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April 2017
www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.auSpeak Out
37
ACT/
New south wales
ACT 71
NSW 1980
members
as at February 2017
2013 WAS A
turning point for Melina Waibel, Macquarie
University recipient of the Speech Pathology Australia NSW
student award for academic and clinical excellence. With her
youngest child in school, she decided to retrain as a speech
pathologist, completing Macquarie University’s Master of Speech
and Language Pathology in 2016.
“I thought speech pathology would be a wonderful vocation that
would be personally rewarding and relevant to my previous work
and experience,” Melina said.
Prior to returning to study, Melina worked in corporate
communication, managing relationships with the media,
regulators, investors, customers and local communities for
organisations such as Sydney Water and Optus.
“The work relied heavily on excellent communication and
analysis,” she said. “I am so glad these skills will not be lost and
can help in my new career.”
Melina met many people at Macquarie University who were
retraining. “It is an increasing trend that professions like speech
pathology need to accommodate,” she said.
The proportion of women aged between 25-64 who returned
to study has increased from 7.9 to 10.5 per cent over the past
decade, according the Australian Bureau of Statistics last year.
“These women bring important life experience as well as work
skills to their new professions,” Melina said.
Melina believes her experience raising three children, caring for
elderly parents, supporting a family business and volunteering for
numerous community organisations is invaluable when relating to
clients and their families.
“Unfortunately, this very life experience can also be a significant
barrier to women retraining,” she said. “I was privileged to study
with a cohort of exceptional students, many who were beginning
second careers. Their commitment to further education often
came at a substantial cost to their immediate and extended
families. Examining barriers to mature age study will help us
achieve our 2030 goal of having a profession as diverse as the
community we serve.”
Retraining has its rewards