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About the Department

Why Work For Us?

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As a graduate with us, you will have an opportunity to contribute to making a difference in people's lives.

The Graduate Development Program

We are a large department of 7 000 people, who work collectively together to make a positive contribution to Australia and have a true influence on people's lives – people are our business.

The Graduate Development Program, and nature of our business, is your opportunity to a motivating, challenging and rewarding career.

It is designed to expose you to a number of areas within the department to enable you to develop a broad knowledge of the portfolio and different business areas. You will gain an understanding of and experience in policy, programs, and service delivery.

As a generalist graduate you could be involved in work diverse as:

  • temporary and permanent migration initiatives which meet Australia's economic, social and demographic needs
  • settlement and citizenship
  • multicultural affairs
  • case management and care arrangements to provide early migration resolution for people in immigration detention
  • international engagement and border management
  • interpreting and applying legislation
  • refugee and humanitarian issues
  • human resource management and corporate services.

The Graduate Development Program promotes the personal and professional development of graduates through:

  • participation in three supervised work rotations across the department
  • induction and orientation
  • extensive formal and on-the-job learning with courses and workshops that also include an overview of the Australian Public Services, project management, policy formulation, change management and techniques for career management
  • Performance Development Agreements and learning and development objectives with constructive feedback to further develop your capabilities.

The Graduate Development Program provides a solid base for a career with the department and Australian Public Service. At the completion of the 10 month program, provided you meet probation, you will become an ongoing employee and will be well placed to gain promotion through a merit-based selection process.

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship – building careers, building the nation.

Salary and conditions of employment

We offer generous employment conditions including attractive salaries, superannuation benefits, and flexible working conditions.