Mount Barker Community College, a K-12 campus with 700 students, services the town of Mount Barker and its hinterland. An RTO since 1998, the school has a commercial kitchen, a 237 hectare farm and an on-site Trade Training Centre for Engineering.

Through programs linking learning, training and work placements, students can choose individual pathways or those in Rural Operations, Engineering and Hospitality, which reflect the diversity of local employment opportunities. The school has developed strong links with the largest Group Training company in the region, ATC Work Smart, which is planning to replicate in other communities the college’s model of converting workplace learning placements into Australian School-based Apprenticeships.

The college itself offers employment opportunities for students in Hospitality, Business, Early Childhood Education and Horticulture roles. Community volunteering creates local connections and develops students’ employability skills, often leading to work placement, traineeship and employment opportunities.