Charlotte Salani, 3 April, 2024
Charlotte Salani left a full-time office job and transitioned to a career with more field work and community connection.
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Working as an Environmental Health Officer is great! It involves such a variety of challenging and interesting work, and no two days are ever the same. One day you might be doing a routine inspection at a tattoo parlour and the next day you’ll be doing an alleged food borne illness investigation at a restaurant or attending to a potential pollution incident in a local creek.
Instead of sitting in an office all day, you get to go out into the community and interact with people from all walks of life, while also making a positive impact on public health outcomes.
Why did you choose a career in environmental health?
I had previously worked in a full-time office job so was itching for a job that would allow me to work both in the office and out in the field. I was also looking for a career where I could make more of a positive impact in the community and was looking to enter an industry where there is demand for employment.
During COVID times I decided to change my career from environmental science. I chose the environmental heath pathway because of the range of interesting areas it covered and because I was eligible to work in this industry after only one year of postgraduate study!
What do Environmental Health Officers do?
Environmental Health Officers have a massive impact in the community, yet it’s something that you wouldn’t particularly notice when going through your day-to-day life.
For example, when you go out to eat brunch at your favourite cafe with your friends, you don’t think about what goes on prior to your food being placed in front of you—like how your meal is prepared, how the utensils and equipment used to make your meal are being cleaned and sanitised and whether staff members have the right education and skills to prepare your food safely. That’s where we fit in. We work in the background, both proactively and reactively, to make sure that things in the environment don’t affect the health of our community.
What’s it like studying environmental health?
At QUT there was a mix of interactive workshops and flexible learning options. The full-day, interactive workshops were incredibly valuable elements of the graduate diploma because they showed you how to actually use some of the equipment which is required for the job. These workshops also went through a range of real-life scenarios which helped equip me for the skills I needed when I started to work.
The flexible teaching approach was also very beneficial. I would attend my classes on campus which was fantastic as I was able to make so many wonderful connections with my classmates who now also have a wealth of experience in the industry. It was great to also have the option to attend or view classes online. As a postgraduate student having to balance both study and work, it made such a difference to not feel like I was missing out on proper learning just to pick up an extra shift at my casual job!
How did your teachers support your learning and career development?
I was very fortunate to have majority of my teaching done by my course coordinator who previously worked as an Environmental Health Officer. They provided a real and unfiltered perspective on what to expect and prepared me to become a diligent and confident officer. The tailored support and advice I had received from my course coordinator helped me make the best decisions for my professional growth and development.
Throughout the course my course coordinator organised multiple workshops led by professionals from various segments of the industry which was invaluable to my learning. At the end of my studies, my course coordinator arranged introductions to future employers though workshop days and networking events. From those industry connections and opportunities, I was able to have a full-time employment contract signed before I even completed my final exams!
What advice would you give to someone considering postgraduate studies at QUT?
I would say go for it! As I have learnt through my experience, it is never too late to go back to university and change or diversify your career. Enrolling at QUT and completing a Graduate Diploma in Environmental Health in the span of only one year has opened so many doors for me professionally and has resulted in immense personal growth and development.
