AS part of an international student arrangement, two young hairdressing students from Finland came to Port Macquarie last month to get a taste of life with the locals and learn a thing or two from a growing Australian industry.
Hanna Sundberg and Nelli Larrson are currently studying hairdressing at AMISTO Vocational College Porvoo.
Their course includes a unit of international relations, so when their teacher met up with fellow Worldskills judge and North Coast TAFE teacher Donna DeMaria at an international competition last year, the invitation to come and study at North Coast TAFE was too good an opportunity to miss.
“This was a great opportunity for our colleges to work in partnership and will now open the door for our students to reciprocate, travel and study on exchange in Finland,” Ms DeMaria said.
“The program was so successful that we are currently working with Porvoo Vocational College for other teaching sections, to make the offer available to other international students wanting to study at North Coast TAFE. It’s quite exciting and brings a lovely cultural exchange to everyone in the class.”
Studying at the Port Macquarie TAFE has earned the girls an entry-level qualification, allowing them to work anywhere in Australia, as salon assistants, but also gives them units towards completing a higher qualification.
Hanna and Nelli were provided with a genuine experience of the Australian hairdressing industry at two well-known local salons, Milans Hairdressing and Dollface Hairdressing.
Milan salon owner Peter Boskovski said the students were mostly doing cuts, although one of them did do quite well at a full colour.
“We had a few comments from clients who were interested in where they had come from, but overall it was a great experience for both us and the girls and we were glad to be able to host them,” he said.
Last week Hannah and Nellie said their farewells to our beautiful town, but say their experience with us was unforgettable and promise to return in the future.
“We don’t get beaches in Finland, so we really enjoyed the beautiful, sandy beaches in Port Macquarie. I’d love to return one day,” Nelli said.
