From crocs to council to construction, Ivan's had a colourful career
Published on 27 October, 2008
We like to think our degrees equip graduates for most challenges but Ivan Rasmussen must have been wondering which textbook to draw from when he was stranded in a dinghy on a sandbar surrounded by crocs, earlier in his career...
Nowadays, Ivan is general manager of civil engineering consultancy firm Brock & Associates but he has had a diverse career path since completing his Advanced Diploma of Biological Laboratory Techniques in the early 1980s.
The croc incident, leading to a sleepless night, occurred while Ivan was working for the DPI in Far North Queensland as a research technician and was not the only slice of excitement.
"I've also had to untangle a large croc from a fishing net," he said.
"I was fortunate to see a lot of very remote coastal country not often visited by people in an area from Cairns around to Weipa and met some amazing people.
"I was involved in barramundi fishery and aquaculture research in Cairns and led a field team to Weipa that was the first to artificially fertilise barramundi eggs and grow them to juveniles - they are stocked in Tinnaro dam."
Ivan remembers that campus life at the Capricornia Institute of Advanced Education (CQUniversity's predecessor) was particularly vibrant in the 1980s.
"I remember the community closeness of the campus, where you mixed with lots of people doing different study to your own.
"I am still studying at CQUniversity externally and so is my son; and when revisiting the campus I was overwhelmed by the memories that were triggered.
"I can't believe how much the trees have grown but then I remember how long ago it was that I was there.
"I do remember riding the Brahman bull statue one night after finishing our final exams.
"There was also partying in the student bar area, watching movies on a sheet hung from the stairwell of the Engineering building with everyone lying on the hill outside the refectory and surfing in the flooded drains around the Capricornia College during an approaching cyclone.
"It was a very laid back campus and some of my dearest friends were made during that time."
Ivan is currently happily married with 3 children, including 2 at Uni and one still at school, and is living at "beautiful Bargara near Bundaberg".
His varied career paths have included 7 years as Independent Deputy Mayor at Burnett Shire Council (a Shire surrounding Bundaberg City but now amalgamated into the new Bundaberg Regional Council).
He has also had the experience of starting his own small business and is a qualified Real Estate Agent and Auctioneer.
"Since my original study, I have also now completed a Certificate in Management, I'm currently studying a Graduate Diploma in Management and I hope to head to a MBA - all with CQUniversity."