The Lab is a national network of not-for-profit computer clubs for young people who identify as as being on the autism spectrum and who are interested in technology, especially gaming, coding and digital media. We are seeking mentors for paid p/t roles to work with young people to support their interests in games and tech. The Lab is expanding and seeking to recruit part-time mentors in Melbourne western suburbs, Sydney eastern and western suburbs, Brisbane and Perth.

Through a child's interests in technology, The Lab aims to encourage social engagement and the development of important life skills. Key to The Lab providing this valuable service is having good mentors - people who can look at a young person's strengths and interests and work with them to increase the sense of enthusiasm and engagement that they have for technology.

Participants at Lab sessions often have highly developed technical skills but lack some of the social and friendship skills that are important to every child's personal development. Through a child's interests in technology, The Lab aims to increase participants self confidence and positively impact their vocational opportunities.

Mentors need to be engaged with the group as active participants in the social and organisational running of Lab sessions. The Lab is very unlike a school environment and that’s a deliberate strategy to support participants interests and to foster a collaborative social environment. There are currently around 85 Lab mentors across the country who are supported by regular national online discussion groups and a range of training materials provided by The Lab Network.

The main pre-requisites for mentoring are:

• a solid understanding of popular games that might include Minecraft, Roblox and others. Knowledge of tabletop board games is also very useful.
• Predisposition to having fun.
• Understanding common coding languages and game engines such as Unity, Godot and others is desirable but not essential depending on other tech skills.
• Empathy and good interpersonal skills.
• Good professional practice skills including consistency and reliability.

Lab sessions generally run for 2 hrs once a week. Some Labs run multiple sessions on a Saturday and single sessions on a weekday, depending on the numbers of participants at the venue. The time commitments can range from 2 – 6hrs per week.

Because of the limited hours the pay is very good.

to apply

Please click Apply Now and follow the instructions.

A position description is attached.

A Working With Children Check is required and easy to obtain. For some Lab venues, depending on the host organisation, an NDIS Worker Screening Check may be required. Proof of full Covid-19 Vaccination may be required at some locations.

See our website at https://thelab.org.au for details of our program.