Under the instruction of Electro Technology teacher Carl Carter, SuniTAFE students are being trained for the future.

Carl has been a teacher at SuniTAFE for two years. He teaches Certificate III in Electrotechnology Electrician (UEE30820).

Before getting here, he obtained his A Grade Electrical Licence through SuniTAFE and a Bachelor of Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Deakin University.

Carl is passionate about this field, and has a keen interest in contributing to its development.

“Teaching at SuniTAFE is an opportunity for me to give back to this trade by developing the next generation of electricians,” he said.

“Electricity is ubiquitous in our lives nowadays. It’s everywhere, from the time we get up in the morning to the time we go to bed. It powers everything. Even just to turn the lights on in the morning we need electricity. It is a fundamental part of our modern society.”

“As teachers, we are really tooling up the next generation of electricians to be able to look at the whole electrical system, from how it’s generated through to how we’re using it. We are training our students to design systems that work, are energy efficient, and are safe for the end user.”

Carl’s job as a teacher comes with challenges. However, as he gains experience in the classroom, he is learning to overcome these challenges for the betterment of his students’ learning experiences.

“The thing I find most challenging about my job is meeting the needs of a very diverse student cohort. I’ve learned that when it comes to teaching, it’s not so much about what I know, but how the students understand it,” Carl said.

“I think students appreciate having someone guide them to develop their knowledge and tackle the problems they face. Even just having the content explained in different ways so that they can grasp the concept or apply it to what they’re doing in the field goes a long way.”

As Australia continues to shift towards a clean energy future, the industry will need to shift with it. This creates new opportunities and responsibilities for licensed professionals.

“Personally, I am really excited about the renewable energy sector, especially in Mildura. We already have a $1.8 billion transmission line being built in Buronga. That’s going to open up a whole bunch of new opportunities for clean energy production locally. This will also create new opportunities for our students,” Carl said.

“We will be able to see that transition from burning coal and using up finite resources, to using renewable energy from which we can create a sustainable future for generations to come. The students we teach will be a part of that.”

SuniTAFE’s Electro Technology courses have units dedicated to understanding sustainability within the sector, preparing them for this transition.

Interested in becoming an Electrician? Click here to find out more about studying UEE30820 Certificate III in Electrotechnology Electrician at SuniTAFE.