Western BACE

STEM Career Taster & Holiday STEM Challenge Club

A Western Bace volunteer mentoring two young boys at a table about robotics in a busy classroom environment, one of the boys handles the small robot whilst the other boy and volunteer grin happily.

The STEM Career Taster Program was developed in 2016 to address the needs of participants aged 16-24 who have left school and are at risk of becoming long-term unemployed. The program now includes career/industry workshops, STEM immersion within the businesses in the BACE, mentoring, causal employment to deliver STEM workshops across Melton to school-aged students, and guided pathways back into appropriate study/employment.

The STEM Career Taster Program involves 20 youth from Melbourne’s West with a strong interest in technology but facing barriers that put them at risk will be encouraged to take their first step towards a career in technology, through:

  • 2 x STEM career taster challenge weeks (5 weeks, Term 2 and Term 4 intakes) with hands-on activities and industry mentors.

  • Opportunity to apply for paid casual employment to be part of the ‘Western BACE STEM Squad’. The STEM Squad receive in-depth training prior to delivering the Western BACE Holiday STEM Challenge Club across Melton.


The Western Bace logo, featuring ‘western bace’, to the left of which sits a teal coloured raindrop shape with its tail end pointing southeast, inside of which sits a white cursive ‘wb’.

About Western BACE

Western BACE located in Melton, manages and runs a co-working space, business incubation programs, events and workshops. In addition, Western BACE has ‘Digital BACE’, a technology rich space enabling low-cost access to technology and advice.