Amy Murdoch is a course advisor at NZSE who works closely with students to discover which programme aligns with their needs and passions best. Amy’s role goes beyond promoting NZSE to communities and enrolments – she provides ongoing, compassionate support to learners throughout their studies. Her approach is grounded by a commitment to guiding students to the right path to success. Read the Q&A below to learn more about Amy and how she can support you.
What is your job title, and what does your work entail?
“I am a course advisor based at the NZSE Hamilton campus. My work consists of promoting and presenting NZSE to communities and schools, and creating opportunities for people to train and upskill in their chosen areas of study. I help learners with the enrolment process, get them started in their studies, and then offer any support through their studies as required.”
What is your professional background?
“I have worked in the tertiary environment for 14 years now, in enrolment and course advisor-based roles. I have a couple of level 3 qualifications in business, and I have worked in call centre operations and floristry. I also have my New Zealand Diploma in Career Development (Level 6) which means I am a qualified careers advisor.”
If you were to study any of NZSE’s programmes, which one would you choose, and why?
“I would study one of our ATC Military Prep programmes. I love the course set-up, teamwork and skills that make up the core of the programme. It truly is more than just military prep – it’s life preparation and the building of confidence and skills.”
Why should learners choose to study at NZSE? What are the unique aspects of NZSE?
“We are a small but mighty provider! We have focused programmes with subject-matter-experts as our tutors. We help and support our students in all aspects of study, taking on the module of Te whare tapa whā, which treats health and wellbeing as a wharenui with four walls – each wall representing an aspect of wellbeing: spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical.”
What do you find most rewarding about your role?
“I love helping our students, from beginning to end. I really feel like I am making a difference in their lives. In previous advisory roles, it was just about enroling a student, and then the next time I would see them would be at graduation, but here I get to support the student in every step of their study journey.”
Tell us about an experience that has stuck with you since working at NZSE.
“I enroled a student who had such a passion for helping people, but she thought study was out of her reach to achieve this goal – she could not afford the course costs and doubted her abilities. I looked at the programme attendees list and I saw there were a few scholarships available for the intake she wanted, so I was able to offer her a full scholarship! She enroled full of confidence and with no fees.”
What advice would you give to someone who is unsure about what to study?
“Find where your passions lie. You want to have a job that makes you excited every day, and has you jumping out of bed.”
