What's your job about?
My current graduate rotation is placed within the Health and Economic Division, within the Data and Analytics Branch. My team uses skills in data analysis and presentation to produce health insights on vulnerable and at-risk population groups, such as People with Disability and Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities. In collaboration with the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) we obtain large datasets, join them, and provide useful insights to produce COVID-19 statistics, some of which get released publicly on the Department of Health and Aged Care website.
The data that my team produces feeds into strategic and operational decisions within the Department, such as changing or creating new policies, or to help with the allocation of funding to specific cohorts. The statistics that we produce are highly confidential and contains sensitive information, a large part of our job is to ensure the statistics we use do not pose a security risk to any individuals or to an organisation.
My day-to-day work has lots of variation, most of my work involves analysing statistics using Microsoft Excel or on the ABS virtual machine DataLab. However, I also spend lots of my time in meetings talking to stakeholders, completing project management tasks, dealing with contracts, and writing briefs. Working with data can often present some challenging scenarios, this provides a great opportunity to grow problem-solving skills which I thoroughly enjoy.
What's your background?
I grew up in Perth, which is where I completed all my schooling and university studies. At University, I completed a bachelor’s degree in Exercise and Sport Science at the University of Notre Dame in Fremantle.
After the completion of my degree, I had initially planned to study a Master’s of Education to become a teacher. However, I changed mind and decided I did not want to pursue more university study at that time. For the 2-3 years after I completed my bachelor’s degree, I spent most of my time travelling around the globe (mainly just around Europe). When I wasn’t travelling, I was working as the store manager for an automotive retail store.
In late 2022, I realised that I hadn’t found what career I was really interested in and wanted to utilise my degree more as it didn’t feel like I was using it to the fullest potential. I did some online research and came across the graduate program within the Department and it sounded like a great opportunity for me. The fact that I could use my degree and use the administrative skills I had learnt from my previous management position, all whilst helping the Australian public sounded like the perfect opportunity.
And the rest is history! I have been with the department since September 2023, and have loved every moment of it. Moving away from all my friends and family was a big lifestyle change, but one that I am very grateful that I have done.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Yes, anyone with the right attitude would be able to succeed in my job! My team is made up of people that have a lot of different skillsets, and when put together, we complement each other well. Most areas across the Department have a variety of different skillsets to be filled. Despite my team being data and statistics orientated, I have been able to contribute in many ways despite only previously having a basic level of data knowledge. The learning environment is extremely supportive. If you are eager to learn, enjoy problem solving, have good communication skills, and enjoy working within a team then you will be fantastically suited for the grad program!
What's the coolest thing about your job?
The coolest aspect of my job is knowing that the work I do assists millions of Australians every day. It is a great motivator to have the opportunity to create and analyse statistics that positively contribute to society. My team has an affect on the decisions that the Government make about funding allocations and policy changes. These decisions directly influence those people at risk, ensuring they get the vaccinations and treatment that they require, resulting in lives being saved.
What are the limitations of your job?
One of the limitations of my job is how big the Department of Health is. It can be difficult to connect and meet new people that work on completely different things than you do. There isn’t often an opportunity to socialise and connect with these people across the Department if their field of work is separate to yours. This at times, has led me being confused as to what specific areas of the Department do and are responsible for.
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