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Kick start your career in crime and justice

Find out how you can get a taste for a career in crime and justice before you even graduate high school. Hear from teacher Andrew Johnston about how studying a justice and crime studies qualification while still in high school can jump start your career in this field.

By TAFE Queensland

One of the best things about studying in our TAFE at School program is the opportunity to get a strong sense of what an industry is all about while you’re still in high school. Our TAFE at School teachers all bring their knowledge, skills and experiences to the classroom to give students clear insights into a specific industry, and more importantly, if it’s an industry they’d like to work in.

TAFE at School crime studies and justice teacher Andrew Johnston has worked at TAFE Queensland for about five years and loves sharing his experiences with his students. Andrew teaches both in the TAFE at School program, as well as teaching our VET students.

Before starting his career as a teacher, Andrew worked in the military for 20 years; serving for 4 years as a paratrooper and then for 16 years as a military investigator. Now that he is a teacher, he says that there are a wide range of benefits to studying justice through TAFE at School.

“One of the biggest advantages for students is that this is a great preparation program. It really opens their eyes to the wide range of career options available in the justice field; fisheries, correction, police and more.”

“This is also a risk-free way to get a good idea of whether the justice industry is the right for them.”

Andrew loves the TAFE at School classes, they are often filled with students who are keen for their first taste of education in adult-learning environments.

“For me, I really enjoy watching students evolve over the course of the program, even though I only see them once a week in term time. Seeing them gain confidence and evolve in their learning journey is amazing. I often think of TAFE as a transitionary bridge that opens their eyes up to other career options.”

Most of Andrew's TAFE at School students who find that the Certificate IV in Crime and Justice Studies (10283NAT) has whetted their appetites for more, continue to study with TAFE Queensland post-high school.

“We’ve had a lot of students that have completed the TAFE at School course and have then continued on to study their diploma-level qualifications with us before heading to uni. We hosted a careers day for our diploma students in late 2017 and I recognised a couple of ex-students from the program who came to present on the day. One who is now working with Border Force and another is an intelligence officer with Queensland Corrective Services. So they’ve come full circle.”

Find out more about our TAFE at School program, or our justice qualifications and see how you can kick start your career today.