The inaugural group of students to undertake the new Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) for Indigenous professionals is about to complete their first year at UTS Business School, and new candidates are being invited to apply for 2016.
The BBA, unique in Australia, is specifically designed for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander professionals wishing to gain a degree qualification to maximise their career options.
“The Bachelor of Business Administration is the only accredited business course specifically designed for Indigenous people in an Australian university,” says Indigenous Programs Coordinator Sonya Pearce, a proud Gooreng Gooreng woman. “It has been set up so students take part in collaborative study with other Indigenous people, where they are able to draw on their previous work experience and knowledge.”
The program is aimed at people already in business administration, management and leadership roles who want to progress to the next level.
It is delivered in “residential” mode, which allows participants, with their employer’s support, to maintain full-time employment while studying. Students attend a number of one-week “intensive” sessions on campus in Sydney during the year, also studying independently while off campus.
The course is structured as a series of modules that focus on managing people, financial resources, organisations, operations and, finally, innovation.
'It’s relevant to what I’m doing now
and where I want to be in the future'
“Students in the program are able to develop an understanding of business through both theory and practice,” Pearce says. “All modules are designed around a ‘clinic’ model where we work with real organisations to determine their business needs and then develop plans and strategies to help them address these needs. This gives our students strong practical, hands-on experience.”
Khaila-Rose Prior, a Project Officer in Human Resources with Legal Aid NSW, says she was someone who used to say they never wanted to go to university. “It wasn’t something I was ever interested in doing,” she says. “What really appealed to me about this course, though, was the fact I could study and work at the same time. And I know that, to progress, I need a qualification.”
The inaugural group has been working with organisations such as the Tribal Warrior Association and the Jack Thompson Foundation. “We’re really lucky that we do have quite a lot of contact with the organisations that we’re working with, and we’re doing something that is relevant and not just based on theory,” Prior says.
Christian Hampson, a Regional Manager with the Office of Environment and Heritage, is completing his first year of the BBA and describes the coursework as “challenging but really practical and relevant”.
“Because I’m a manager already I’m able to bring things I learn back into my workplace,” he says. “That’s what I like about it – it’s relevant to what I’m doing now and where I want to be in the future.”
The Jumbunna Direct Entry Program gives prospective students the opportunity to demonstrate their capability for tertiary study through an assessment and interview process. Completion of Year 12 is not a prerequisite. Selection is based on factors such as life experience, prior education and professional experience. Motivation to study and commitment to complete a tertiary degree is also taken in account.
For more information please visit bba.uts.edu.au or contact Sonya Pearce via sonya.pearce@uts.edu.au or on 02 9514 3774
Photo: Bachelor of Business Adminisration student Khaila-Rose Prior. Credit: Nathan Rodger