Sophie Patterson, Bachelor of Business Administration (2018)
Sophie has previously worked with the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and is currently a Human Resource Advisor at the National Indigenous Australians Agency. Prior to these roles, she worked at a boutique recruitment company. While studying at CBE, Sophie completed the Global Business Immersion course, where she went to Taiwan. She also completed the CBE Internship Program, where she interned with Evolve FM Australia.
1. What led to your interest in working in human resources (HR)?
Even before I commenced my university degree, I decided I wanted to pursue a career focused on helping the community, but I just couldn’t decide which field to specialise in. At CBE, I discovered that working in human resources (HR) provides me with the opportunity to support employees and work towards the goals of the organisation. There is also a wide variety of specialisations in HR, which I enjoyed as it created many opportunities to develop and grow. To date I’ve worked in areas such as performance and behaviour, capability and development, HR workforce analytics and employee conditions, as well as the Chief Operating Officers’ office.
2. Your advice for CBE students looking for graduate roles in the Australian Public Service (APS)?
If you find a department or agency that you would like to work for, I recommend first developing a good understanding of the work they do. There are many specialised areas within the APS, which you might not know about until you explore their organisational structure or corporate plans. In HR, there are many exciting areas you can specialise in, which you might not have the opportunity to do in smaller organisations. There are a wide variety of graduate programs available in the APS and some offer-specialised streams such as HR, data and digital. I’d recommend starting your application earlier and carefully following the STAR (situation, task, action, and result) method.