By Chloe Sipeki
When Dr Seuss said: “The more you learn, the more places you’ll go”, he very well may have been referring to education at TAFE NSW.
TAFE courses offer students the opportunity to learn new skills, expand their interests and enrich their careers. One of the best things about the courses is the variety.
Academic, creative, short courses or long courses; if there is something you want to learn, you can learn it at TAFE. Here are five courses you probably didn’t know were offered at TAFE.
1: Rye-se and shine
There is a certain kind of satisfaction that comes with taking the first bite of something you have baked yourself. This satisfaction is only enhanced when it’s a homemade loaf of crispy, golden sourdough. Hamilton TAFE’s Make Your Own Bread course teaches students how to create the most delicious loaves, as well as skills for baking bread in all its forms. For either professional bakers or home cooks, who wouldn’t want to be part of a world filled with the scent of freshly baked bread?
2: Handy skills
Even for those not directly impacted by hearing loss, learning sign language opens opportunities to be a part of a new community. Not only will Auslan allow you to communicate in a whole new way, but visual language challenges our brains in a way that verbal language does not, basically making the brain stronger. TAFE’s various AUSLAN courses start with the basics, getting progressively more advanced, allowing students to take their new skills as far as they wish.
3: Don’t just wing it
For jetsetters who want to study but can’t lose the travel bug, TAFE’s travel course offers students the chance to vicariously travel through their studies. You’ll be learning about tourist destinations in Australia and overseas as well as how to plan itineraries for the best vacation experiences. Once you have these skills, you can take them into the tourism business, or you will know all the secrets to plan a perfect holiday for yourself.
4: Adjust your focus
Photography is one of those hobbies that many people enjoy, but only a few will take the extra steps to learn more and improve. TAFE’s darkroom photography course is testimony to how going that extra mile with your hobbies can lead you to learn something that you otherwise never would have. The Hornsby TAFE campus has all the equipment required to produce darkroom prints; all you have to bring is your passion for photography.
5: A super way to plan for your future
How easy would life be if we understood how to properly handle our adult admin tasks? This course teaches students superannuation and retirement planning strategies. You’ll also learn how different factors, such as taxes and social security, influence your superannuation and retirement plans. The TAFE superannuation and retirement course at Ultimo gets you ahead of the game with practical life skills so you can spend less time worrying about money, and more time enjoying your life.
Further information/inspiration: If you want to take a look at the hundreds of courses offered by TAFE NSW, click here. There is no better time to be what you want to be.
Featured image: Get the message, TAFE’s here to help. Photo: Millo Lin/CC/Unsplash