University of Western Australia Bachelor of Commerce student, Gibran Alvaro, recently interned with the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD), contributing to an initiative aimed at strengthening Community Resource Centres across the State.
Looking for a way to stand out professionally, Gibran applied for an internship through the McCusker Centre for Citizenship.
“For me this internship program was groundbreaking in its concept, content and partner organisations. What really stood out was the opportunity to contribute to society while gaining new knowledge and expanding my experience,” he said.
“I was matched with a role in DPIRD’s Community Resource Centre (CRC) team. My main project was to create two standardised online onboarding resources across the CRC network to help new coordinators, committee and staff get comfortable with their agreement with DPIRD.
“I also had the rare opportunity to join a regional visit to communities in the Wheatbelt region, visiting four CRCs and hosting a workshop in Hyden attended by 13 CRC Coordinators.”
Gibran quickly settled in with his team at DPIRD and exceeded expectations, prompting his supervisor to nominate him for the McCusker Centre for Citizenship’s Outstanding Intern Award.
“Gibran was initially engaged to research, draft and develop two onboarding eLearning modules,” said Aaron Johnston, Program Manager with DPIRD’s Community Resource Centre team.
“After completing these to a high standard and ahead of schedule, we discussed expanding his workload. Gibran worked closely with the CRC team and, by the end of his internship, had authored and published seven eLearning modules, each thoroughly tested with internal and external users and met with consistently positive feedback.
“Gibran’s contribution during this internship will leave a lasting legacy on our program, helping to improve service delivery and drive positive change in regional WA communities,” Mr Johnston said.
For Gibran, the ongoing impact of his contribution was the highlight of the experience.
“During the visit to Hyden, and after publishing the modules, CRC Coordinators have noted how helpful these resources are for them and their staff. Through these modules, I believe I am still contributing to positive development in regional WA even after the conclusion of my internship.
“For me the internship experience was full of valuable learning, including how crucial stakeholder relationship management is, how strong communication skills are just as important as technical, job-specific abilities, and how powerful collaboration can be.
“I would absolutely recommend the McCusker Centre internship program, it is a unique platform that allows you to earn academic credit, make a real impact for the community and get an advantage in the job market, all at the same time.”