The future of the Australian Maritime College has been assured with the announcement that it will be a key strategic partner in Adelaide’s new Naval Shipbuilding College.
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Federal Defence Industry Minister, Christopher Pyne, announced that the Naval Shipbuilding College (NSC) would collaborate with education and industry providers to ensure Australia increased the size and skills of its naval shipbuilding workforce.
AMC board chairman, Paul Gregg, said the NSC was not an additional educational institution but rather an industry-led entity, supported by the education and training sector, that would manage Australia’s necessary workforce.
“The NSC will work with education and training providers around the country to develop programs that will produce the highly skilled workers crucial to delivering on the $90 billion investment in naval shipbuilding.
“As a strategic partner, the AMC will play a prominent supporting role, developing and delivering key maritime higher education and training programs, and as an independent representative on the NSC’s strategic governance forum.”
UTAS Vice-Chancellor Rufus Black hailed the announcement and said it paved the way for profound benefits for the university and the region more broadly.
"There will soon be unprecedented career development opportunities in the maritime sector, particularly in the fields of maritime engineering and logistics, as a result of the Australian Government’s multi-billion dollar naval shipbuilding program," Professor Black said.
"AMC’s strong defence and industry connections, coupled with its breadth of offering in maritime training, education, research and consultancy, means it is well-positioned to respond to these growing demands.”
He said the AMC's unique combination of specialist degree offerings, leading-edge infrastructure and teams of expert academic and technical staff placed it in good stead to support the operational needs of both the NSC and wider industry and government.
Tasmanian Defence Industries Minister Jeremy Rockliff said the NSC would build on the AMC’s already proven capability and capacity to support naval shipbuilding and complement the existing range of specialist degree offerings already available at AMC.
“This is a new and exciting opportunity for the University of Tasmania and AMC and will mean that our state continues to play a lead role in shaping Australia’s maritime and defence capability,” Mr Rockliff said.
Tasmanian Liberal Senator David Bushby, a graduate of the AMC, said the college would work closely with the NSC, as many of the courses offered by the AMC were of key relevance to the skills needed for the long-term shipbuilding effort.
“The new NSC will support the education and training of students in these courses at the AMC and this provides a great opportunity for the AMC to grow its enrolments and its importance as a national provider of maritime and naval based courses,” Senator Bushby said.
“The AMC is extremely well placed to be a key provider of education and training for the Naval Shipbuilding College, contributing their world-renowned innovation and expertise to this significant investment in Australia’s workforce and its long-term economic prosperity.”
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