A select group of students from CQUniversity Brisbane met with community groups and corporate partners recently as part of the campus' 8^th Community and Corporate Engagement Program (CCEP).

The five-star function was held in the River Rooms of the luxurious Stamford Plaza, and proved to be a successful event on many levels.

Students and invited guests enjoying the presentations during the CCEP luncheon at the Stamford Plaza, Brisbane.

The CCEP is unique to the Brisbane campus and was implemented to prepare international students for integration into the Australian workforce.

Its primary focus is the development of skills and confidence to enable students to undertake voluntary work placements under a service-learning methodology.

Students are also given the opportunity to meet with relevant organisations to facilitate this goal. The importance and scope of volunteering are also explored and students are advised on networking skills and techniques.

The program is also a great opportunity for the Brisbane campus to engage with the local community. It has allowed CQUniversity to facilitate links with and between individual community groups.

Program participants such as Foodconnect and The Edge (State Library Queensland) are, as a result of the initiative, investigating joint projects using CQUniversity students' expertise.

Additional outcomes include students undertaking IT and web-based project work with BEMAC (Brisbane Enterprising Multicultural Arts Centre) and Volunteering Queensland.

A participant of a previous program has recently credited the CCEP with giving her the confidence, experience and motivation that led to her recent full-time appointment as an IT consultant.

CQUniversity Brisbane runs the CCEP twice yearly, and is looking forward to the next engagment opportunity.