Speak Out April 2017

ACT/ New south wales

ACT 71 NSW 1980 members as at February 2017

Retraining has its rewards

pathology need to accommodate,” she said. The proportion of women aged between 25-64 who returned to study has increased from 7.9 to 10.5 per cent over the past decade, according the Australian Bureau of Statistics last year. “These women bring important life experience as well as work skills to their new professions,” Melina said. Melina believes her experience raising three children, caring for elderly parents, supporting a family business and volunteering for numerous community organisations is invaluable when relating to clients and their families. “Unfortunately, this very life experience can also be a significant barrier to women retraining,” she said. “I was privileged to study with a cohort of exceptional students, many who were beginning second careers. Their commitment to further education often came at a substantial cost to their immediate and extended families. Examining barriers to mature age study will help us achieve our 2030 goal of having a profession as diverse as the community we serve.”

2013 WAS A turning point for Melina Waibel, Macquarie University recipient of the Speech Pathology Australia NSW student award for academic and clinical excellence. With her youngest child in school, she decided to retrain as a speech pathologist, completing Macquarie University’s Master of Speech and Language Pathology in 2016. “I thought speech pathology would be a wonderful vocation that would be personally rewarding and relevant to my previous work and experience,” Melina said. Prior to returning to study, Melina worked in corporate communication, managing relationships with the media, regulators, investors, customers and local communities for organisations such as Sydney Water and Optus. “The work relied heavily on excellent communication and analysis,” she said. “I am so glad these skills will not be lost and can help in my new career.” Melina met many people at Macquarie University who were retraining. “It is an increasing trend that professions like speech

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April 2017 www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.au

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