Originally from Australia, content creator Torin has spent the last 10 years of his life chasing the snow. He has worked in Japan, New Zealand, Canada and Australia, and is in the middle of his 14th ski season. He is currently residing in the idyllic town of Castle Hill Village (pictured below), which Torin explains is “a tiny little village of about 150 houses – kind of in the middle of nowhere.” The fortnightly drive to Christchurch to buy groceries is worth it for the town’s proximity to Porters Ski Resort: where Torin works doing ski patrol, avalanche patrol and medical work.
Torin is in his 3rd term of NZIE’s Digital Marketing Diploma, and is juggling work and play on the mountain with full-time study: sometimes starting work at 4 am to manage avalanche control:
“[The flexibility of the course was] a big part of the [recruitment] discussion. I knew that my schedule changes a lot, and things come up that I want to do. Having the flexibility for study to fit into my lifestyle, not have my lifestyle fit around study is really important.”
Recorded classes are a massive perk for Torin, meaning he can catch up in the case of a snow emergency.
Why Digital Marketing?
Torin chose content creating to financially support his passion: working in the snow.
“While this sort of lifestyle is super fun and exactly what I want to be doing in life – dedicating most of my life to being in the mountains – it doesn’t pay that well, unfortunately.”
He decided to use content creation as a way to combine his passion for adventure while financially supporting his mountain escapades.
“I did a bit of content creation with photo and video, usually based out of Queenstown and a bit in Japan as well. Mostly covering music events and parties, but combining it with backcountry guiding as well: taking action sports videos and photos.”
Torin’s website (https://torinbarnes.co.nz/) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/torin.barnes/) are visual diaries of his global content-creating antics.
Filling the gaps: Upskilling with NZIE
After attempting to freelance, Torin found himself overwhelmed, and knew he needed to upskill with NZIE:
“I tried to market [my work] to a massive market and just had no idea what I was doing: there were gaps in my knowledge I needed to fill.”
The Diploma in Digital Marketing allows Torin to hone his skills and take his talents for content creation to the next step.
Looking ahead: life post Diploma
Once Torin completes his Diploma at NZIE, he and his partner are off to Austria for a 3-month stint. After that, they will remigrate to Canada.
“The idea is to pick up a short team contract working remotely, probably with a New Zealand or Australia-based agency… This sort of work will be integral to [my relocation to Canada].”
He’ll make the most of NZIE’s Employment Support Program, which offers 1-1 mentorship meetings, an online job announcement board and a Facebook group, plus access to industry guest speaking sessions from business owners, recruitment advisors and leading agencies.
Interested in studying NZIE’s Digital Marketing Diploma but – like Torin – have a busy lifestyle you want to maintain? We chatted to Recruitment officer Phil and asked him about NZIE’s course flexibility:
What is the Diploma timetable?
Curious to find out what days and times classes are running?
Full-Time: 12 hours of directed learning per week plus 18 hours of self-directed learning.
Part-Time Timetable: 6 hours of directed learning per week plus 9 hours of self-directed learning.
Enquire below and we’ll supply you with the full timetable schedule for the Diploma.
Can’t commit to our full Diploma? Our Micro-credentials in SEO and Social Media Strategy – 7 weeks in duration – could be just what you’re looking for.
