CoRE Alumni Spotlight: Sylvia Blakeway on Preparing for Geosciences and Industry Success

At CoRE, we often talk about how our project-based learning model prepares students for university and careers in STEM. But hearing it straight from our alumni brings the impact into sharp focus.

Sylvia Blakeway, a CoRE graduate and Curtin University student, shared her experience at CoRE’s Powering Tomorrow’s Innovators event.

She completed her secondary education at Kent Street Senior High School, CoRE’s Lighthouse School, and was involved in the program from Year 7 to 10 as a student in the last class Suzy Urbaniak (Co-Founder of CoRE Learning Foundation and Founder of the CoRE Learning Model) herself taught in 2018.

Her journey highlights how CoRE equips students with both academic knowledge and professional skills.

Preparing for University and Industry

“After graduating from the CoRE Program, I completed ATAR Earth and Environmental Science among other subjects and received the Hannah Beazley Award for Leadership, and the AIG Geoscience Award in my graduating year. At the moment, I’m completing an internship in Structural Geology with BHP (proud Eucalypt Sponsor of the CoRE Learning Foundation) and am about to start a FIFO internship in exploration with them as well. These opportunities have been incredible stepping-stones on the way to a career in the mining industry, and I can honestly say that my ability to transition smoothly into university and industry environments can be attributed largely to my experiences in CoRE.”

Developing Essential Soft Skills

Through CoRE’s Project-Based Learning (PBL) approach, Sylvia learned to navigate real-world challenges in structured, collaborative teams:

“Through project -learning and working in business units that mirrored real industry teams, CoRE helped me develop invaluable soft skills - communication, teamwork, time management, and leadership. Building these skills early on was essential in forming good professional habits. With this foundation, it's become second nature for me to share ideas respectfully, delegate roles, and take accountability for outcomes. CoRE was about understanding how these skills and lessons could be applied in real industry settings. These are the same dynamics I now experience every day in my internship and university group projects, because of CoRE, I feel confident and capable working in these environments.”

Networking and Professional Confidence

Sylvia also emphasised the value of early professional exposure:

“Another major strength of CoRE was its emphasis on networking and collaboration beyond the classroom. Learning how to use LinkedIn and meeting professionals within the industry at such a young age was not only inspiring for me, but taught me how to interact confidently in a professional setting, to ask meaningful questions and build connections. Those early networks, including my own CoRE educators, have helped me navigate my first internship applications and job interviews as I already had a sense of the professional standards and expectations within the resources sector.”

Assessments That Mirror Real-World Work

She notes that the program’s assessment structure mirrored professional practice, helping students develop workplace accountability:

“It’s not only the learning structure that prepared me for work in industry, but the assessments that are integrated into the curriculum as well. Toolbox meetings and PMs (performance management), while they seemed tedious during the program I’ve found, are nearly identical.”

Meeting the Demand for Skilled Geoscience Professionals

Sylvia’s experience is a clear example of how CoRE is addressing the growing need for geoscience professionals. By rigorous STEM education together with authentic industry experiences, the program ensures students are academically prepared and equipped with the soft skills, confidence, and networks to thrive in university and the workforce.

We are proud to see how the CoRE Learning Model equips students like Sylvia with the skills, self-belief, and industry readiness they need to thrive in STEM and geoscience.