Seventeen-year-old Talia Ku is encouraging other high-achieving students to consider getting ahead by studying a vocational preparation course through TAFE NSW in place of their HSC.
As a national level synchronised ice skater at Canterbury Olympic Ice Rink, Talia said the decision to leave school at the end of Year 10 and complete the one-year Certificate IV in Tertiary Preparation at TAFE NSW Ultimo was easy.
“I’ve always wanted to study biomedical engineering at university so I knew I needed an entrance pathway,” she said. “The Tertiary Preparation Course was perfect because it gave me a tertiary entrance score and access to university, while preparing me for a more mature learning environment and being flexible enough to support my ice skating.”
Talia was recently awarded Career Pathways, Aboriginal Languages and Employability Skills Student of the Year at the TAFE NSW Excellence Awards.
TAFE NSW Executive Director Education and Skills for Sydney, Raf Marcellino, commended Talia for the commitment and dedication she has shown to her studies.
“These awards recognise our most passionate, industrious and skillful students, and the fact teachers are the ones who nominate the students makes it even more special,” he said.
