frequently asked questions

Aged care and disability services are an important and growing part of the community sector. Many of our largest and most established community organisations run major disability and aged care operations offering exciting career opportunities.

However, there are many other sub-sectors in the community sector which are also thriving. Find a career to match your values and discover the range of career options available in the community sector.

There are many benefits of working in the ACT community sector, such as excellent remuneration, portable long service leave and salary sacrifice.

The sector will also provide unmatched flexibility, job satisfaction, and incredible opportunities to progress your career.

Existing career opportunities exist for school and college leavers as well as graduates from vocational institutions and universities.

For more information see the benefits section.

The community sector is a key partner of government and industry in delivering improved outcomes for vulnerable people and our community.

Most organisations offer contract terms similar to or better than the public and corporate sector. Many mid-size and larger community sector organisations have their own enterprise agreements negotiated with staff to offer generous terms and conditions.

If you are coming from the public or private sector, you will have skills needed in the community sector. Are you good at team work, a good communicator and have strong resilience? Do you have well developed emotional intelligence and are empathetic? Are you a self-starter who likes to help people and communities? Are you good with words or numbers? The community sector needs people with skills for roles including project management, policy writing, advocacy, operations and contract managers, individual support worker and many more.

Check out the changing career section to find out about how your skills and experience are transferrable to the community sector.

If you are coming from the public or private sector, you may have already been working in a similar role to those available in the community sector. Community sector roles are diverse and include project management, policy writing, advocacy, operations and contract managers, individual support worker and many more.

To find out more, see the jobs that matter page and the changing career page.

The community sector is looking for people who are passionate about making a difference! You will have the benefit of knowing that you are making a difference every day and be working in a role that aligns with your values.

For more information see the benefits section.

Some roles in the community sector need qualifications. Some you can learn on-the-job. One of the most direct ways into the community sector is through Vocational Education and Training (VET). VET delivers targeted knowledge and practical skills directly linked to particular roles including early childhood education, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander services, alcohol and other drug services, community development and aged care.

VET training is delivered by institutions including schools and colleges, Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) and Registered Training Operators which include ACT community sector organisations.

For more information please see starting your career.

Whether you are still studying social sciences, law, engineering, allied health, nursing, social work, business or media and communication, there are many part-time, casual or temporary jobs in the community sector for you. These roles offer alternatives to hospitality or retail jobs and let you earn money and gain relevant experience in the community sector.

After finishing study, many graduates can find roles in their sector area of focus such as communication or accounting or social work or gender studies. Graduates with generalist degrees also bring critical thinking, teamwork and passion for making a difference. The sector needs more people like you!

For more information please see starting your career and university students and graduates

The community sector has many interesting and varied roles. The jobs cover almost every type you could imagine such as advocate, individual support worker, operations manager, policy officer, human resources or communication officer to CEO – and everything in between!

For more information see the jobs that matter and how to create a good application page.

Many community sector organisations encourage staff to continue developing their skills through ongoing formal training or short courses. There are many on-the-job learning opportunities and networks to support both new starters to the community sector and experienced workers alike.

For more information see the jobs that matter page.

A role in the community sector allows you to enjoy doing a job you love with like-minded people and have flexibility to have a work-life balance.

For more information, see the jobs that matter page.

We need more people to join the community sector – and more parents, carers and careers advisers to recommend students join us!

You can encourage students to:

• Talk to people already working in the sector such as one of our careers ambassadors.
• Start volunteering or looking for smaller, part-time roles.
• Consider further study a in a particular area of interest.

For more information, see the benefits page.

Careers Ambassadors are colleagues in the ACT Community Sector love their work and they want to share their experience with you. Our Career Ambassadors are at different stages of their careers and come from a variety of sectors and backgrounds and can be booked to attend an event or a one-on-one discussion.

For more information, see the Meet our careers ambassadors page

You will never stop growing and improving when working in the community sector. You can expand your skills through many training opportunities on-the-job or through paid study leave. We also train and develop managers from within the sector to become our future leaders. The flexibility offered by the community sector provides ample opportunity to study and develop your skills.

For more information see the vocational education and traineeships page and the university students page.

A role in the community sector will allow your child to enjoy doing a job they love while making a difference to the community. Most importantly, your child will continue to learn new skills, be paid to make a difference and work with like‑minded people.

For more information see the jobs that matter page.

Many community sector organisations encourage staff to continue developing their skills through ongoing formal training or short courses. Your child will be offered on-the-job learning opportunities and the ability to join networks to support both new starters to the community sector and experienced workers alike.

For more information see the vocational education and traineeships page and the university students page.

There are times when life and jobs can get stressful and impact on our mental health. The community sector is no different. But many community sector organisations have an Employee Assistance Program which allows its workers to get support for when times get tough. There are also networks which give community sector workers the opportunity to come together and share experiences to learn from one another and grow together.

It’s true that the public sector provides many opportunities for young people. But in Canberra, the community sector also offers a rewarding career for young people. The community sector has many roles that can suit workers who are beginning their career. Some community sector CEOs started as frontline workers (something not often said in other sectors) and other workers have joined after realising the public sector did not provide the job satisfaction or alignment with values they were after. The sector allows young people to build skills in a particular area and forge a meaningful career making a difference in the Canberra community.

Check out the stories of our career ambassadors to learn more about their career journey.