Computing and Information Systems Students Association (CISSA) Industry Panel with Richard Magaland 

30 March 2022

"My membership enabled me to join other ICT disciplines outside of my specialty in Computers Systems and Networking."

- Richard Magaland

On Wednesday 16 March I represented ACS at the recent Computing and Information Systems Students Association (CISSA) Industry Panel where we discussed the benefits of joining the Australia Computer Society (ACS) at an earlier stage in their ICT career.  As a long time ACS member since my university days, I have benefited significantly so this was an easy presentation for me to deliver.

Access to relevant newsletters and publications, better understanding of the industry, SFIA frameworks and how it is used to gauge your professional standing, are just some of the soft skill ‘must haves’ ACS can add to your careers toolkit.

Interestingly, the most popular topics were mentoring and internship opportunities.  These benefits enable you to gain corporate experience and job-ready mindsets not often available at TAFE or universities.

My membership enabled me to join other ICT disciplines outside of my specialty in Computers Systems and Networking.  My attendance in events on AI, governance, project management, and blockchain opened my eyes to so many other branches of our industry.

I ended the session with these wise words my own once mentor told “Make lots of friends because people like working with people they like”.  This is very true because I eventually ended up working with many ACS friends who I have met though my journey. Melbourne x WiT x EWB x ARES x CISSA: Industry Week - Careers Panels 2022.

- Richard Magaland