Associate Lecturer, Bachelor of Applied Aquaculture Program

Andrew Christie in the Growout Room

Andrew Christie has been working at the Aquaculture Training and Applied Research Centre at NMIT’s Epping campus since October 2001. Andrew’s life long interest in marine biology led him to complete a Bachelor of Aquatic Science degree with Honours at Deakin University’s Warrnambool campus in 1999. “One of the great things about NMIT’s Bachelor of Applied Aquaculture Program is that it allows students from metropolitan Melbourne to undertake degree level studies without having to relocate to regional or rural areas, as I did when doing tertiary studies”, he says.

After completing the degree, Andrew worked a variety of jobs including factory work, administration and retail sales, but these jobs were well outside the area that he was most interested in. Towards the end of 2001 he heard on the grapevine that NMIT may have been looking for a suitably qualified person to work in the Aquaculture Program at NMIT, and the rest, as they say, is history.

“Having done an Aquatic Science degree at university, I actually had very little idea about aquaculture until I got to NMIT. It was a steep learning curve initially, but the fact that it was a job in the field allowed me to develop a strong interest which continues today, and shows no signs of slowing up”.

Andrew is currently working part-time on a Masters of Science qualification with RMIT University, which allows him to fulfill his commitments to the role of Lecturer in the Bachelor of Applied Aquaculture Program. He has been involved in teaching short courses and managing trainees between Certificate II and Certificate IV level, and finally began teaching in the degree program back in 2006, the inaugural year of the program. Since then, he has taught a variety of subjects, including Introduction to Aquaculture, Aquatic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Aquatic Ecology, Field Work, Aquaculture Innovations, Practical Freshwater Finfish Aquaculture and Applied Marine Fish and Salmonid Aquaculture.

In the time that he has been at NMIT, Andrew has developed a keen idea of what the aquaculture industry is all about.

"This industry is not for the faint-hearted: just when you think things are going along beautifully, things can go badly very quickly, and there are some long hours involved, but the best thing about the job is that it always keeps you interested. This is literally a job where you learn something new everyday".

Some of Andrew’s qualifications beyond academia include a Heavy Vehicle Driver’s Licence, a Forklift Licence, Advanced First Aid certification and an Open Water SCUBA certification: all of which are generally standard throughout the aquaculture industry, which combines a wide variety of vocational and academic skills.

Publications

• Mobin, S.M.A., Christie, A.P. and Aritaki, M. (2005). Data Sheet on Japanese flounder Paralichthys olivaceus. CABI, London, U.K.
• Christie, A.P. (2007). TAFE training in Melbourne. Austasia Aquaculture, 21, pp 58-61.
• Christie, A.P. (2009). Aquaculture in Canada lessons for Australia (PDF) - Austasia Aquaculture, Winter 2009, pp 47-51.