Sydney schoolgirls will get a taste of what it’s like to work in the property industry during the second Girls in Property Week.
Following a successful inaugural event in 2017, Girls in Property Week returns this year to challenge stereotypes and show high school-aged girls the career opportunities available within the property industry.
Girls in Property is an initiative of the Property Council of Australia’s NSW Diversity Committee in conjunction with the NSW Department of Education and aims to foster a pipeline of talent into the industry.
This year up to 200 girls in Year 10 from seven schools across Sydney will participate in a series of workshops and sessions across three days on May 21, 25 and 31.
The project raises awareness of female participation in the property industry and increases exposure to the many careers available to women in the industry, helping high school-aged girls make informed subject choices at school to set them up for a future career in property.
Across the three days the students will hear from industry experts and tour some of Sydney’s iconic developments, including Lendlease’s world-class Barangaroo development, Western Sydney University’s new Parramatta City campus at One Parramatta Square, and a behind the scenes tour of Scentre Group’s Westfield Sydney.
The students will work on collaborative projects based on real-world problems and present their projects to their school communities and industry experts at the conclusion of the project.
The schools participating in Girls in Property Week are:
- Asquith Girls High School
- Bankstown Girls High School
- Burwood Girls High School
- Cheltenham Girls High School
- Northern Beaches Secondary College Mackellar Girls Campus
- Randwick Girls High School
- Riverside Girls High School
Jane Simmons, Executive Director School Services, NSW Department of Education, said Girls in Property gave students the opportunity to hear from and link with female property industry leaders and work with their peers on real-life projects.
“The initiative challenges stereotypes around career opportunities and helps ensure the property industry has a diverse future workforce as more young women choose property as a career,” she said.
Jane Fitzgerald, NSW Executive Director of the Property Council of Australia, said that after an incredibly successful first year, year two of Girls in Property will look to build on the momentum.
“The property industry has embraced the challenge of making diversity a key priority and at the core of everything we do – instilling the value of equity of opportunity. Girls in Property means high school-aged girls can make informed choices about a career in property and hopefully more women will choose to work in our industry,” she said.
Students involved in last year’s program said it opened their eyes to the various career paths in property and showed them how women can be prominent in the industry. Such careers include property development and construction, architecture and interior design, property valuation and economics, urban design, planning, academic research and teaching, human resources, marketing and finance or engineering and surveying.
Schools participating last year reported benefits to students, especially in relation to HSC subject selection. All schools involved reported a significant change in the pattern of subject selection with an increase in students selecting HSC subjects in the areas of science, mathematics or design.
At Riverside Girls High School there was a 50% increase in the number of students electing to study economics and a 100% increase in the number of students electing to study design and technology.
The property industry is Australia’s biggest employer with 1.4 million jobs. More than one in four people derive their wage from the industry either directly or indirectly.1
1 – Property industry now NSW’s biggest employer say AEC Group
