Principal Kim Hebenstreit said pupils were learning welding and metal fabrication techniques. “(Students) will get the opportunity to become familiar with what they will see when they move into the workforce and have the confidence and the skills to apply for jobs in high-tech manufacturing industries,” Mr Hebenstreit said.

According to Weatherill, there is a continuing rise in demand for people with STEM skills in the mining and defence industries. The SA government has mapped all the STEM work being done in South Australia by government, industry and the community sector so that more than 55 programs can be harnessed to deliver the greatest possible benefit for the economy.

The study looked at the mining, solar energy and computer games industries. It found the VET system could not cope with always delivering courses that were highly specific to particular companies and continuously-changing knowledge and skills. "But VET can provide people with the capability to learn and adapt to innovation-induced change," the report says.

This report is based on findings from a pair of Pew Research Center surveys conducted in spring 2011. One is a telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 2,142 adults ages 18 and older. The other is an online survey, done in association with the Chronicle of Higher Education, among the presidents of 1,055 two-year and four-year private, public, and for-profit colleges and universities.

In 2012, the internationally renowned Haileybury School of Mines, as part of Northern College, celebrates its 100th anniversary. “The school had its beginnings in Cobalt, however short that was, but has been in Haileybury ever since,” said Brian Dobbs, a professor at the Haileybury campus of Northern College.

Graduates are certified on three levels including classroom and hands-on sessions with the simulators under the tutelage of an Immersive Technologies instructor. Each level builds on the previous one as trainers' proficiency grows from basic operation to advanced administration and management. The TrainerAdvantage program was launched in 2006.

The JB Marks Education Trust Fund in conjunction with the Mineworkers Investment Company (MIC) celebrates disadvantaged student heroes who have excelled in spite of difficult circumstances. These awards are awarded to student achievers who make a success of the tertiary education opportunities created by the fund’s bursary scheme.

It aims to prepare aboriginal youth aged 15 to 18 for employment and careers in forestry, mining, hydro energy, conservation and other Northern Manitoba natural resource sectors. Comprising classroom training and hands-on work experience, the Resource Rangers program is five weeks long delivered through partners including MKO, industrial employers, the provincial government, the home communities of participants and the Frontier School Division. Students who complete the program may be eligible for high school credits through the Frontier School Division.

Premier Anna Bligh said the agreement to hold Work for Queensland jobs expos was reached at a summit between senior resource companies on the Gold Coast, with the expos to be held in Cairns, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, the Whitsunday region and Wide Bay Burnett starting in October. “This is about giving people choice and opportunity. We have significant numbers of Queenslanders, particularly in some regional areas, out of work and yet the mining industry is facing a skills shortage," Bligh said.

Nasser said Australia could suffer a decline in living standards unless it lifts its productivity levels through initiatives such as creating a ``global resources centre of excellence''. "Without productivity improvements, it's hard to see how Australia can address the challenges that we face, including climate change, an ageing population and a high exchange rate,'' Mr Nasser told a luncheon in Sydney on Wednesday.