Education has always shaped the ways that people connect and create, but learning looks different over time as student needs and educational tools change. Even the most experienced teachers at the highest levels of education can discover new skills, engage with new theories, and elevate their practice through further study and active upskilling.
This kind of growth takes work, time and investment, but that investment can open up incredible opportunities for educators at any stage of their career. It can transform good teachers into great teachers, and raise the bar for higher education teaching as a whole.
Furthering your teaching education and taking the time to upskill can lead to:
Career progression and promotions
Educational leadership positions
Greater impact on the student learning experience
Greater understanding between teachers and students
Networking and collaboration opportunities with other dedicated educators
Educational research and developing scholarly practices
At Collarts, we’ve seen first-hand how upskilling can transform teaching careers.
We spoke with some of the Collarts faculty members who have completed or are currently enrolled in the Graduate Certificate of Higher Education (Creative Arts) to see how investing in these skills has impacted their careers.
Here’s what they had to say.
Jess at the 2024 Australian Women in Music Awards (second from the right)
Current Role: Head of Online Programs at Collarts
Jess Carrol originally completed a Masters of Teaching in the early 2010s while also working in the creative arts.
“I’ve had two paths running alongside each other throughout my career,” Jess explains. “One in the music, creative and entertainment industries, and the other in education.”
She began her career as a music publicist promoting artists, events and creative projects, but had always been drawn to teaching. Over time, those two paths began to converge and led her to working right here at Collarts and eventually beginning her Graduate Certificate in Higher Education (GCHE).
“Because I’d studied teaching over a decade ago, I wanted to re-engage with current thinking in pedagogy. I knew there were frameworks and approaches that could help me refine how I design learning experiences, especially in online and interdisciplinary contexts.
"I was particularly drawn to the Learning Environments unit, which explored how to create more interactive and intentional experiences.”
Since her graduation, Jess has been offered not one but two promotions. The first was a secondment opportunity, and the second was her ongoing leadership role as Head of Online Programs.
The skills she learned throughout the course were a major contributor to her career progression..
“The course helped me bring clarity and language to ideas I’d been carrying intuitively for years,” she reflects.
“I was able to reflect on my own identity and story as an educator, and that process shaped how I see my role. It also deepened my understanding of the learning sciences and scholarly teaching.”
“Ultimately, the course helped me reconnect with why I teach. It made my practice sharper, more deliberate and more aligned with my values.”
Monique receiving her 2025 Teaching Excellence Award at Collarts.
Current Role: Program Coordinator for Fashion Marketing
Monique Montfroy’s first taste of teaching came after she graduated from a Bachelor with Honours in Digital Media. After graduating, she was asked by the program leader to teach a unit at just 22 years old. She took advantage of the opportunity for the year, but felt too young and inexperienced to commit to education long term.
After moving to Melbourne in 2022 to build her own fashion business, she met Collarts’ Program Manager for Fashion Marketing, Debbie Pratt, who asked her to give a guest lecture. This turned into teaching a unit within the Fashion Marketing curriculum, and then into a full-time position at Collarts.
“I chose to study the Graduate Certificate of Higher Education because I have never received formal training in higher education teaching and I wanted to strengthen my skills in this area,” Monique explains.
“This particular qualification stood out to me because of its focus on creative practices in higher education, which aligns perfectly with my professional interests and values.”
While completing the course alongside her role at Collarts, Monique has been able to immediately integrate new learning design skills into her teaching, applying what she learns in real time with her students.
She says, “It has been very beneficial to understand our students, and has been transformative in helping me become a more thoughtful, effective, and empathetic educator.”
Current Role: Digital Design and Social Media Lecturer
Emma Ismawi has been a sessional lecturer at Collarts since 2018, when she stepped away from her full-time career as a graphic designer. She now works as a freelance designer, illustrator and public artist alongside her educational work here with us and out in the community.
She explains her decision to up-skill in learning design quite simply:
“I knew I was good at teaching, but I wanted to be better.”
After graduating from the GCHE, she’s continued her work at Collarts and describes herself as much more equipped to excel in areas like curriculum design and learning environment design. She was also awarded a Collarts customer experience award for her graduate certificate symposium research, due largely to her approach to supporting and connecting with students.
By investing in her teaching practice, Emma was able to pair her natural instincts with a solid grounding in learning design theory, as well as discover new possibilities and opportunities within her career.
She says, “I am inspired and excited to research, contribute knowledge, and develop a scholarly teaching practice, which was not something I saw as accessible to me before I completed the course.”
Whether you’re just starting out as an educator or have years of experience, it’s never too late to develop and evolve your practice. Pursuing further education, such as the Graduate Certificate of Higher Education (Creative Arts), could be the key to a whole new era of your career.
The Graduate Certificate of Higher Education at Collarts is 100% online, so you can study at your own pace.
Learn more about Collarts postgraduate programs here.