What made you decide to apply for Crawford School?
I really wanted to get back to study and the offering at Crawford aligned with what I was starting to read and be interested in while being relevant to my position as a public servant.
Were you weighing up any alternative degrees or career pathways before choosing this qualification?
Not intensely. Bit of thought to a politics degree or maybe law. There are some more career-specific options that my department offers but they didn’t drive much interest and lacked the applicability of Public Policy and the reputation of Crawford.
What was the process to get accepted into your course? What were the prerequisites?
I don’t really remember the process of getting accepted in any great detail which is probably a good sign noting previous experience with university admin. I remember having to provide my GPA which was fine though I did have to look up what that was and how to calculate it.
What does your study involve? Can you describe a typical day at Crawford School?
My study involves doing the readings for each course, sitting quietly in lectures on receive mode and then discussing topics in the tutorials. I work full time so my typical day at Crawford involves rushing from a meeting or sending a last email attending a lecture or tutorial and then running off back to work. So I don’t feel like I get the broader experience the school offers but I always make the time to attend everything.
Will this course be beneficial in your career?
Yes I think so. If I move into a more policy-focused role making it more directly beneficial. If not the course still provides some skills and understanding that is going to be useful in any public service role.
Where could you or others in your position go from here? Please explain your answer. Pros and cons This course allows me flexibility to move into something more directly related to public policy. The pros of a move is that I could take greater advantage of the Crawford education I am receiving. The cons of such a move is that I wouldn’t be able to leverage on my current experience.
What do you love the most about your course?
I really enjoy the quality of the academic staff. Consistently they have held a deep understanding in the materiel, a passion for the subjects and genuine interest in getting good outcomes for students.
What are the limitations of your course?
The materiel can feel a little distant from the actual responsibilities for people working in public policy. These seems typical for university education and it would be difficult to address but there might be a few things like guest lectures working within the public sector that could respond to this.
What do you think about living in Canberra?
I have been working in the ACT for many years now but I have always lived just across the border in NSW. I do really like Canberra though. It is a very livable city with plenty to do. Is developing a café and restaurant culture. Can suffer from a bad reputation but that feels like it is from what it was like over a decade ago.