Interchange

CHANGE YOURSELF, CHANGE THE WORLD.

INTERCHANGE is open to all Western Sydney University international students.

INTERCHANGE is a virtual employability program that will introduce you to the world of entrepreneurship and innovation, whilst at the same time providing you with critical work experience for your resume and future job applications.

The program is for you if you want to build your career confidence.

You do not need to have had any experience with entrepreneurship and innovation to participate. It is designed to help you upskill to become work-ready and start-up savvy over a fast-paced, intense five-week period.

INTERCHANGE 2022, you will:

  • Virtual Summits & Virtual Mastermind sessions touching on topics such as Teamwork, Introduction to Entrepreneurship, Communication & Pitching Skills, Presentation skills, and more.
  • TEDx style keynote presentation by successful entrepreneurs and leaders
  • Solve a real-life problem impacting humanity, with your team made up of students from other Universities
  • Work with an accomplished business mentor
  • Work virtually with your team to create a video pitch of your idea
  • Participate in the event alongside 300 other students - from all areas of study and from around the world. You will meet new people and gain new insights
  • Have the chance to win some amazing prizes

"INTERCHANGE was an enormous opportunity for me to explore some of my hidden talents and at the same time mix with hundreds of international students who had similar passions. This experience will undoubtedly be helpful for my academic success too.”
(Past INTERCHANGE participant)

Participating universities are: Australian Catholic University, Macquarie University, University of Newcastle, University of Sydney, Western Sydney University, University of Technology Sydney, University of New South Wales, and University of Notre Dame

WHAT WILL YOU GET FROM INTERCHANGE?

Get networked!
Meet international students from other Universities and build your friendship and professional networks.

Be an entrepreneur
Become a graduate who is creative, resilient, emotionally intelligent, and agile!

Become a problem solver
Employers want graduates who can think critically, understand the power of teamwork, can communicate and challenge the status quo

Fast-track your way to success
Learn leadership and innovative skills solving ‘real-world’ problems that international students face in Australia.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

This is a Virtual Challenge; where you will participate virtually in events and work virtually with your team members. You will be part of a unique, fast-paced, and action-packed learning journey.

You will learn by doing, working as part of a team; your challenge is to identify a problem and solve it.

This Virtual Employability and Entrepreneurship Challenge will conclude with 5 shortlisted teams doing an online pitch in front of a panel of judges. Prizes will be awarded to the top 3 teams.

Along the way, you will benefit from the support and experience of leading facilitators, a team mentor, and expert guest speakers. You will also have the opportunity to assess your skills at the start and end of the INTERCHANGE 2022 program, so you can recognise your own progress.

You will be expected to commit to attending and participating during all 5 days of the INTERCHANGE 2022 program Outside the online event hours, you will also be expected to communicate with your teammates on a regular basis and access various other resources made available to you online.

PROGRAM OUTLINE

Tuesday 5th July 2022, 2pm,  Pre program WSU information & networking session - Online via Zoom

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is compulsory.

DAY 1: Friday 8th July 2022, 1:30pm - 3:30pm, Virtual Orientation Day on Zoom

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is compulsory. Failure to attend this event without prior notification will make you ineligible to continue with the program

  • 1.30pm Program Welcome: Facilitator introduction & Agenda
  • 1.45pm Teambuilding Icebreaker activity
  • 1.55pm INTERCHANGE 5 day agenda & outcomes. Introduction to INTERCHANGE challenge problems to solve
  • 2.15pm Important information about your team and mentor. Invitation to join Slack and LinkedIn channels as well as
  • tech setup requirements. Introduction to video resources available to you
  • 2.45pm Learn the secrets of high performing teams. Learn strategies on how to build a strong team for INTERCHANGE
  • 3.30pm Wrap up and close

DAY 2: Saturday 16th July 2022, 1:30pm - 5:00pm, Virtual Launch Summit on Zoom

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is compulsory.

  • 1.30pm Program welcome, facilitator introduction & agenda for Day 2
  • 1.45pm Networking activities
  • 2.00pm Meditation and mindfulness with a special guest
  • 2.15pm INTERCHANGE Program outcomes and key information. Introduction to INTERCHANGE judges
  • 2.30pm Inspiring keynote speaker
  • 2.50pm SHORT BREAK
  • 3.05pm Introduction to entrepreneurship, start-ups and growth mindset
  • 3.30pm Masterclasses: Introduction to the Business Model Canvas with franked.io facilitators covering topics such as
  • customer segments,value proposition,channels,costs,revenue and customer interviews
  • 4.15pm Reflections & preparing for Day 3
  • 4.30pm Summit close
  • 5.00pm onwards This is ideally when your team and mentors may choose to meet

DAY 3: Saturday 23rd July 2022, 1:30pm - 4:45pm, Training Day on Zoom

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is compulsory.

  • 1.30pm Welcome & agenda. Shared learnings from Day 2
  • 1.55pm Meditation and mindfulness with a special guest
  • 2.10pm Inspiring keynote speaker
  • 2.30pm SHORT BREAK
  • 2.45pm Guest Speaker Masterclass on topic of prototyping and idea testing
  • 3.45pm franked.io Facilitators will deliver smaller masterclass sessions to showcase real life examples of how to prototype ideas
  • 4.30pm Reflections and preparing for Day 4
  • 4.45pm Summit close

DAY 4: Saturday 30th July 2022, 1:30pm - 4:30pm, Training Day on Zoom

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is compulsory.

  • 1.30pm Welcome & agenda. Shared learnings from Day 3
  • 1.55pm Meditation and mindfulness with a special guest
  • 2.10pm Inspiring keynote speaker
  • 2.30pm SHORT BREAK
  • 2.45pm FRANK Masterclass on how to create a video pitch and presentation
  • 3.45pm SHORT BREAK
  • 4.00pm Reflections and preparing for Day 4
  • 4.30pm Summit close

Video Pitch Due: 2nd August 2022, 5:00pm

IS THERE ANYTHING DUE FOR SUBMISSION TODAY?

Yes, your team is responsible for submitting a 3-minute video pitch of your idea to FRANK by 5:00pm 2nd August 2022. We will show you how to create a video pitch and what to include in it at the Day 4 Virtual Summit

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE WE NEED TO PREPARE FOR BEFORE THE PITCH EVENT ON 4TH AUGUST 2022?

Yes, your team will need to nominate and prepare 1-2 speakers from your team to pitch your idea at the Pitch Event on 4th August 2022. This pitch will be 3 minutes long and cover the same content as the video pitch

DAY 5: Thursday 4th August 2022, 5-8pm, Virtual Pitch Night on Zoom

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is compulsory.

  • 5.00pm Welcome & agenda for pitch event
  • 5.15pm Attendance roll-call for students who will be pitching and representing their team
  • 5.25pm FRANK Facilitators will deliver smaller masterclass sessions to provide tips and practice for pitching
  • 6.00pm BREAK
  • 6.30pm Official pitch event welcome and agenda. Introduction to the 3 judges and the INTERCHANGE journey
  • 6.45pm VIP Welcome Remarks
  • 6.50pm Pitching commences: 1 -2 speakers from each of the 5 teams will pitch their idea 1 by 1 to the 3 judges
  • 7.30pm SHORT BREAK FOR GUESTS (Judges will deliberate during this time and students complete online evaluations)
  • 7.50pm Winners announced
  • 8.00pm Final words and event close

Interchange Debrief session (Date TBC)

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is compulsory.

For more detailed information, visit: https://interchange-nsw.com.au/schedule

Follow this link to read about student & participant experiences - Student & participant Blogs

APPLICATIONS

Applications are now open and will close on 29 June 2022.

You may visit https://interchange-nsw.com.au for more information and follow Franked.io on LinkedIn for updates on the program.

DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION?

Ask us a question through CareerHub if you want to know more