What a TAFE Queensland scholarship means to me

Ryan Osborn is a Certificate III in Engineering (Mechanical) apprentice and is also a TAFE Queensland Scholarship recipient, and this is his story.

I really like what I do. You have to, if you have to get up most days like I do at 4am to leave by 4:30 and start work at 5.

As a first year Certificate III in Engineering (Mechanical) student training at TAFE Queensland while also working as an apprentice fitter and turner in Kandanga in the Gympie region, my days fill up pretty quickly.

For starters, I travel from Gympie to the TAFE Queensland Hervey Bay campus to attend training which takes over an hour and a half to drive to each way.

With two little boys aged nine and five, it means I don’t usually get to see their happy little faces or have breakfast with them when they rise in the morning.

I wouldn’t have it any other way though as this is all part of a bigger plan and it helps that I love fixing things, and the problem solving, the hands-on work and the craftsmanship that are part of my job.

I’m proud of what I’ve achieved so far; I’ve been employed by Superior Wood, a local company in Gympie, since 2012 and this year, I was offered an apprenticeship by my employer – a fantastic outcome indeed.

Just when things couldn’t look any brighter, I also found out I was awarded a TAFE Queensland scholarship which is just the icing on the cake.

With the twin challenges of dealing with daily cost of living pressures and trying to raise a young family, the $5000 scholarship award could not have come at a better time.

The scholarship award aside, one of the many things I love about studying at TAFE Queensland are the fantastic, knowledgeable and very helpful teachers I get to work with.

I learn and gain so much from their industry experience, accessibility and support.

I want to keep on learning, whether it’s learning in my job or in the classroom.

As a fitter and turner, there’s more variety to my work than people realise; on any given day, I work with a different range of tools to remanufacture timber, cut down logs, cut them into size and repurpose the timber into everyday items such door frames and skirting boards.

One of the highlights about my job has been working as part of a team to build a shed which was a really satisfying task as I was technically challenged and able to contribute to a group project.

The way things are going, I can confidently say that my future is looking pretty bright with a few goals on the horizon; I might explore the opportunity to start my own venture and somewhere along the way, travel to America and Europe with my family.

In the meantime, I believe TAFE Queensland will provide me with the confidence and skills to further my job prospects so if you’re thinking about career options in engineering or a trade, I recommend you give TAFE Queensland a go.