Meet Dhruv Patel
Dhruv Patel came to Australia in 2016, and has flourished as a genuine allrounder making waves in the construction industry. Originally from India, before studying the Diploma of Business and Construction at Orange International College, Dhruv was working as a manager at a service station.
Dhruv loved all things computers and technology from a young age, and soon found himself with a Bachelors of Electrical Engineering and a wealth of learning in both the design/software side as well as the practical ability to take the hardware apart and put it back together. This theme of balance between both the theoretical as well as the hands-on has been one of the keys to success for Dhruv.
Last month, Dhruv was one of 14 graduates of the High-Vis Civil Construction Pre-Employment program launched by the Civil Contractors Federation Tasmania and TasTAFE as an initiative to boost the Tasmanian construction workforce by 25%. Now a member of the “High-Vis Army”, Dhruv has found his feet quickly at Fulton-Hogan, a major international heavy hitter in the construction industry.
It hasn’t been a cakewalk, Dhruv is very aware of the barriers that international students generally face when making the transition from study to full employment in the Australian workplace. Getting onto the local lingo, like ‘smoko’ and getting across the cultural subtleties of the Australian workplace are essential. The Orange College graduate also emphasized the importance of developing networks and pushing to get additional applied experience while studying as critical to boosting one’s employability.
