A handful of creative and passionate Victorian secondary students have taken out strong competition across the state to each win a high profile work placement and mentoring opportunity with some of Australia’s top companies as part of Victoria University’s innovative Work Experience of a Lifetime initiative.

Open to Year 10 and 11 students state-wide, the interactive online competition was launched in partnership with agency Leo Burnett Melbourne to help open doors for local students who often struggle to identify their career passion and gain meaningful work experience.

Judged for their creative courage and determination, the successful students provided stellar written and/or visual entries to showcase their desire to gain experience in a chosen industry and will reap the rewards during a week-long placement in July with powerhouses including Mushroom Group, Leo Burnett, Nova FM and Honda.

Elisa Tohi from Marian College is excited to learn more about what it’s really like to work in the entertainment industry with some of the best in the business from Australia’s fastest growing entertainment company, Nova.

“I’m passionate about music, photography, comedy and entertaining people in general, so this is an amazing opportunity to confirm the entertainment profession is the right career path for me,” Elisa said.

Nova 100’s General Manager, Helen Davies, said her team is looking forward to sharing their expertise with the next generation.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for Elisa to gain a true understanding of what the radio and entertainment world is like with mentoring from some of our own amazing young talent. She will get a behind the scenes look at the Nova and smoothfm breakfast shows, hit the streets with street team and sit in on publicity, promotions and sales team meetings,” she said.

Professor Peter Dawkins, Vice-Chancellor and President of Victoria University, said he was extremely impressed with the creativity and enthusiasm of students’ entries to the project.

“The high standard of the visual and written submissions we received demonstrates that Victorian secondary students are passionate about seeking valuable work placements and gaining access to real world experience in order to take charge of their own career path.

“Victoria University has a long tradition of connecting students with high-profileorganisations so they can gain experience that matches theircareer interests. The Australia-first Work Experience of a Lifetime project highlights the importance of ensuring Year 10 and 11 pupils have a worthwhile placement which benefits them and future employers,” Mr Dawkins said.