Building the Future Workforce
Graduate Attributes and Employability in the Blue Economy
Monday 17th November, 2025
4pm – 5:30pm (AEDT)
This webinar explores how the Blue Economy CRC is preparing the next generation of researchers for a rapidly changing, technology-driven world. It draws on findings from the Graduate Attributes Project—a multi-year study examining how CRC-affiliated PhD students are developing the skills, mindsets, and adaptability required for success across academia and industry.
The session will highlight how graduate attributes such as creativity, collaboration, resilience, and systems thinking are cultivated through CRC research training that connects academia, industry, and community. It aims to spark conversation on how we can further strengthen employability and professional capability among CRC PhD candidates.
Presentation 1: Capabilities for the Future Workforce.
Presented by Prof. Ruth Bridgstock, Director of Student Insights and Outcomes at Swinburne University of Technology.
Presentation 2: Transforming the PhD learning journey: Fostering creative, agentic, resilient lifelong learners.
Presented by A/Prof. Sonia Ferns, Academic Consultant at UWA.
Presentation 3: Insights from the Blue Economy CRC Graduate Attributes Project.
Presented by Dr Glenys Oberg (UQ) & Melanie Fleming (UQ), and as part of the Blue Economy CRC project team.
Followed by a panel discussion about Building the Future Workforce, moderated by Dr Louise Adams (UTAS and Blue Economy CRC project team).
Panelists: Sean Riley (Tassal), Dr Leteisha Prescott (Cawthron Institute, NZ), Prof. Ruth Bridgstock, A/Prof. Sonia Ferns, Dr Glenys Oberg & Melanie Fleming.
Audience Q&A to follow.
PRESENTED BY
Name: Prof Ruth Bridgstock
Affiliation: Director, Employability and Innovation, Swinburne University of Technology
Professor Ruth Bridgstock (ALTF, PFHEA) is Director, Employability and Innovation at Swinburne University of Technology, where she leads institution-wide transformation through personalised, data-informed, and technology-enabled learning.
She guided Swinburne to achieve “Moonshot 1” of its Horizon 2025 plan—work experience for every learner—earning the 2024 AFR Higher Education Award for Employability and the 2024 ATEM Award for Leadership. An Australian National Senior Teaching Fellow and Principal
Fellow of the HEA, Ruth is internationally recognised for research on graduate employability, future-capability, and authentic pedagogy, with over 70 publications and 7,000 citations, including Higher Education and the Future of Graduate Employability.
Name: A/Prof. Sonia Ferns
Affiliation: Teaching and Research Casual Academic, University of Western Australia
Associate Professor Sonia Ferns is an expert in work-integrated learning and employability, with extensive experience in developing strategic frameworks that enhance graduate outcomes. Her research and leadership have shaped national policy and practice in embedding employability across higher education.
Name: Dr Glenys Oberg
Affiliation: Teaching Associate in the School of Education, The University of Queensland
Glenys Oberg is a Teaching Associate in the School of Education / School of Civil Engineering at The University of Queensland and an essential project member of the Blue Economy CRC Graduate Attributes Project. She leads the analysis and evaluation of graduate capability development and employability outcomes across HDR cohorts.
Her research focuses on trauma-informed pedagogies, teacher well-being, and student voice, exploring how compassionate, evidence-based teaching enhances learning engagement. Glenys combines deep expertise in educational research with practical insight into student experience, contributing to inclusive and sustainable education practices within both university and industry-connected training contexts.
Name: Melanie Fleming
Affiliation: Senior Principal Educational Researcher & Senior Educational Researcher, The University of Queensland
Melanie’s research in higher education is primarily concerned with the student experience. Over several decades she has researched and published on students’ transitions into university and into professional practice.
She employs a range of theoretical frameworks, such as social cognitive career and self-efficacy theories to explore students’ experiences of their skills development and application in relation to employment and graduate attributes. She has worked on a variety of projects that explore the student learning experience at regional, metropolitan and GO8 universities.
PANELLISTS
Name: Dr Louise Adams (Moderator – Panel discussion)
Affiliation: Senior Lecturer in Aquaculture, Work Integrated Learning Program Coordinator, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania
Dr Adams is a Senior Lecturer at IMAS: with research programs in aquaculture nutrition, and leads applied teaching and research programs for undergraduate and research candidates in the areas of sustainable aquaculture for changing culture climates.
Her focus areas include applied authentic education built around a strong industry-research-teaching nexus. She coordinates work integrated learning programs for students at all levels to develop employment skills, networks and career pathways.
Name: Sean Riley
Affiliation: Head of Environment, Tassal
Sean has over 35 years’ experience in a range of marine scientific research, environmental and natural resource management roles within government, the private sector and industry organisations. Sean was appointed as Tassal’s Head of Environment in 2017.
Sean is responsible for delivering a range of environmental monitoring and management programs to optimise the sustainable production of Tassal’s seafood products – for its salmon, prawn and barramundi farming operations. Sean has participated on a number of representative committees for natural resource management, including FRDC Research Advisory, Australian Fisheries Management and CRC Committees. Sean is currently a member of the Blue Economy CRC Scientific Advisory Committee.
Name: Dr Leteisha Prescott
Affiliation: Blue Economy CRC PhD Graduate/Cawthron Institute
Leteisha has a Bachelor of Science and Masters of Research at James Cook University in Marine Biology, where she focused on early respiratory and ionoregulatory development in coral reef fish embryos. Since then, she has attained several research assistant positions, where she was involved in studies focusing on fish, algae and mice.
She is currently based at Cawthron Institute in Nelson, New Zealand, where she undertook her PhD and completed her thesis in December 2024. She is now working as a post-doc researcher at Cawthron as well as an adjunct researcher for the University of Tasmania.
FACILITATED BY
Name: A/Prof Remo Cossu
Affiliation: School of Civil Engineering Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology, The University of Queensland
A/Prof Remo Cossu is an Associate Professor in Water and Environmental Engineering at The University of Queensland and Deputy Program Leader at the Blue Economy CRC.
He is recognised for his leadership in teaching innovation, curriculum design, and graduate employability. As coordinator of UQ’s flagship engineering design course ENGG1100 and Graduate Attributes Champion, he has advanced authentic, industry-connected learning for both undergraduate and HDR students.
His work has attracted multiple teaching grants and awards and shaped UQ’s approach to future-ready engineering education.
