In order to best support our students we are constantly working hard to ensure we are up-to-date with all the latest and most accurate information. Our team attended a number of events this month in an effort to help us stay at the forefront of things. We encourage the parents and caregivers of our ākonga to keep checking the careers website: https://riccarton.careerwise.school/, to keep up to date will all events and important dates.

Careers Information Evening
The Careers Department held a Careers Information Evening for senior students and their whānau on Wednesday 8 March. It was fantastic to see so many people in attendance and we enjoyed answering your questions and providing clarification about pathways. Following the success of the evening, we are aiming to host more career information events in conjunction with other year level information evenings and cultural evenings.

Pathways Leadership Breakfast

Mrs Lou Heenan attended the Pathways Leadership Breakfast on Thursday 9 March. Over 180 people attended this event, from employers to school principals to local government organisations including the Ministry of Education and ChristchurchNZ. Guest speakers provided vital insight into the state of the local economy, areas of potential growth and details about some vocational programmes that can be introduced into secondary schools.

Defence Forces Cocktail Evening

The Defence Forces Cocktail Evening was held on Thursday 9 June at the Airforce Museum in Wigram. This provided not only an opportunity for the Defence Force to showcase what careers they have on offer but we were also given fascinating accounts from NZ Army personnel, the NZ Navy and NZ Air Force personnel on what it is really like being in the NZ Defence Forces. We also heard from two students who are currently studying at university and have been lucky enough to gain scholarships through the Defence Force. The evening proved to be invaluable to our Careers team, and we are more than happy to pass this detailed knowledge on to any students who may be considering a career within the NZ Defence Force.

Lincoln University Careers Advisors Update Days

Mrs Jane Hall attended the two-day Lincoln University Careers Advisors Update Day. Over the course of the two day event, Lincoln University was able to showcase the university campus and the courses that they offer.

LFL trip to the Inzone Careers Coach

Our Learning for Life (LFL) class were treated to a visit to the Inzone Careers Coach at the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) site at Linwood. The Inzone Careers Coach has been customised and fitted out with digital kiosks where students can explore a number of different careers and industries. Students also had the opportunity to talk to Defence Force personnel, MSD staff and a business that was trialing virtual reality headsets. Our students thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Tertiary Institutions Visits to RHS

As Term one comes to a close, we are getting more tertiary institutions undertaking their first round of liaison visits to our school. To date, we have had the University of Canterbury, Ara/Te Pukenga, Victoria University, Massey University, Lincoln University, Otago University and the Defence Force visit us. We are looking forward to hosting Waikato University and AUT in Term two. At this stage, Auckland University have not advised whether they will be visiting us in person this year, but students have been provided with details on how to attend online information events.

Secondary Tertiary Partnership (STP) Students on Work Experience

Our Secondary Tertiary Partnership (STP) students are exploring future career options by attending tertiary placements combined with single-day work experiences. Our students are learning first-hand what it is like to work in their chosen industries and are exploring possible career options while finding links between their studies and work. The work placements this year include local garages, schools, doggy day-care, preschools, and construction companies. Feedback from both employers and students has been very positive and we are extremely grateful to the employers who have chosen to give their time to support our students.

RHS Alumni

It was great to see two Alumni students celebrated by the University of Canterbury. Leah Albrow is one of five New Zealand postgraduate students selected by NASA and the New Zealand Space Agency for an internship at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).

Eddie Pham, an international student from Vietnam, who is now in his second year of a BEHons at University of Canterbury, was celebrated on a UC poster where he said that “RHS encouraged him to step out of his comfort zone and prepared him for his next exciting challenge at UC”.

Ka pai Leah, Eddie and UC.

Riccarton High School boys' volleyball hold all of the trophies for school volleyball in the South Island!