Vocational Education and Training (VET) provider Clip Joint Education is joining forces with the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia via an internship program.
Interns Aimee, Grace and Alice at Clip Joint Education.
Shortlisted in the 2012 Small Training Provider of the Year awards, Service Skills SA’s champion for hairdressing and the first Sassoon Academy / School Connection in Australia, Clip Joint has built a reputation as a leader in the industry over the last 40 years.
Clip Joint Education director, Alfredo Cappella says, “The internships give university students the opportunity to turn the theory learned at university into practical outcomes in a business setting.”
Four marketing and communications students (two from each university) are undertaking projects at the hairdressing academy in the fields of general marketing and communication strategies, website review and improvement, marketing and international agent engagement and support, and records management and marketing compliance.
Aimee Guo, Alice Nguyen, Grace Smith and Claudia List were chosen to take part in the internship program, which proved to be a popular choice for students.
“There was a lot of interest in the internships and we conducted around 20 interviews to find the right candidates for the positions,” says Alfredo.
“We definitely made the right choice with Aimee, Alice, Grace and Claudia; they have done a great job so far.”
Alice says the internships are a good way to practically apply what they have learned at university and to support their future development.
“There were different internships on offer, but I thought Clip Joint Education was most suited to my skill-set; it turns out it was a great decision because I have really enjoyed my time here and I think it will help me advance in my career.”
Grace is undertaking a website review and improvement project and says she agrees with Alice: “I think this type of experience is a great way to become acquainted with real work environments.”
As an international student from China, Aimee says her own experience has given her a unique perspective: “An important part of our projects have been engaging international students and discovering how to further enhance their experience at Clip Joint Education and as an international student, I have first-hand experience,” she says.
Alice says getting Aimee’s perspective has definitely been of benefit: “Working with Aimee on projects such as trying to simplify the recruitment process for students, has been great because as an international student she has a real experience to draw from,” Alice says.
“Even when it comes to things such as simple translations, having an international student’s perspective really helps to enhance the project.”
