A group of students from Katherine will get a taste of the corporate world as part of a five-day camp encouraging STEM careers and university study.
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About 30 teenagers - from Brisbane to Katherine to Cairns - will get a VIP tour of the Brisbane Airport, explore the Gallipoli Army Barracks and check out trains, helicopters and planes, these school holidays.
They'll even get to see an AFP sniffer dog demonstration at the airport and meet some koalas at Lone Pine Sanctuary.
Established in 2012, the Indigenous Australian Science and Infrastructure Development (SID) School program is set to address the under representation of Indigenous Australians in STEM - science, technology, engineering and mathematics - industries.
Run by Queensland University of Technology's Oodgeroo Unit (the uni's Indigenous support unit), the event is based in Brisbane at QUT's $230 million Science and Engineering Centre, which includes The Cube - Australia's largest interactive and learning display centre for STEM.
SID School director Professor Anita Lee Hong said it focused on employment pathways related to science and infrastructure development and featured site visits showcasing real jobs as well as lots of hands-on learning activities at QUT.
"We aim to give the students as much real-world experience as possible and get them out to workplaces where they can see STEM careers in action and talk to people working in science, technology, engineering and maths," she said.
"This year the students will also visit the Gallipoli Barracks at Enoggera and see engineering careers in action at the WSP Brisbane head office, where they'll get to learn about fire engineering and try a driving simulator.
"They'll also visit LendLease's new Brisbane head office in Fortitude Valley and tour their new King Street precinct to get an insight into property development."
Brisbane Airport Corporation's partnership and events manager, Jacinta Messer, said the airport visit aimed to get the students excited about the aviation industry.
"Students will get VIP access to Brisbane Airport to see first-hand how a busy international airport operates," she said.
"They will see exciting new projects underway including Brisbane's new runway, currently Queensland's largest aviation infrastructure project, and the world-leading BNE Auto Mall.
"The BAC team will be on hand to share their personal experience about working in the industry and at Brisbane Airport, and reveal some interesting and little known facts about the airport which is home to 28 European bee hives and the largest single site rooftop solar panel system in Australia (which covers 36,000 square metres - twice the area of the Melbourne Cricket Ground).
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"A career in aviation is an exciting opportunity and we aim to capture the hearts and minds of this year's students to encourage them to consider a future career in this industry."
Students attending this year's camp come from schools in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Toowoomba, Katherine, Rockhampton, Townsville, Cairns, Torres Strait Islands, Maryborough, Yarrabah, Blackwater and Port Macquarie.
The SID School aims to demystify university through a free five-day residential camp (July 1-5) for Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander high schoolers.
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