Graduate recruit development program

Each year the Department of Environment and Conservation takes on Graduate Recruits for intensive competency-based training over a 10-week period to teach them field operations procedures, based on management plans and derived from current departmental operations.

The Graduate Recruit Training Program is designed to:

• provide future leaders for DEC;
• provide a steady flow of competently trained technical staff to meet DEC operational requirements;
• provide competent middle managers aware of the fundamental skills required in multiple use management;
• create a pool from which specialist officers can be developed; and
• lay a basis on which graduate recruits can develop full and satisfying careers.

DEC employs Graduate Recruits in the following areas: conservation, land or environmental management, planning, operational, regulatory, policy and research roles.

The Graduate Recruit Training Program consists of the following topics:

• Working in government - Induction to the public sector;
• DEC Safe Operations;
• Australasian Interservice Incident Management System awareness program
• Driver awareness;
• Customer service - Conversing with the community;
• Project management;
• Verbal judo;
• Professional letter and report writing;
• Senior first aid;
• Cross cultural awareness;
• Team leadership;
• Recreation planning and management;
• Fire management application;
• Fire management suppression;
• Disease management;
• Law enforcement
• Introduction to GIS
• Four-wheel driving
• Incident control systems
• Field tools
• Good neighbour policy
• Field surveying; and
• Health and fitness.

Most of these training programs are accredited with the Training Accreditation Council of Western Australia.

The minimum entry qualification to enter the Graduate Recruit Training Program is Certificate IV in Conservation and Land Management and a tertiary qualification is strongly encouraged.

Competition for positions in this program is keen with many enquiries received each year. The call for applicants takes place in late September or early October. The program is advertised in the Employment Appointments section of The West Australian, the Government's online job noticeboard (www.jobs.wa.gov.au).

You can also find full information in  2009 Graduate Development Program - Information for Applicants (48.95 kB)

For more information, contact Peter Hill at DEC's Dwellingup Training Centre:

Banksiadale Road
Dwellingup WA 6213
Phone: (08) 9538 1200
Fax: (08) 9538 1244