Mark Jackson
Aquaculture Technician - New Zealand King Salmon
From Gateway to the Sounds: a fast-track into Aquaculture
Mark Jackson reckons it’s pretty cool having an office in the middle of Marlborough’s Queen Charlotte Sound.
He’s an Aquaculture Technician on a 7/7 shift for New Zealand King Salmon (NZKS), working primarily at the Ruakākā Bay site—and doing exactly what he set his sights on when he first started at Marlborough Boys’ College.
“I grew up on boats and getting out into the Sounds, and even when I was in Year 9, I realised I wanted to work on the water,” Mark says. “So, in Year 12, I spoke to the Gateway coordinator at school and asked if she could get me a spot on the programme in aquaculture—preferably in salmon as I knew a little bit about it.”
Eventually she secured him a Gateway placement with NZKS, and once a week Mark headed out to the Ruakākā farm.
There, he began learning the ropes of raising King salmon and feeding them—one of the most important operations on the farms.
“Gateway was great—I really enjoyed it and got straight into it.”
Before the year ended, Mark applied for an Aquaculture Technician role with NZKS. He was pleasantly surprised when his team leader and boss pulled him aside one day and offered him the job.
“Even though I was only 17, and didn’t have my diving or skipper’s qualifications, I think they saw my enthusiasm and quite liked my work ethic.”
Despite early starts and long days, Mark enjoys the 7-on-7-off roster—it gives him plenty of time to get outdoors.
Even better, he can see a clear pathway ahead.
“The company is going to put me through skipper and dive training. I have already started skippering the vessels, and with my full dive qualification I’ll be able to assist anytime they need a diver to do odd jobs inside the pens or out.”
Mark’s advice for anyone wanting to get into aquaculture? Talk to your school careers team, get some work experience, then give 100 percent and show them what you’ve got.
“Without Gateway my chances of being offered a job would’ve been lower, as they wouldn’t have known me. With Gateway I had much higher visibility.”
