I don't know anything about film degrees in oz. Going by what you're saying though, they are probably 1000x better than the film degrees and courses in the US and UK. This is from a few years back (UK):
"Almost 60% of film studies graduates went into full-time employment in 2009. Of those, 12.5% found jobs within the art/design/culture sector and, within the film industry itself, 2.1% became directors, 1.2% video/film recorder operators and 1.4% broadcasters. Some 34% found work in retail/catering, perhaps as a temporary measure and an indication of the competitive nature of the industry."
http://www.theguardian.com/money/2011/jul/08/film-studies-degree
So literally, 1%. I'd quite like to see the numbers of how many of the 34% who worked retail ended up in the industry. I'd wager probably something like 1-2%.
As for that guy. It only took him what, seven years? He also had multiple opportunities to amend his errors or develop but seemingly did nothing. It's not like he didn't realise it either. Fair play that he's doing it now, I have no beef with that, hopefully he's a good teacher as well.