Vocational education has always been about one thing: getting people genuinely ready for work, not just qualified for it. RMIT's College of Vocational Education (CoVE) has built its reputation on that promise. Now it's extending it into innovative new territory – preparing students for a workplace where AI isn't a topic on the syllabus, it's a colleague.

RMIT CoVE and HEX have partnered to launch a first-of-its-kind AI-powered virtual internship, giving vocational students authentic, industry-shaped project experience before they graduate. The first cohort — Info Tech and Business students — kicks off in 2026, co-designed with the Atlassian Foundation.

What makes this different

Most internship programs run on availability: whichever placements happen to exist that semester, matched as best they can to whichever students happen to be looking. This program flips that. AI-powered work simulations are always on, always available, so the experience is built around the student's timeframe and needs rather than whatever happened to be on offer.

From there, it's real work: projects shaped by actual industry partners, portfolio pieces students can point to in an interview, a virtual 1:1 manager reflection, and a certificate of completion recognised by RMIT – but evidence of applied, AI-augmented capability employers can actually evaluate.

Built by people who show up for it

Programs like this don't happen because two logos decide to collaborate. They happen because specific people push to get them built.

At RMIT, Nicholas P., Director of Future Technologies, is one of the professionals driving the program from the university side, working within the College of Vocational Education, led by Mish Eastman and Robbie van Dijk. Announcing the pilot on LinkedIn, Nicholas described it as putting students in "AI driven project settings and industry collaborations with real world contexts, that matter now, not just for tomorrow" – calling it a first for RMIT and a potential "game changer" for students weighing up where to study next.

On the HEX side, Jeanette Cheah, CEO & Co-Founder of HEX, led the team working alongside the CoVE team to design an experience built with students, not just for them.

"We're very proud to partner with innovative institutions like RMIT CoVE – the team truly understands that to close the gap between student needs and the available internship opportunities, they need to think differently with scale in mind. Using new tech like AI and industry co-design is the smart way to do this."

The pilot was marked with the program's official launch alongside the RMIT and HEX teams, with the first Info Tech and Business cohort set to begin in 2026.

Why vocational education is the right place to start

Skills-based, industry-connected training is exactly where a program like this belongs. CoVE students are already used to learning by doing – this just extends that model to include the tools now shaping how real work gets done. It also helps educators bring industry-informed learning into the classroom.

HEX's interpretation ofemployability: not as something bolted onto the end of a qualification, but as something built into it from the start, in partnership with the institutions and industry partners already closest to the work.

What's next

Applications are open now for the 2026 pilot cohort of Info Tech and Business students, with the program designed to scale to further disciplines and cohorts as it proves out. More information and sign-up is available at HEX's AI-Powered Virtual Internship program page.

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