Student placement & work experience opportunities

Hobsons Bay Youth Services team includes a range of youth professionals including youth workers, youth mental health professionals, youth counsellors, administrators, program and project officers and support staff. We work at a local level with young people aged between 12 and 25 years of age.

We believe that having access to meaningful work experience and student placement opportunities is important to helping individuals on their career pathways.

Through our youth services program we provide:

Student Placements: Tertiary and further education work experiences

Work experience placements: High school aged work experiences.

Further information on each placement is detailed below.

Applications and assessment

Applications for student placement and work experience can be submitted at any time using our online form below.
FAQs with further information can be found below.

It is not a “first in best dressed” process. However, if we receive two similar applications, we will take into consideration who applied first. Priority consideration will be given to those who live, work or study within Hobsons Bay.

2025 Application assessment schedule

To commence placement in	Applications close	Interviews begin
Term 1 (2025)	Friday 15 November	Monday 2 December
Term 2 (2025)	Friday 7 March	Monday 24 March
Term 3 (2025)	Friday 6 June	Monday 23 June
Term 4 (2025)	Friday 8 August	Monday 25 August

FAQs

Assessments and timing

Our Hobsons Bay Youth Services (HBYS) Leadership team will review all applications on a term-based basis and make an assessment dependent on:

HBYS capacity to accommodate the placement

This may include considerations to our program and service delivery requirements, availability of an appropriate supervisor, other service commitments, timing/timeframe requested.

Alignment to our values and deliverables

How you respond to the questions on the form is your “application” and should tell us a bit about you as a person, and what you will bring to the placement, as well as how we can help you achieve your goals.

Our capacity for work experience/ student placements

We are capped per term due to resource constraints as well as our commitment to providing quality placements to those we take on.

An interview process

Shortlisted applicants will be required to come in for an interview to discuss the opportunity with us.

If you are not successful with your application, you may re-apply for another opportunity with HBYS. Please be aware that we may provide other work experience opportunities in other areas.

Work experience details

Work experience through Hobsons Bay Youth Services is:

a practical way to find out more about a career in youth/community services
provided to high-school-aged young people who live or study in Hobsons Bay
approximately 2 weeks/10 work days in duration (negotiable with you and your school)

in partnership with your school/educational institution
limited to a capped number of placements
recognised at the conclusion by a Certificate of Completion from Hobsons Bay Youth Services.

A standard work experience placement may comprise a schedule similar to the following:

Day 1 - Administration

Day 2 - Project

Day 3 - Administration

Day 4 - Program

Day 5 - Project

Day 6 - Project

Day 7 - Administration

Day 8 - Program

Day 9 - Project

Day 10 - Project / wrap up

Administration – information gathering, research and assisting with the logistics of a program or the service (day 1 also includes an induction to the organisation and Hobsons Bay Youth Services)

Program – opportunities to help out on some of our programs that may include recreation, leadership, school-based programs or participation

Project – each work experience will include a Work Experience Focus Project, designed based on strengths and interests to help benefit the work of the youth services team.

*Please note this is an example timetable only, and each placement will be dependent on what programs are on, staff availability and other variables

Student placement details

Student Placement at Hobsons Bay Youth Services is:

designed to provide a practical, meaningful hands-on experience in a youth/community services environment
provided to students in tertiary or further education enrolled in a related course (this may a course in youth or community services, or perhaps media, communications, mental health, health promotion – we value creativity and the diversity of young people’s lives and welcome your passion and expertise!)

based on individual requirements of your course/ area of study
in partnership with your school/educational institution
unpaid
limited to a capped number of placements
an opportunity to gain professional experience and be part of a team

by application
not a guaranteed “pass” – we require a strong work ethic and commitment to learning to ensure the opportunity is meaningful and adds value to both the individual and our service.

Late applications

We are unable to consider applications that come in after the closing date due to the high volume of applications received within the deadline already. If you have missed the closing date for next term, please submit for the following term.

Hearing back on the status of your application

Applications will be assessed by the date specified in the application assessment schedule above. If you have not heard back from us, please email youth@hobsonbay.vic.gov.au or call and ask to speak to youth services.