What it does: As the Australian Government’s leading economic policy adviser, Treasury’s work covers a broad range of issues, such as how the Federal Government spends, taxes and regulates markets including the financial system.
Staff stats: Around 900
The good bits: Supporting the government with sound economic analysis and advice, driving policy development and making a positive contribution for the good of all Australians.
The not so good bits: Working on priority economic policy issues, including the Federal Budget, can be high-pressure, fast-paced and sometimes demanding.
Hiring grads with degrees in: Engineering, Maths, IT & Computer Sciences; Finance, Accounting, Economics & Business Administration; Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences; Law & Legal Studies.
The Department of the Treasury (or Treasury) is the Australian Government Department responsible for economic policy, fiscal policy, market regulation, and the Australian federal budget. Formed at the Federation of Australia, Treasury is one of the oldest continuous departments of the Australian Government. As a central policy agency, the Treasury is expected to anticipate and analyse policy issues with a whole-of-economy perspective, understand government and stakeholder circumstances, and respond rapidly to changing events and directions.
Treasury provides sound economic analysis and authoritative policy advice on issues such as: the economy, budget, taxation, financial sector, foreign investment, structural policy, superannuation, small business, housing affordability and international economic policy. The Treasury also works with State and Territory governments on key policy areas, as well as managing federal financial relations
The Department is overseen by the Secretary of the Department of Treasury, who reports to the Treasurer of Australia, the Minister for Revenue and Financial Services and the Minister for Small Business.
Treasury is committed to the principles of workplace equity and diversity and selection for vacancies are made on merit. As such, the people at Treasury are intelligent hard-working individuals with a passion for policy development and a drive to make a positive contribution to raising the living standards of all Australians.
In terms of diversity, Treasury participates in a wide range of initiatives to support and advance their diversity agenda. To further the goal of increasing Indigenous representation, Treasury has released a five-year Indigenous Employment and Retention Strategy that supports a range of employment initiatives including participation in the Indigenous Australian Government Development Program, cadetships and summer internships. The Department’s Disability strategy aims to ensure the department continues to build its disability confidence and that recruitment processes are merit-based and job advertisements explicitly encourage people with disabilities to apply. Under the Progressing Women initiative, the Department has adopted strategies to develop a flexible work environment free of unconscious bias where all staff feel equally valued and capable of fulfilling their potential. In addition, the Treasury participates in a number of external partnerships including Diversity Council Australia, Australian Network on Disability, Reconciliation Australia and Pride in Diversity.
Treasury employs graduates from a broad range of disciplines, as long as they have at least a credit average. It is particularly interested in those with degrees in economics, law, commerce, finance, public policy, political science and mathematics. It looks for tomorrow’s capable and professional leaders to drive policy development and make a positive contribution to raising the living standards of all Australians. Candidates also need to have Australian citizenship, be able to pass a security check and be willing to move to Canberra.
The recruitment process starts with an online application. This has to include your resume, academic transcripts and a statement of up to 750 words explaining why you want to work at Treasury and what skills you bring to the table. While it’s not an official part of the selection process, those who are shortlisted on the basis of their application have the opportunity to meet with senior Treasury officers to find out more about what a career at Treasury involves. The next stage is a face-to-face interview. These are conducted in June and July in all major capital cities. For those unavailable to attend in person, a telephone or video interview can be arranged. If your interview goes well and there are no issues with your referee checks you can expect a letter of offer to arrive from July onwards.
Treasury’s Graduate Program includes on-the-job learning, interactive policy analysis and technical skill development from subject matter experts. While undertaking the program, you may find yourself: preparing advice for the Treasurer; developing policy; drafting Ministerial correspondence or helping put together the Federal Budget.
Graduates commence at the APS3.2 level, which has $64,524 base salary per annum. Graduates have the opportunity to progress to the APS4 and APS5 level dependent on performance. Treasury staff also benefit from generous leave entitlements, flexible working arrangements, study assistance, access to health and wellbeing programs and onsite childcare.
Graduates are paired with a buddy and have access to mentors who support their career development. After completing the graduate program, you’ll continue to have the opportunity to undertake the ongoing training and development needed to progress in your career. There is a range of in-house courses focusing on areas such as management, writing, presentation, policy and communication. The department also supports those undertaking further external study.
Treasury aims to teach graduates to broaden their thinking, meticulously analyse, openly question, creatively conceptualise and deliver policy advice. Possibly because of that training, many of those who’ve completed Treasury’s Graduate Program have gone on to illustrious careers in both the public and private sector.
The vibe of the place
Treasury staff work in the engine room of the national economy. They are offered a stimulating, varied and challenging environment with the chance to contribute substantially to Australian Government policy. If that sounds like an exciting prospect to you, you should feel right at home working there.
"Treasury graduates work on policy issues that matter — we provide advice and analysis that influences almost every sector of the economy, affecting all Australians.
As a Treasury graduate, you will make a difference.
We are looking for capable and professional graduates to contribute to policy development in crucial areas such as financial services, fiscal policy, foreign investment, tax policy and structural reform to support growth in living standards.
Treasury offers a challenging and rewarding career for graduates. You will develop a diverse range of approaches to policy-making and experience Australia’s fast-paced policy and political environment.
As part of the program, you will have two 1-year rotations. Ahead of your final placement, you will have the opportunity to experience different areas of the department and contribute to the breadth of work that Treasury leads.
Our commitment is to prepare you for a successful career. You will have access to a comprehensive graduate development program that includes an orientation week, regular formal training sessions, seminars, small group coaching and activities.
Treasury’s purpose is to support and implement informed decisions on policies for the good of the Australian people, consistent with achieving strong, sustainable economic growth and fiscal settings.
We achieve this by providing advice, analysis and legislation to the Government that aims to support the effective management of the Australian economy by:
Treasury has four broad objectives:
Our graduate program offers recent university graduates the opportunity to join Australia’s leading economic policy adviser.
Our two-year graduate development program offers targeted training and development, along with two work rotations, to develop your skills, knowledge and confidence as a capable employee of the Australian Public Service.
We embrace an inclusive and flexible culture and there are plenty of opportunities to get involved with our many social networks. There are also events scheduled throughout the program that will allow you to broaden your social network and interact with graduates from across the Australian Public Service.
As a Treasury graduate you will have access to the following benefits:
To apply for the Treasury graduate program you must meet the following eligibility criteria:
If your only qualifying degree is from an overseas university, you will need to provide us with a statement verifying the recognition of your qualifications from an Australian state or territory government overseas qualifications unit. We will not consider your application without this supporting documentation.
If you are applying for a role in the Indigenous affirmative measures pathway, you will need to provide confirmation of heritage prior to being offered a role.
If you are offered a role, you will need to obtain a valid Australian Government security clearance prior to your commencement.
Our recruitment process involves five steps:
Step 1: Application
Step 2: Shortlisting
Step 3: Interview
Step 4: Selection and referee checks
Step 5: Outcomes advised
Interviews take place in all major Australian cities around June each year. Reasonable adjustments are made for all interviews on request."
Graduate at the Department of the Treasury at Department of the Treasury