After working in the Hospitality Industry for four years, I decided, after consultation and support from family and friends to change my career direction and enroll in a Business Administration course at Murray Institute of TAFE, Gawler campus. I started Certificate II and III in Business (Office Administration) in July 2002 and successfully finished my course in June 2003.

During my course, I was a staff employee at ‘Convention Connection Practice Firm’ for a year. On the first day of my course, I had an induction, which introduced me to the Practice Firm. The day explained what the ‘Practice Firm’ was all about. The level of professionalism, facilities, and hard work that was put into it had impressed me. I was told that we ran our own business but everything was virtual. I didn’t understand the concept of this at first. Running a business and nothing was actually real?! I learnt quickly that the virtual reality was for the practical experience, and all skills that we used were the sorts of skills we would be using in the workforce. I was informed that we traded our ‘product’, which we had to design ourselves as a team, and sell to other firms around Australia. An emphasis was put on selling conventions/functions. This sounded rather interesting to me, because we were also receiving and buying products from other Practice Firms. As time went by, I soon learnt the ‘ins and outs’ of our Practice Firm.

I had the opportunity to work in all departments of our Firm. This included HR, Finance (Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Banking), Records Management, Marketing, Administration, Reception, and Supply. It was a great experience to work in each department. It gave me the opportunity to find out which department I enjoyed the most, and which one I was best at. I now know how each department operates, and what specific jobs I would enjoy working in when applying for jobs in the near future.

Early this year, I was introduced to the ‘Trade Fair’. I heard from the seniors of last year, what it involved and I was excited to be a part of it. Trade Fair 2003 was held at Morphetville Function Centre, late May this year. The build up to this event involved a huge team effort, and a lot of planning/organizing was done before the day. I found it enjoyable to the lead up of this event because we worked very well within a team. Having lecturers, who were keen and excited as we were, helped tremendously throughout the planning.

Being involved in the Trade Fair gave me the opportunity to see where all our skills were leading to in the Practice Firm over the year. Putting all the practical skills, we had learnt over the year, into real practice when trading with the Practice Firms from South Australia. It was fantastic meeting the other firms we have been trading with throughout the year, and meeting them face-to-face after doing so much business with them. Our firm decided to create a rock concert, called ‘Euphonic Nexus’, meaning musical connection. It was a different but an exciting product to sell to the public and other firms that were trading on the day. It definitely tested our skills in marketing, (knowing your product, up selling, etc) and customer service. It was a valuable experience, because all the skills we gained, would be used in the future. We did very well over the two days of trading, making quite a large profit! (If only it was real!).  I realized how much the concept of “working as a team”, helped contribute to the success of our great achievements. We had the opportunity to buy products from other firms. This gave us experience in writing out cheques and developing the processes that are involved in buying a product.

At the conclusion of the course, I believe I have gained many skills, knowledge and understandings of what it means to work effectively and efficiently in a business environment. I feel equipped to take on new challenges in the work force and look forward to demonstrating these skills in the future with a professional attitude.