Stepping Into Program

The Stepping Into Program is a national initiative by the Australian Network on Disability which offers practical paid work experience for university students with disability who may face significant barriers in gaining employment.

The Stepping Into Program is a national initiative by the Australian Network on Disability which offers practical paid work experience for university students with disability who may face significant barriers in gaining employment.

Obstacles faced are many and varied such as academic transcripts that don't reflect the students' real potential, or having limited opportunity to participate in part time work while studying.

The program brings together participating employers with skilled and talented university students with disability seeking jobs and creates a talent pipeline that actively builds diversity and inclusion.

The participating employers are pioneers within their field and are taking a leadership role in providing opportunities and internships to talented students with disability.

Since Stepping Into started in 2005, more than 1200 students have gained internships with over 110 organisations across Australia

About the program

• Placements are for a minimum of 152 hours (4-5 weeks) as an APS Level 2 employee.
• Placements can be undertaken on a full-time or part-time equivalent.
• The Australian Network for Disability will seek expressions of interest in February 2023 for their Winter program. Interviews will be held in June 2023 for a July 2023 commencement.
• The Australian Network on Disability assesses the suitability of candidates by discussing your area of study, work history and career goals. It shortlists candidates, matches to available positions and advises any required adjustments.
• Australian Network on Disability will discuss disability management with candidates and will advise the placement area of any required adjustments. You are not required to share disability-specifics.
• Any information about an applicant's disability will be removed by the Australian Network on Disability before providing the application to the Entry Level Programs team.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the Stepping Into Program, you must:

• be a university student in your final or penultimate year
• be studying any discipline
• identify as having disability, a mental health condition or chronic illness
• be able to commit to the entire program
• be an Australian citizen.

Application requirements

You will need to complete:

• an application including your CV, academic transcript and any relevant disability information (such as your Disability Access Plan)
• an interview with the Australian Network on Disability who will assess suitability of candidates by discussing area of study, work history and career goals

Key dates

*subject to change

If you have any questions, you can email our Entry Level Programs Team.

Find out more

• Entry level programs quiz (395.33 KB)