Securing fulltime work has helped Charlie provide for his partner and newborn baby. He's just been able to buy a car for his family, saying this took a big weight off his shoulders as a new father.
"I don't know where I would be now without this job. I'm loving it."
The course caters for about 15 students each semester, with the hope that many will go straight into fulltime work. Twelve of the 14 students from the semester A course are already in fulltime work.
Shand says there is still a high demand for those who are keen to work in the forestry industry. "All they really want is people who are going to go to work five days a week and be drug free."
He just started teaching a 22-week course out of the Waiwhero campus in Rotorua. Anyone interested in the forestry course in Rotorua can contact Te Wānanga o Aotearoa on 0800 355 553 or click here for more information.