Wesley Faulkner

Graduate Acoustics Engineer
Bachelor of Creative Technology (Audio Engineering and Sound Production)

Career Journey

I began my journey with ACOR as an Acoustic Engineer in March 2024 after completing my Bachelor's degree in Audio Engineering. The path to a career in Acoustics is quite unconventional, and the discipline itself is often misunderstood. My background as a musician, combined with a profound interest in the physics of sound, its behaviour in various environments, and its impact on people's quality of life, naturally led me to this field.

What is the most satisfying thing about your role?

The most satisfying part of my role is solving various complex problems. Acoustics plays a crucial role in the engineering world, providing us with opportunities to work on diverse projects such as aircraft noise, speech privacy for Defence and Government, firing ranges and weapons noise, mechanical and environmental noise, vibration, and structural dynamics, to name a few.

What do ACOR's Values mean to you?

ACOR's values are designed to support professional growth. They provide a framework for success and ensure you enjoy the journey and environment of your progression. I am proud to be part of a company that values the people who make ACOR what it is.

What advice would you give to an entry-level graduate?

Starting something new always makes you vulnerable. However, this isn't a bad thing; it provides an opportunity to build trust and focus your energy on the areas you are most interested in.

Semandara Farhan

Graduate Structural Engineer
Bachelor of Engineering (Honours), Civil Engineering

Career Journey

My career journey started as an engineer with ACOR in October 2022 as an Undergraduate Structural Engineer. I graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering with first-class honours in 2024 and continue my career at ACOR now as a graduate engineer. Alongside my professional work, I have been actively involved in volunteering with Engineers Australia Western Sydney Regional Group and Sydney Migrant Engineers, helping engineers advance in their careers.

What is the most satisfying thing about your role?

The most satisfying aspect of my role is the critical thinking and the diverse skill sets required to finish a project. Each job requires different demands of technical expertise and project management skills, which keeps me engaged and continuously learning.

What do ACOR's Values mean to you?

ACOR values represent the foundation of a professional and collaborative workplace environment. To me, they emphasise excellence, teamwork, integrity, and client-focused solutions, which are essential for a structural engineer.

What advice would you give to an entry-level graduate?

University gives you the tools, and the job teaches you how to use them. So, it's completely normal to feel overwhelmed while learning new things. You are not behind – you are exactly where you need to be. Stay open-minded, be kind to yourself, and don't be afraid to make mistakes because that's where true learning happens.

Joshua Borgeaud

Graduate Mechanical Engineer
Bachelor of Engineering (Honours), Mechanical Engineering

Career Journey

I graduated from QUT in mid-2023 and started the long search for a graduate position for the start of 2024. I spent some time doing casual work for an acoustic engineering firm before applying for ACOR's graduate program later that year. After going through the process and the interviews with my eventual line leaders, I was offered a position in March 2024.

What is the most satisfying thing about your role?

Working in mechanical services is a role that has an actual, tangible end product; being able to walk through a building or look at construction drawings and say, "I did that" or "I designed that" is a pretty cool feeling.

What do ACOR's Values mean to you?

I was asked this in my interview, and my response was that a company's values and how much they focus on them would significantly impact the work environment for employees. A company with poor values or no dedication to their values will not be a good workplace. However, a company with good values and focus will have a much better employee experience. Over the time I've spent at ACOR, these values have been promoted and encouraged constantly, and the result is a group of people you enjoy working with and seeing in the office.

What advice would you give to an entry-level graduate?

Be open to learning, being wrong, receiving feedback, and taking the feedback on board. Having the right attitude towards learning is crucial; acknowledge that, early on, everyone will know more than you do, so try and get as much information out of them as possible. As my team leader says, you can fix gaps in technical knowledge, but you can't fix attitude.

Olivia Johnston

Graduate Project Manager
Bachelor of Engineering (Honours), Sustainable Systems Engineering

Career Journey

I graduated from RMIT in 2023 and started with ACOR in March 2024 as a Graduate Project Manager in the Design Management Team.

What is the most satisfying thing about your role?

In my role, you get to be involved in many aspects of project delivery. Coordinating with many disciplines internally and engaging with clients and sub-consultants externally gives unique insights and a range of skills that will translate well across many career paths.

What do ACOR's Values mean to you?

To me, ACOR's values represent the fundamental principles guiding how we operate and deliver. Our values set expectations for behaviour, culture, and output; from my experience, everyone in the company actively upholds them, and they are embedded in the every day at ACOR.

What advice would you give to an entry-level graduate?

Embrace continual learning, and your degree is just the foundation. Be open to (and seek) feedback, stay curious, work on your soft skills, and seek experiences that will give you new perspectives.

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