they're looking for.

6:50
But the really important thing is that it's any relevant STEM discipline.

6:55
So it's quite broad in that sense.

6:58
So this could be in engineering, it could be process engineering, mechanical engineering, automation, it could be data science, information technology.

7:07
So computer science, artificial intelligence, nutrition, food, AG, climate, environmental science.

7:14
It's really quite broad, just coming back to that food and beverage sector.

7:19
But the key is when it comes to the students, you get to decide.

7:23
So you decide who this person is that might be joining your team.

7:31
All right, So what do we offer businesses?

7:33
Why would this be appealing?

7:35
The first one I have here is visibility for your business in a competitive market.

7:40
And the reason I kind of have that up for the food and beverage sector in particularly, in particular is sometimes students, particularly in maybe engineering or data science or computer science, they may not necessarily be aware of the opportunities that the food and beverage sector can offer them.

7:59
So this is a really good way for us to go into the students we advertise for the position, use our brand and really get access to those students and get your jobs and opportunities in front of them.

8:15
It's about getting additional talent to help you guys work on those STEM projects and also the flexible structure in low on admin.

8:25
This program, it's not tied back to academic milestones.

8:29
So we're really seeking to make this as easy for businesses as possible because it's all about businesses getting access to talent and student getting the experience.

8:40
It's fully facilitated.

8:42
So we actually well myself, I do the recruitment for you and that doesn't cost you anything that's for free.

8:49
So we take the hassle out of your hands doing that.

8:52
The only cost of this business is to employ the student and then they can come back for that $2,500 completion payment at the end of it.

9:02
And then as I mentioned earlier, there is that additional up to 50% of support for two trips of student travel to regional businesses.

9:09
There is a $2,500 cap.

9:11
I don't think I've got anyone from the Pilbara on the line today, but just making you aware of that if there are flights that have to be considered.

9:22
So how does the program work?

9:24
It starts with an application and please don't feel that as part of the application process you need to have a fully fledged out research proposal or project.

9:33
It's nothing like that.

9:34
Just a sentence or two around what activity you're hoping to do is a good start because that triggers the next action, which is a discussion.

9:45
So once you submit the application, you'll meet with a program facilitator, so myself or possibly Roma, to chat about the project and what it is, what skills you're looking for and we confirm eligibility at that point too.

10:00
Once that's all done, I draught a job advertisement which is reviewed by the business and then I go to market with that job advertisement to recruit for a student.

10:11
I review all the applications and do that first round of interviews, then present the business with a short list that they can look to an action.

10:21
Once the business has selected a student that they're happy with, they would send an official acceptance to the student of employment, so like a verbal offer of employment and then start that employment contracting stage.

10:34
So that would be between the business and the student.

10:38
Once that's signed away, there is one last step, which is just a contract between CSIRO and the business to say you're participating in the programme and the internship gets underway.

10:52
So how do I apply?

10:55
You apply via our website.

10:57
I've got a QR code there that links to our website and there's also a short URL.

11:02
At the bottom.

11:03
We have an Ms Forms document that we use, so there's a link to that on the website.

11:09
Applications are due to close at about March 2026 or until places are fully allocated.

11:16
So important to be aware of that because we do only have a finite number for a number of places.

11:22
And if you want to discuss your application at all, or if you just want to talk to our team, you're not quite ready, you can get in touch with us at that Waffek email address, Waffek at CSIRO dot AU and Roma and myself will get in touch with you and have a chat.

11:37
Let me go to the next.

11:41
And yes, here are details again.

11:44
So that's the email address.

11:46
These are Roma's details and these are mine.

11:49
So if you want to talk to us about eligibility or an idea about a project, please do get in touch and we'd be happy to have a chat.