Industry Experience Leads to Employment for Two Melbourne Business School Students

TotalEnergies: Providing opportunities for growth

“Our partnership with UniMelb has been ongoing for two years. Students from the University are placed in operations and finance and are given a project to work on. These are not just projects to pass time or tick a box, but actual work that might lead to investment,” says Sami Ullah, TotalEnergies CFO.

TotalEnergies is a multi-energy organisation and valued industry partner of the Faculty of Business and Economics (FBE). Initiated by the Total Energies Managing Director (Louis Haendler), the partnership has blossomed into a fully-fledged, value-driven learning experience for both the students and the organisation. By offering industry experience, TotalEnergies provides students with the opportunity to apply their classroom learning to a real-world, professional setting. Student placements incorporate elements of research, explore systems and processes, and brainstorm reliable solutions to real business problems. An organisation that values honesty and team spirit, TotalEnergies lays down an ethical foundation to support and encourage those within the business. Ultimately, this facilitates an environment where students can create meaningful impact and begin their professional journeys.

Learning through practical experience

“Everything the students do is related to real -world scenarios. We expect students to do real research, challenge the system, and come up with a solution. In return, we provide references signed by senior leadership to help them with their future employment and, in some cases, hire the students who have worked on our projects,” says Sami Ullah.

Joanne Chang applied for the Business and Economics internship to translate her university learnings into real-world practice. Joanne sought to increase her understanding of finance and analytics, sharpen her communication skills, and build confidence in the workplace. Joanne explains that throughout her internship, she was able to work on varying finance-related tasks, including analysing financial information and reviewing business data. Joanne recounts the attention to detail needed to maintain accuracy and reliability in data. This encouraged her to ask questions, brainstorm solutions, and to communicate clearly with her team members.

Throughout her placement, Joanne credits the organisation by describing the company culture and team atmosphere as incredibly positive, saying “Everyone was friendly and willing to help, which was one of the reasons I really enjoyed working at TotalEnergies.”

Marc Loxley applied for the Business Practicum to put his theoretical knowledge into practice and gain industry experience during the final year of his degree. With the intention of standing out to future employers, Marc was placed in a student team at TotalEnergies. Over a 10-week period, his team met with the CFO and company supervisor, Sami Ullah, who provided support and guidance on their project. Their project focused on Australia’s engine oils and expanding the company’s market share in B2C lubricants within the industry. Through field research, employee consultations and data gathering, Marc and his team were able to offer impactful recommendations involving social media, event sponsorships, and strategic partnerships.

Program Benefits

Students who apply for the Faculty’s work-integrated learning opportunities start building their skills even before the programs commence, with recruitment and selection processes forming an integral part of career readiness.

During Joanne’s internship, her ability to be proactive with tasks and communicate grew in momentum and confidence. She depicts this as a highlight: recognising her own development throughout the experience. Another key takeaway was& recognising the dramatic leap between university assignments and professional work – that while degree learnings are integral, so is gaining the practical experience needed to thrive in the workplace. “The most important thing is to be willing to learn, communicate with your team and take every opportunity. The more you put yourself outside of your comfort zone, the more you can gain from an internship.”

For Marc, the Business Practicum enabled him to experience the benefits of networking by collaborating with his team and establishing industry connections with TotalEnergies employees, leading to a deeper understanding of business objectives and strategies. The subject gave him a real opportunity to experience the role of a strategic consultant in a multinational organisation. "The Business Practicum gave me exactly what I was hoping for when I applied - a genuine, practical head start into the corporate world. I leave the Business Practicum with a sharper set of professional skills, a genuine sense of corporate readiness and lasting memories of the team I had the privilege to work with.”

Beyond the placements

Following their professional experiences at TotalEnergies, both Joanne and Marc were offered full-time positions at the company. Their industry experiences not only earned them credit towards their degrees and real project experience on their resumes but also worked as a pipeline to professional employment. From this point, Joanne and Marc will further expand their skill set over several& areas and have the flexibility to move across internal departments.

TotalEnergies seeks students who prioritise honesty and can “add value to their assigned project – who think out of the box and challenge the norm,” and recognised this integrity in MBS students, Joanne and Marc.