Government jobs | How to find a government job| Youth Central

Governments in Australia employ a lot of people.

Government jobs include work with local councils, state governments and the Australian Government (also called the Federal government).

  • Local council jobs include work in places like local libraries and waste collection.
  • State government jobs (like jobs with the Victorian Government) include things like firefighting, nursing, teaching, social work, accounting, IT, marketing and communications, and environmental management.
  • Australian Government jobs include work with organisations like the defence forces and the tax office.

Government jobs are usually advertised online, just like any other job. Some jobs are advertised widely. Others are only listed on specific websites. The links at the bottom of this page are a good place to start looking for government jobs.

To find out what it's like to work in government, visit our government and justice career profiles <Career and industry profiles> and the case studies from Victorian Government trainees.

Where to find Victorian Government jobs

According to its careers website, the Victorian Government directly employs 36,000 people. On top of this, another 265,000 people are employed by agencies that get their funding from the Victorian Government.

Visit the Victorian Government’s careers website to search through current job listings. The website also has information on what it’s like to work for the Victorian Government.

You can also do an apprenticeship or traineeship with the Victorian Government. Visit our Victorian Government traineeships page to find out if you're eligible.

If you’ve recently graduated from university, you can apply for the Victorian Government's Graduate Recruitment and Development Scheme. You can also visit our graduate recruitment programs page for more information about graduate recruitment programs.

Where to find Australian Government Jobs

The Australian Government looks after things at the national, or federal, level, like foreign affairs and defence. The Australian Government's JobActive website lists lots of Australian Government jobs, including defence force jobs, apprenticeships and other jobs. You can also visit the APS jobs website for listings of current Australian Government job vacancies.

You can also do apprenticeships with the Australian Defence Force. Visit the Defence Jobs website to find out more about this option.

Before signing up for work with the defence forces, make sure you know what you're committing to. This includes the time commitment you will need to make and the obligations and responsibilities that come with serving in the armed forces.

Where to find local government jobs

Local governments, or councils, look after things at the local level, like local roads and footpaths, drainage and waste disposal. The Municipal Association of Victoria careers page has links to the careers page of each local council, which list their current job vacancies.

If you’re not sure which local council covers the area you live in, you can use the Find Your Local Council website to find out.    

Links

Careers with the Victorian Government

Search for Victorian Government jobs, create job alerts and find out what it's like to work for the Victorian Government.

JobSearch – jobactive

Search job listings for jobs across Australia, including jobs with the Australian Government.

Defence Jobs

Search for current job vacancies with the Australian Defence Force.

APSjobs

Search through a list of current vacancies in the Australian Government.

Municipal Association of Victoria careers page

Links to the careers pages of each local council in Victoria.