SummerTech LIVE program leads to employment at Edalex

Earlier this year, through the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (VCCI) initiative SummerTech LIVE, Torrens University partnered with several small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to integrate artificial intelligence into practical applications with remarkable outcomes for businesses and students alike.

The initiative allocated funds to kickstart innovative projects with the goal of empowering businesses to leverage artificial intelligence, information technology and virtual reality to enhance their operations.

A diverse range of projects was initiated by companies seeking to collaborate with Torrens University's IT and engineering students offering practical and hands-on experience and an opportunity to position themselves as valuable contributors to the ever-evolving technological landscape.

Edalex providing work experience and job opportunities

One of Torrens University’s partners in the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry's SummerTech LIVE program during the 2023-2024 period was the leading EdTech company Edalex. Edalex powers organisations' single source of truth for skills, credentials, and learning data, and its project with Torrens aimed to automate some of the skills mapping exercises utilising generative artificial intelligence (genAI).

“Edalex built on the valuable work of Jobs and Skills Australia, aiming to empower skills-based approaches to workforce and talent strategies, learning and development, and research and policy,” said Dan McFadyen, Managing Director of Edalex. “With this Open Rich Skill Descriptor release, stakeholders can discover, share and integrate standardised skills data into digital resources, such as resumes, job descriptions, digital credentials, EdTech platforms, talent marketplaces and more. It brings skills data to life, giving it mobility, portability, standardisation and a single source of truth.”

Two Torrens University students were provided with real-world work experience and validated skills. Following the internship, Edalex employed one of the students based on their outstanding efforts and deliverables.

“Working with Torrens University and their students for this project has reinforced our support for work-integrated learning. All parties win: Torrens University provided learners with a rich education experience; the students gained workplace experience, skills and even direct employment; Edalex gained the ability to deliver a complex AI project in just 12 weeks alongside hands-on development of skills in learners; and the Australian Skills Classification (ASC) has wider availability to a global community,” McFadyen said. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with Torrens into the future.”

“These projects are a great testimonial to the relevance of Torrens University’s Technology courses to current and future industries, as well as student employability,” said Associate Professor Tony Jan, who oversaw the VCCI projects.

“The current Edalex project, which automates the skills assessment process using AI, is a great example of industry automation utilising digital technologies,” said Associate Professor Tony Jan.

One of the internship students with Edalex, Sergio Gonzalez, shared his experience.

“We were using Python coding and Amazon Web Services (AWS) foundational models to build an application that used a rubric to assess skills,” said Sergio. “The AI quickly generated feedback for the stakeholders involved.”

Sergio relished the opportunity and praised the relationship with the team from Edalex who included the director and co-founder of the company, the project manager overseeing the internship/project and the technical manager

“The relationship with Edalex was great, it could not have been better,” said Sergio. We were having weekly meetings to show them what we have done, discuss findings and requirements and align for next week.”

“This is an exciting step forward for Torrens University as industry’s university," highlights Darryn Melrose, Chief Marketing Officer and Industry Partnerships, who championed the VCCI initiatives and other technology industry collaborations.

Edalex sought to translate the Australian Skills Classification (ASC) into digital Rich Skill Descriptor (RSD) format to increase the interoperability and availability of the ASC. This translation was performed using Generative AI and created more than 270 rich skill descriptor skill clusters, comprising a total of 1,686 RSDs, published on Edalex’s openRSD platform, the world’s largest open library of RSDs. These RSDs are now globally available, with the potential to integrate into next-generation credentials such as digital badges and skills wallets.

For more information about the project access Edalex’s press release here.