Photo: Defence Connect

University graduates are giving their career a kickstart with internships in the Australian defence industry.

Flinders University bachelor of information technology graduate and Army Reserve rifleman Scott Pearse attended a cyber technology internship with information warfare consultancy DEWC Services as part of the Defence Industry Scholarship Program (DISP).

Pearse was one of 36 South Australian university students who graduated from the South Australian government’s DISP program. Run by the Australian Industry Group, the program awards participants with grants of up to $10,000 to undertake work placements at local defence companies.

“The scholarship seemed like the right gateway into the defence industry, and the electronic warfare focus at DEWC Services sparked my interest as many of the projects they work on provide real value to Defence,” he said.

“Undertaking a research-based placement was really applicable to my degree in cyber security, I gained a large amount of knowledge in a short space of time.

“Initially. I wasn’t interested in the IoT (internet of things), but the research at DEWC really sparked my interest, I have a deeper understanding of protocols and vulnerabilities now and my knowledge has grown substantially.”

Pearse has since transitioned to working part-time in the company’s science and technology projects for the Defence Science and Technology Group.

“To anyone considering an industry placement scholarship, I’d say go for it,” he said.

“I consider myself very fortunate to be able to work at DEWC Services, they really set the bar on what an ideal workplace environment should look like and I hope to grow with DEWC Services into the future.

DEWC chief executive officer Allan Dundas said the company has invested heavily in in-house training and education through their partnership with the School of Information Operations.

“This is a niche trade and it’s really motivating to support the next generation of electronic warfare professionals,” he said.

“We place them in some really technically challenging areas within defence and it’s great to watch their passion and their job satisfaction grow.”

The company is intent on expanding its workforce by around 20 per cent with graduates and forging partnerships with industry focused universities and organisations.

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