Tyler McMiles and Amber Ugle-Hayward are two participants in this year’s Aboriginal Traineeship Program. They’ve been working hard in their agencies, growing as young public sector leaders while making progress towards their final goal – completing a Certificate III in Government. We got in touch with them to find out about their experience so far and what they have learnt during the 2020 program…
Part 1 - Tyler McMiles
Family means everything to Tyler McMiles and is what helped push him towards finding a place in the public sector through the Aboriginal Traineeship Program.
“I first heard about it from my mum who works for the Department of Communities,” said Tyler.
“She gave me an insight into working in government and what it could be like.”
Although his family comes from New South Wales originally, Tyler was born and raised in Western Australia. He graduated last year from Kent Street Senior High School, an environment he thrived in thanks to the competitive sporting aspects, particularly the specialist cricket program.
An all-round athlete, Tyler has a Certificate II in Sport and Recreation and work experience umpiring indoor cricket as well as junior and senior AFL.
However, rather than pursue further sporting achievements, Tyler turned his attention to other development and employment opportunities.
“The Aboriginal Traineeship Program stood out to me as a great opportunity. It looked interesting so I decided to go for it and I haven’t looked back since.”
Tyler started with the Department of the Premier and Cabinet (DPC) in February as an Aboriginal trainee and while his main priority is the Certificate III in Government, he also hopes to learn new life skills, grow as a young person and meet new people.
“One of the many things I have learnt is professionalism, mainly around the way people conduct and present themselves at work. I have also learnt the different roles, projects, rules and regulations within the Infrastructure and Major Projects division at DPC.”
As someone who enjoys sports and being outdoors, Tyler said it was a challenge to adjust to office life.
“I am a very sporty person and didn’t really see myself working in an office,” said Tyler.
“But it helps when you have good people who work around you, who take an interest and support you with your work.”
The Aboriginal Traineeship Program is an important initiative run by the Commission to create a future-fit, collaborative and diverse public sector, and help today’s young people develop the skills to be tomorrow’s public sector leaders.
“The Aboriginal Traineeship Program helps build diversity by creating more opportunities for young Aboriginal people in the workplace.”
Read more about the Aboriginal Traineeship Program.
