RMIT mechanical engineering students are receiving on-the-job experience working on Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) East through an innovative 5 year apprenticeship program starting this month.
Four students selected for RMIT’s Higher Apprenticeship Pathways Program will be working with consortium Suburban Connect building the southern section of the SRL East twin tunnels.
The students will work a combined total of around 38,500 hours on SRL during the program – contributing to the Victorian Government’s Major Projects Skills guarantee of at least 10% of hours worked on SRL to be worked by apprentices, trainees and cadets.
In the RMIT program, the students will gain valuable skills in the workplace while completing an Advanced Diploma of Mechanical Engineering for the first 2 years and go on to complete a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering over the final 3 years.
Among the students is Marta Chmiel, 23, who has spent more than 2 years in fabrication and manufacturing, and Thomas Radon, 18, who will be kick-starting his career.
SRL East will deliver 6 new underground stations between Cheltenham to Box Hill, opening up access to jobs and key medical and education destinations across Melbourne’s east and south east. As Australia’s largest housing project, SRL will also deliver thousands more homes where people want to live - on the doorstep of world-class public transport, jobs, education and services.
Construction is powering ahead, creating up to 8000 direct local jobs, with major construction starting this year, tunnelling to begin next year and trains taking passengers in 2035.