The Victorian Public Service (VPS) provides the Victorian community with health, education, transport, emergency services and more. The community trusts the public sector to serve them effectively, help grow the economy and keep people safe.

But there’s still important work to do.

To help strengthen our performance in these areas, we need graduates from all sorts of disciplines and diverse backgrounds.

Your work might include policy, administration, stakeholder engagement, community development, communications, science, healthcare, education, emergency services – the list goes on and on. You’ll be a part of a large workforce with lots of career opportunities. 

Read more about how we define the Victorian Public Service and public sector or see the full list of public sector agencies.

Work with purpose

No matter where you end up in the program, as a graduate you’ll be working for the people of Victoria on projects that benefit everyone. Our graduates report feeling a sense of satisfaction knowing the difference they make to improving the lives of others.

Salaries and benefits

Graduates receive an attractive, competitive package of salaries and benefits.

Learning and development

Structured training throughout the year is designed to equip you with the skills to build a solid foundation for a career in the public service.

Extensive support

As a graduate, you’ll have access to senior Victorian Public Service (VPS) staff through executive mentoring. There’s also a buddy system that matches you with previous graduates, access to graduate alumni networks and a Graduate Advisory Committee.

Career progression

Once you successfully complete your graduate year, you’re guaranteed a promotion and a full time, ongoing role with the department you started your graduate journey with.

The graduate streams

The Victorian Government graduate program has streams to maximise your employment opportunities and make sure you’re doing what you do best.

Please note, in round 2 we are recruiting graduates for the generalist stream only.

Generalist stream

The generalist stream is open to graduates from all academic disciplines. You'll have a home department that you start in for your first rotation and return to at the end of the program following a structured learning and development program. Some positions offered in this stream include policy officer, communications officer, marketing coordinator, community engagement officer, organisational development officer and corporate governance graduate.   

Pathways

It’s important the Victorian Public Service reflects the community we serve. To help us make the public service diverse and inclusive, we’ve made pathways for:

• Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander applicants
• applicants with disability.

You still choose a stream to apply for and you can let us know about any reasonable adjustments you already use or know you’ll need. If you want to chat to us about these pathways, email us at [email protected].

If you think a career in the public service is something to be proud of, then we want to hear from you.

We’re less interested in your grade point average and more interested in who you are.

We want people who are creative, curious, have a drive to learn and live our shared values of integrity, respect and human rights.

Victoria’s strength is in its diversity of backgrounds and lived experience.

We want graduates that reflect the community we serve.

If you’re an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person or a person with disability, then check out the pathways you can opt into. 

For all applicants, we have tailored streams you can choose from, where we look for strengths in:

• verbal and written communication
• problem solving and analytics
• adaptability and resilience
• teamwork and stakeholder engagement.

Eligibility criteria

When you apply, you must:

• have completed your undergraduate or postgraduate degree or the same as level 7 and above of the Australian Qualifications Framework between 1 January 2021 and 1 January 2024
• be an Australian or New Zealand citizen, an Australian permanent resident or have unrestricted working rights for ongoing work
• not be on a temporary graduate visa
• not have taken a voluntary redundancy from the Victorian public sector in the 3 years up to the program start date of 29 January 2024.

You may be required to provide evidence of your COVID-19 vaccination status or exemption if you are successful in receiving a formal offer to join the program.

Work location

All our roles are based in Victoria. You will negotiate your flexible and hybrid work arrangements with your employer in each rotation. The Victorian Government’s flexible work policy aims to strike a balance between your needs and the requirements of the role and team.

What’s in it for you

You'll work in 3 roles across different departments and get:

• a starting salary of $62,604 plus super
• personal and professional training 
• mentoring from executives
• training in general and specialised areas
• flexible working conditions, such as working from home
• a chance to build networks with like-minded graduates across government
• a promotion and pay rise to more than $74,500 plus super at the program’s end
• access to future career opportunities that are only available to people who work in the Victorian Public Service.

Where you'll work

For most streams, there are 10 departments and Victoria Police you can choose to work in. And each department has agencies attached to them that you may end up working in.

The Victorian Government aims to be an employer that reflects the community it serves.

Although the public sector is increasingly diverse, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds remain under-represented. 

To ensure workplaces are increasingly attractive to those of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, many public sector organisations provide training in cultural awareness and competency, and the government departments and Victoria Police have localised cultural diversity strategies and staff-led networks.

The Victorian public sector Women of Colour Network and the African-Australian Network are 2 examples of staff-led initiatives committed to supporting employees and contributing to inclusive and equitable workplaces.

The Victorian Public Service and sector organisations proactively support LGBTIQA+ inclusiveness.

Across the Victorian Government, there are various LGBTIQA+ inclusion strategies and action plans which set out how organisations work towards ensuring inclusive workplaces. Many organisations provide Ally training, too.

Victorian Public Sector Pride Network

The Victorian Public Sector Pride Network is a peer-led network that champions workplace inclusion for LGBTIQA+ employees and their allies. 

It connects LGBTIQA+ employees and encourages an LGBTIQA+ inclusive culture. The network organises a range of events throughout the year and identifies and advocates on issues for LGBTIQA+ public servants. This work supports the government to be an inclusive employer, decision-maker and service provider for LGBTIQA+ Victorians. 

For example, the group marches each year at Melbourne’s annual Midsumma festival and recognises International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia and Wear it Purple among others, across government. The network also runs the VPS Pride Awards to recognise and celebrate achievement in LGBTIQA+ workplace inclusion in the public service.

Dedicated support during the application process, workplace adjustments and flexible work arrangements, are just some of the ways the Victorian Government is making it easier for employees with disability to bring their whole selves to work. 

If you opt into the disability pathway, we’ll work with you to give you flexible and tailored support in the application process. 

For example, previous applicants have had these adjustments: 

• a phone interview instead of a video interview 
• audio description and live captioning
• materials in larger font 
• more time to answer questions in the interview 
• more time to do the online test. 

We’ll make a real effort to understand your needs and act on what you say. 

Other ways we’ll support you are: 

• access to mentors with disability 
• access to workplace adjustments and flexible work 
• ways to connect with peers with disability. 

Graduates can also join the Victorian Public Sector Enablers Network, a staff-led network for employees with disability and their allies. The group works to represent the needs, interests and concerns of Victorian public sector employees with lived experience of disability, as well as offering career development and networking events throughout the year. The Enablers Network also includes the Autism Success Network dedicated to Autistic and neurodiverse employees.

Getting to Work

This pathway is an initiative of Victoria’s public sector disability employment action plan, Getting to Work. 
The plan aims to raise the number of people with disability who work in the public sector to at least 12 per cent by 2025. 

The plan has 3 focus areas: 

1. build awareness through access to information 
2. attract and recruit people with disability 
3. support employees with disability. 

We believe that people with disability make the public sector stronger and better reflect the diversity of Victoria.
 
Some graduate roles available may give you priority consideration as per the Special Measures provision of the Equal Opportunity Act 2010.

Speak to us about the disability pathway

If you’re unsure whether to opt in, get in touch with us for a confidential chat at [email protected] or call us on 03 9922 8600.

Your privacy

The Victorian Government graduate program will:

• never share your information with anyone without your consent
• leave it up to you if you want to tell your employer or peers about yourself.

Read our privacy policy to see what we collect and why.

The Victorian Government is committed to gender equality. 

The Gender Equality Act 2020 commenced on 31 March 2021. The Act will improve workplace gender equality in the Victorian public sector, universities and local councils.

The Act is administered by the Commissioner for Gender Equality in the Public Sector which has been established to monitor public sector organisations so that they progress the gender equality goals of the Victorian Government. 

Across the Victorian Public Service (VPS), 59% of employees are women and in the broader public sector, 68 per cent of employees are women (as at June 2021).

The VPS supports the participation of women in leadership and career development opportunities, by providing:

• 4 weeks annual leave
• parental leave for both genders (covering all definitions of parenthood)
• carers, compassionate, family violence leave
• flexible working arrangements to assist with work-life balance
• an employee assistance program for well-being and career support
• structured progression and professional development opportunities
• staff networks specifically for women.

As part of our genuine commitment, the VPS has implemented, and continues to review, a flexible work policy to support both individual flexibility and business performance needs across the public service.

The Victorian Government is committed to Aboriginal employment and investing in our Aboriginal workforce. A range of programs and initiatives are designed to include cultural safety, support and networking opportunities to help Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people find rewarding and meaningful careers in the Victorian Public Service (VPS). 

One way we do that is by ensuring Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander graduates have fair and equal access to the graduate program. The Aboriginal pathway to the graduate program provides support during the application process, throughout the program and into a future government career. 

You can opt into the Aboriginal pathway if you are an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person. Support is flexible and tailored to you.

It includes things like:  

• support with your application 
• support from your own pathway manager 
• one-on-ones during the application process 
• regular contact and catch ups with the Aboriginal Employment Unit at the Victorian Public Sector Commission.   

If you would like to talk to someone about the Aboriginal pathway please contact the Aboriginal Employment Unit at [email protected] or call the graduate employment team on 03 9922 8600.

Some graduate roles available may give you priority consideration as per the Special Measures provision of the Equal Opportunity Act 2010.

Barring Djinang

This pathway is an initiative of Victoria’s public sector Aboriginal Employment Strategy, Barring Djinang.

The team in charge of Barring Djinang works with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander public sector employees.

If you get into the program, check out what else in the Barring Djinang strategy could help you as a public servant.

Your privacy

The Victorian Government graduate program will:

• never share your information with anyone without your consent
• leave it up to you, if you want to tell your employer or peers about yourself.

Read our privacy policy to see what we collect and why.