Volunteering and Internship

Studying in Australia might not be just about completing the course,working part time to earn money and enjoy the period of stay here.For some students who aspire to achieve something bigger than just this, either academically or career-wise,Australia brings forth great opportunities for such students.By saying those who mean to achieve big,I mean students who aspire to pursue a PhD after their Masters or Bachelors with Honours course or,those who want to kick start a great career for themselves.

In Universities throughout Australia,each faculty has research groups involving PhD,Post doctorate,M.Phil and honours students.Say during the course  of your study,you discover that a particular research group in a faculty is doing the kind of stuff you have always wanted to do,you can approach the Professor heading that group and express your interest in joining his/her group as a volunteer.Doing so could help you greatly in 2 ways.One for pursuing a PhD in the future and secondly,to find a job.

Let us first see how this would benefit a PhD aspirant.If you are a PhD aspirant and you know that a particular research group is doing the kind of work you are interested in,you can volunteer to work in that lab and gain experience with the techniques and the work.After having put in significant work,if your supervisor is happy with your work,there is a chance that he/she could recommend you for a PhD,at the end of your course.Also,during the course it is better to gain contacts with other Professors working for that Faculty.In this way you may find an opening through them if in case your Professor is not able to fund you for a PhD.Even otherwise,you can also apply to other Universities conducting research on similar topics,quoting the experience you would have gained here.If you are offered a PhD,you could be funded either partially where only the tuition fees will be covered or wholly where both tuition fees and living expense will be covered.But to get here is not easy.It requires a lot of hard work and perseverence.You must always keep the fire to get there burning and be enthusiastic irrespective of whether you are successful in finding a PhD position immediately or not.On the whole,you just have to keep trying.

Similarly,volunteering can also be of immense help to those aspiring to start a good career.By working in different labs or companies,you can gain experience with handling equipments and techniques which may be in demand in the job market.Quoting such experiences may fetch you the right job in companies,in the related field.It is very important to have practical knowledge in order to be successful in getting a job.A previous experience in the field that you are looking for is always advantageous.In order to gain this knowledge,working in labs in the University would be the best option.You can also work as an intern in companies,which may fetch you a job later,subjected to satisfactory progress in your work.Other factors that matter are punctuality,observation of certain rules and etiquette.

But you must be able to strike a balance between volunteering,part time work and academics.Especially,academics must never be disregarded because your performance in academics will be highly considered when applying for a PhD and also in job search.So,it is always better to make optimum utilisation of these opportunities without affecting any of them.