ACICIS is very excited to announce Mr Michael Sheehy as the Academic Program Officer (APO) for the second iteration of the Agriculture Professional Practicum (APP), running in January-February 2020. Michael served as APO for the pilot iteration of the APP in 2019 and ACICIS is thrilled to welcome him back for 2020.
Michael is a former Australian agribusiness manager who has managed major beef cattle properties in Western Australia for BHP and the Northern Territory for the Heytesbury Pastoral Group. He worked for the Heytesbury Group for eight years where he was also CEO of Heytesbury Thoroughbreds and the CEO of the Heytesbury Asian Beef Operations. Michael was awarded a Nuffield scholarship in 1992 where he studied international agricultural policy in Europe and the live cattle trade between Australia and South East Asia. Michael has over twenty years of business experience in South East Asia. Michael lived in Indonesia for fifteen years where he was the Chief Operating Officer for PT Natural Resources Indonesia an Indonesian company that has business interests in mining, property and agriculture. Michael was also the CEO of PT Dharmabakti Purna Wira a PEPAPRI (Indonesian Retired Armed Forces Union) company.
Hosted by Bogor Agricultural University in Bogor, the ACICIS Agriculture Professional Practicum (APP) offers students the opportunity to undertake a two week academic program, including intensive Indonesian language classes and industry seminars, followed by a supervised practicum placement within a local or international agricultural, agribusiness, or resource management organisation.
An Academic Program Officer is assigned to each of ACICIS’ professional practicum programs to oversee all aspects of a program, including the supervision of its academic content and assessment of student performance. The APO and ACICIS Resident Director oversee application vetting, participant selection, and work placement allocation. During the program in Indonesia, the APO meets regularly with a student’s Host Organisation placement supervisor – and with the student themselves – to provide mentorship, to ensure that a student is getting the most out of their placement, and to assess a student’s performance. The APO provides students with advice on academic and industry-specific matters, and offers pastoral care and emergency assistance where necessary. The APO also plays a key role in curating and delivering the series of industry seminars that students undertake in the first two weeks of their program.
ACICIS is delighted to welcome Michael as the supervising academic for the 2020 iteration of the APP. Based on 2019 student feedback, ACICIS is sure 2020 participating students will be extremely well served by Michael’s experience and expertise in business, policy and agriculture in Indonesia.
