When Chelsea Deering started her Certificate III in Business with TAFE Gippsland, she had no idea how busy she was about to become. But she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Already a small business owner when she enrolled with TAFE Gippsland, this 23-year-old Leongatha local and aerial fitness entrepreneur can now add Production Assistant to her ever-growing curriculum vitae.
“Through TAFE, I was given the opportunity to work as an intern for David Atkins Enterprises (DAE) during the production process of the Commonwealth Games Flag Handover Ceremony that took place in Birmingham this year,” Chelsea explained.
“I didn’t exactly know what the job was at the time, but I thought it would be a great experience to work for the Commonwealth Games, live in Melbourne for a month and just basically try a new path of life. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, so I didn’t want to let it go.”
Working alongside DAE and just three other young Victorians chosen for the pilot program, Chelsea’s role as Production Assistant entailed various tasks involving prop development and management, costume arrangement, stage management and administration.
Chelsea said it was a very special experience.
“I was also entrusted to arrange the collection of the indigenous clapsticks from the Dja Dja Wurrung region, where they were all individually engraved with messages from the Dja Dja Wurrung people,” Chelsea said.
“I was also fortunate enough to have the opportunity to participate in a Smoking Ceremony, that was led by the indigenous elder of the land in which we worked on. And of course, the people I met – the other interns – we have all become lifelong friends from the experience.”
Never underestimating the scale of the opportunity to work with such a well-renowned, global production company on a major international event, Chelsea’s hard work and commitment during her short-term tenure made a huge impression. So much so, Chelsea was offered a part-time role with Jason Coleman’s Ministry of Dance, the dance company they hired a space from during the production of the Commonwealth Games flag ceremony.
And the key to unearthing this pathway of professional opportunities for the former dancer which she never imagined possible, was a simple “I’ll do it”.
“It was actually my dream job when I was 17, before I even started doing any aerials or anything like that, but the dance industry is so hard to get into that I just changed my path,” Chelsea said.
“Then it was a just a weird loop around that I was actually able to come back to the industry. I’ll keep doing both jobs for the time being. I want to continue with my studios as I’ve built them up over these past four years so I want to keep going, but also the new path of being a Production Assistant is really exciting.”
Designed to present students with an experience to enhance and build upon their studies, participation in the internship program means Chelsea will be well-placed for future job opportunities in the delivery of the 2026 Victorian Commonwealth Games.
TAFE Gippsland Business Services teacher Daniel Webster said Chelsea was the obvious choice when the program was pitched to him.
“I said, ‘You’ll have to put all your businesses on hold to take this opportunity’ and she just straight away said ‘Yes, I’ll do it!’”
“I’m sure in her head she went ‘What am I getting myself into?’ but she took it with open arms. There were four interns there but the part-time position was offered to Chelsea based on the advice of the work she’d done, so it’s a just reward.”
An incredibly grateful Chelsea is now looking forward to the next chapter of her life, juggling part-time work with the dance company, running her aerial fitness business in three South Gippsland locations and studying two days a week at TAFE Gippsland’s Traralgon campus.
Daniel said it just goes to show how studying a Certificate III or IV in Business with TAFE Gippsland can help get you a foot in the door, no matter what stage of life you’re in.
“We’ve got people who want to open their own business, people who just want to move up in the business that they’re in and people returning to study that haven’t done it for a long time” Daniel said.
“It can be whatever you make it. You’re learning transferable skills that can take you in a multitude of directions, and it’s deliberately designed to be what employers are looking for.”