Rachel takes one step closer to her dream career

Rachel had already completed a degree in marine biology and said a certificate in tourism was the next step towards building her skills and knowledge.

She completed her Certificate IV in Tourism at South West TAFE at the end of last year and said the course gave her the perfect set of skills to add to those she already gained in previous courses.

“The course has set me up so well for work in this field. We got to learn a bit of everything in the tourism industry including customer service and computer booking systems and the field trips were great,” she said.

Rachel’s passion and drive for working in the eco-tourism industry has paid off, gaining employment as a summer ranger for Parks Victoria.

“I was lucky enough to gain the role of a seasonal summer ranger based in Port Campbell which involves a lot of visitor interaction,” she said.

Her role includes making sure people are safe and everyone is staying within the barriers, track and general maintenance and monitoring wildlife sites.

“Every day is so different, I just love it,” she said.

Rachel said he current role finished in March but it was definitely an industry she wanted to stay in.

“My long-term goal is to continue building my experience and gain a full-time job in the eco-tourism industry,” she said.

Rachel said there were so many opportunities for a career in the tourism industry in this region and the Certificate IV in Tourism was extremely beneficial.

“It’s definitely helped my skills and to have that extra piece of paper shows people how serious I am,” she said.