Professional Development and Lifelong Learning
Learning does not stop the day you complete your University studies. No course can cover everything you need to know in a professional world and to be successful in an ongoing way, you will need to embark on a journey of lifelong learning. Once you graduate it’s important to stay on top of developments in your particular field by maintaining and continually updating your professional knowledge and skills.
In some professions the constant advances in technology and knowledge can mean that it’s easy to fall behind. Professional Development may take different forms, for example undergoing formal training or self-directed learning such as attending lectures or seminars or joining a professional organisation. Membership of a professional organisation can provide many extra benefits such as networking opportunities, employment opportunities and access to professional literature and information communicated through newsletters and journals.
You may even reconsider whether your final year is in fact your final year or instead the bridge to further study or perhaps research!
Topics
Further Study Options
Your potential for future accomplishments, both personal and professional, will continue long after graduation.
Opportunities for career advancement will present themselves and preparation for making the most of these opportunities often takes the form of further postgraduate study or research.
The CSU website provides extensive information on courses available to you. Your course coordinator and the Careers Service may also be able to provide you with advice in this area.
Postgraduate Scholarships
Research
Numerous postgraduate scholarships exist at CSU to provide financial support to students of exceptional research promise in master or doctoral programs. International postgraduate students are also eligible to apply for a stipend covering tuition costs and the required health insurance premiums. For more information, refer to the scholarships website:
The Charles Sturt Foundation offers a number of postgraduate coursework scholarships. For more information, refer to the scholarships website.
Postgraduate scholarships
A number of postgraduate scholarships are available at CSU.
- The Centre for Research and Graduate Training offers a number of research scholarships
- In 2009 CSU will offer 60 Honours scholarships
- If you are studying a postgraduate course that is considered to be in an area of national priority, you may also be eligible for an equity scholarship through the Commonwealth Scholarships program.
- Masters students by coursework may also be eligible for a CSU Masters Equity Scholarship
Professional Reading and the CSU Library
CSU Library is committed to supporting graduating CSU students, regional professionals and the general public with access to authoritative research material for professional reading purposes. For this reason, CSU Library offers Community Borrowing membership and access to a selected range of databases for “Walk-In” users of the Library.
Registering as a Community Borrower provides borrowing privileges to library material from across the CSU library service. This service is available on an annual fee paying basis with registration forms and guides available from the library website.
A “Walk-In” users computer terminal will soon be made available at each CSU campus library and will provide free access to a selected range of electronic databases that host many quality, peer reviewed journals. This terminal also gives access to a range of CSU eResources, eBooks, eNewspapers and the Library catalogue. Further information about this free service will soon be available from the Library Website.
If you cannot get into a CSU library, our collections can also be accessed via the InterLibrary Loans scheme available at most local public libraries. The National Library of Australia also provides a free database service called Libraries Australia, which can be used to search for resources available in public and academic libraries throughout Australia.
You can also call into your local public library to find out about the InterLibrary Loan service that they provide.