Ben Haese has a very specific answer for anyone sitting on the fence about a trade: just start. “If you hate it, you can just go back to school like nothing happened.” That’s the pitch for a school-based apprenticeship from someone who’s currently in one, two years in, and very glad he stayed.
Hamish Bourke took the less hedged route. In Year 11 he completed a Cert II in automotive, did work experience at a few different workshops, decided mechanics was it, and left school to go full-time. He’s a first-year automotive mechanic apprentice at CMI Toyota Christies Beach now, part of CMV Group, one of Australia’s largest privately owned vehicle companies with 90 years of history behind it and brands ranging from Toyota and Mercedes-Benz to Kenworth and Volvo.
Between them, Hamish and Ben represent two of the most common ways into a trade: one who was ready to commit and one who wanted to test it first. Both ended up at the same company, doing the same work, and neither has any intention of going anywhere.
On the tools
For both of them, servicing is the bread and butter. Hamish is in his first year, which means rotating through the team, picking up the basics of servicing from whoever he’s paired with that day. Ben is a year ahead: more time working independently, the occasional small repair job mixed in alongside the regular service work. Neither of them is bored.
The people make it
“People around here are happy to help, and they don’t judge you for being new or inexperienced. I can ask any question and they help me out.”
Starting a trade is a lot of learning from scratch in a short amount of time. Having a team that treats that as part of the job rather than something to get through on your own changes the experience considerably. Hamish found the work itself was manageable from day one, especially with the Cert II giving him some baseline knowledge going in. The bigger adjustment was finding a routine after school, a different kind of structure than being a student, and the team around him made the work side easier while he found his bearings.
What takes getting used to
Ben will tell you the hardest part of the trade is the electrical work. Less hands-on than everything else, more problem-solving in your head than with your hands. It’s a different kind of challenge. The team helps, though, and he’s not worried about it.
Hamish’s advice for anyone still in school: do the Cert II and do the work experience before you decide anything. It won’t make you an expert, but it’ll mean you’re not completely starting from zero when you walk into a workshop, and you’ll have a much clearer sense of whether it’s for you before you’ve committed to anything.
The bigger picture
CMV Group’s apprenticeship program at CMI Toyota has been running for more than 20 years. The group covers automotive, trucks, and a farming division across South Australia and Victoria, which means the career pathways from an apprenticeship are broader than they might first appear. Both Hamish and Ben are at the start of those pathways.
If you know it’s what you want, Hamish’s route works. If you’re less certain, Ben’s is the reminder that a school-based apprenticeship is about as low-risk a way to find out as you’ll get.
And if you’re still not sure? Ben’s answer hasn’t changed.
“Just do it. If you hate it, you can just go back to school like nothing happened.”
Explore apprenticeship opportunities with CMV Group here.
