SAS helps students gain hands-on business experience

SAS is continuing to cater to the requirements of organisations for new employees that possess both business and technology skills through its successful SAS Work Placement Program.

Two years ago, SAS partnered with the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) to establish the program, which offers students from its Business and IT faculties the opportunity to gain real-life work experience using SAS solutions. The second program, completed recently, placed seven students in organisations for work placements that ranged between 6 -11 weeks between December and February.

Melissa Cassar, SAS Academic Program Manager says the program addresses the SAS skills shortage in the Asia Pacific region. “While it is relatively easy to find students with SAS skills in the US, it is more difficult in this region,” she says. “Our workplace program is addressing this. Students are placed in the workforce and take on the roles of an everyday employee.”

This year, the students were placed in five organisations: the Department of Housing, WorkCover, The Department of Education and the Arts, CS Energy and also in the SAS Brisbane office.

“Two of the students were offered fulltime positions with the company they were placed with and all students from last year’s program are now working in SAS-based roles in other companies,” Cassar says. “This year we will be extending the program to students and customers in Sydney and Melbourne.”

She says SAS benefits from the program through providing its customers with employees that are already proficient with working in a business environment. “Organisations can be confident that they will be hiring graduates that have already acquired workplace skills,” she says. “This is a cost saving to them as they don’t need to spend as much time on this aspect of their employment.”

WorkCover was one of the organisations that offered a full-time position to its workplace program student – Joshua Coulson. Warren Hawkins, WorkCover’s Manager of Business Analytics within the policy premium division, says he was very pleased with the program after some initial concerns.

“I initially felt apprehensive because I thought the student would be similar to a work experience person and would create a lot of extra work for my department,” he says. “However, I was wrong. Josh brought a new skill level to us with his understanding of SAS, which we didn’t have. The skills he acquired through his E-Business major helped us improve the efficiency of our existing SAS programs.”

He adds Josh’s knowledge meant his staff benefited by being shown many SAS tips and tricks.

“Josh was given several existing SAS projects to enhance,” he says. “He was also responsible for generating ad hoc data requests – projects for which he undertook total ownership.”

“Considering my initial apprehension, the program has worked out really well,” Hawkins says. “Josh brought in fresh skills which was good for our team. We would participate in the program again, perhaps within another of our divisions.” Josh is now employed within the division as a business analyst. He says he benefited enormously from the experience. “Not only did I benefit from the exposure to real business scenarios but also the opportunity to work full-time in a corporate environment was very fulfilling and enlightening,” he says.

Meanwhile, Cassar says that while other software vendors may be investing in supporting academia, she has yet to find one that provides students with the type of hands-on business experience that they will encounter when they graduate and begin employment.

“The SAS Academic Program is about much more than providing software to universities,” she says. “It is about providing a bridge from academia to the business world,” she says.

Tony Sahama, a lecturer at School of Information Systems, Faculty of Information Technology, QUT, and a major supporter of the initiative, says the program is going well. “It is a good marriage between SAS and the university,” he says. “It is certainly good value for students who cannot get this type of hands-on experience in the classroom.”

QUT lecturer and coordinator of the E-Business major (School of Accountancy, Faculty of Business), Sherrena Buckby, says the SAS work experience program benefits all parties.

“It certainly helps students, who can show potential employers they have the required skills,” she said.

Col McCowan, Head of Careers and Employment at QUT and Coordinator of the work placement program agreed. “The program is a good fit with the emphasis QUT puts on real world learning,” he said.

Cassar adds the benefits to organisations taking on these students are many. “Not least are the savings in recruitment costs,” she says. “If you recruit staff with these types of specialist skills through an agency you have to pay high commissions and often you don’t know whether you are getting the most appropriate person,” she says. “Our figures show that some organisations can save around $14,000 in hiring students that have completed this program.”

Students and employers interested in participating in the SAS Work Placement Program should contact the Academic Team at SAS.

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