Our Apprentices lead the way!

This year at a state level, MTA WA apprentices took WorldSkills Australia by storm, successfully securing first, second and third place. MTA WA apprentice Luke Khoury won the spotlight, earning first place in the automotive mechanic competition, after spending the entire day diagnosing and repairing the competition's test vehicles. Alongside Luke, in second place was the Spirit Super MTA WA 2022 Apprentice of the year - Jarred Teraci, followed by Thomas Boerrigter who was also a Finalist in this year's awards. 

Luke, who works at RAC - expressed great excitement over his achievement, and he is soon to make himself known on a national scale, when he travels interstate to represent Western Australia at the WorldSkills Australia 2023 National Championships in Melbourne.

This was a new experience for Luke, who had never participated in a competitive automotive environment.

"I hadn't heard about WorldSkills before, but my MTA WA Trainer and my Manager suggested that I do it. My Manager then enrolled me - so I went to try it out," Luke told the MTA.

"I was pretty nervous at the start. There was a careers expo [happening] at the same time so the media was there, and people watching you from the sidelines. People were coming up to me and asking me questions as well, so it was all pretty intimidating at the start," says Luke.

After completing the first job in the test, Luke gained the confidence he needed to get through the remaining 4 jobs, along with the respective 4 hours of problem solving. "By the end, I felt that I had done well. Two weeks later, I got the email saying I had won gold and I was so stoked because I'd never won anything before!" cheered Luke.

Luke went out with a couple of mates to celebrate the occasion. He says that since returning from the competition, he's been flooded with recognition from his employer, RAC - receiving numerous congratulations-emails from individuals across the business. 

"The recognition from winning this is amazing," he says. 

WorldSkills Australia is part of a global organisation that has a created a platform on which to celebrate excellence and promote pathways in vocational, technological and service oriented careers. The World Skills Australia National 2023 competition anticipates an audience of thousands, where Luke will compete under pressure, against other state representatives. 

Luke is currently a second year apprentice who completed his training through the MTA WA's Automotive Institute of Technology (AIT), in Balcatta. His trainer, Matt Wemyss, describes Luke as a quiet achiever who is methodical and very good at absorbing theoretical knowledge. Matt believes that the advantage that AIT apprentices have, is that they receive much more personalised learning, because the trainers give their students a lot of one-on-one time in the classroom at the students workplaces.

"Our training and assessment process is also heavily scrutinised in comparison to other systems," says Matt. 

"I say to the students - show me how you do this, and they have to show me in detail how they would actually do the job." Matt explains that AIT students are also in the habit of sending their trainers  evidence-videos of hands-on work in action, which truthfully demonstrates competency. 

The Automotive Institute of Technology (AIT) is an experienced Registered Training Organisation which offers convenient advantages to employers, who choose to train their apprentices through its programs. 

Benefits of training with the AIT include:

Clear and specific - a learning journey that makes it easy to track an apprentice's progress, with clearly defined learning outcomes. 
Structured and organised learning - classroom training days are allocated to students at the beginning of each year. This means that employers can confidently plan ahead, to ensure that they have access to their apprentices during the busy periods, when they are most needed. 
Personalised learning, for real life - each apprentice is allocated a minimum number of personal contact hours in the workplace with their trainer/assessor. This will assist the apprentice to transfer their learning into practical real-world application. 
Additional assistance - the capacity for remedial training is factored into the program - should it be required by the apprentice, in order to successfully progress.

The AIT is equipped to address future requirements for the industry, with competent and effective trades people. For enquiries on how to register an apprentice to train through the AIT, call 08 9233 9800.

The MTA WA offers congratulations again to Luke - we have our fingers crossed for you at the national championship!