Tao Chen

My academic background is in Government and International Relations, and my professional experience has focused on project support, program coordination and strategic stakeholder engagement across public sector and community-facing environments.

Before studying with CQUniversity, I was already working in project support and delivery roles. While this gave me valuable hands-on experience, I wanted to move beyond simply doing the work and develop a stronger understanding of the frameworks that sit behind successful project delivery. This led me to complete a Diploma of Project Management at CQU.

I chose CQU because of its practical, industry-aligned approach and the flexibility it offered as a working professional. The program gave me a comprehensive, end-to-end understanding of the project lifecycle, strengthening my technical skills and giving me the confidence and language to clearly articulate complex project phases to stakeholders.

A key professional highlight has been taking ownership of project documentation, risk registers, and constraint tracking for high-priority initiatives. Additionally, I actively engaged with regional community gardens, community centres, and organisations such as Orange Sky and OzHarvest to support frontline initiatives that empower disadvantaged groups. 

My involvement with the United Nations Association of Australia has allowed me to combine my background in international relations with community engagement. I am particularly proud of helping deliver the UN Peacekeeper Ceremony, which brought together all levels of government, foreign diplomats, universities and diverse community groups to raise awareness of the contributions and sacrifices of Australian peacekeepers.

I am currently positioning myself to transition into project management, where I can apply my qualifications and practical experience to structured, impactful initiatives. Leveraging my academic foundation and practical experience, I am advancing a career centred on project governance and stakeholder engagement, translating strategic policy objectives into structured, actionable and customer-focused results across the public, corporate and community sectors.