Graduate Advantage Program

GAP is delivered in an intense one week format at the end of your summer break.

The program will take place at the industry partner's offices primarily located around the Sydney CBD and UNSW. Final times and locations of the GAP sessions will only be shared with successful students selected for GAP. To be eligible for the program, students must be available for the entire week from 9am – 5pm.

GAP workshops are designed and delivered by industry experts sharing their wealth of knowledge and held on their premises to give you a glimpse into the workplace normally not accessible for most students.

From recent graduates to Partners, GAP gives you access to network with all levels of the business.

GAP is a career and professional development opportunity not to be missed. Fully resourced by the UNSW Co-op Program and our industry partners, GAP is a free program for students.

Skills upgrade

Employers are looking for graduates that have the edge; good technical skills with the business aptitude to match. Our industry partners are interested in your professional development and aim to improve skills in communication, leadership, problem-solving, initiative, presentation, enterprise, organisation, and time and self-management. This program will help you get a step ahead of the competition.

Recognition

Upon successful completion, students will be awarded a certificate recognising the achievement. This is a great addition to a CV and will be highly regarded by industry partners. GAP will also be recorded on your supplementary transcripts as an extracurricular activity.

Networking

Learn the importance and power of networking. Networking does not only play an important part in your job search, but will follow you throughout your entire career. There will be plenty of opportunities for networking with peers and industry representatives from all levels – first year graduates, hiring managers through to Partners. By the end of the week, networking is truly a skill you will have improved on through plenty of practice.

Internships

All of GAP’s industry partners are offering internships over the summer break. GAP students are strongly encouraged to apply for these internships and can get relevant information on the recruitment process and requirements directly from the recruiters on the last day of the GAP program.

Nelson Cheng, 2018

Interactive, intense, fun, and throws you in the deep end. The program really takes you out of your comfort zone and pushes you to take initiative.

Charith Seneviratne, 2018

An insightful program for any university student (regardless of their prior professional work experience) which provides a deeper understanding of the service lines offered by the large accounting firms and the banks. GAP also offers a great opportunity to refine your networking skills with undergraduate colleagues, internal recruiters, graduates and Directors/Partners. Overall, waking up early during the summer holidays is a small price to pay for the insights you will gain from GAP!

Jaden Elliston, 2018

100% recommend! Prepared me well for the internship year and learnt way more than I could have imagined! The highlight of my academic career so far!

Aashraya Arora, 2017

GAP is a complete, comprehensive and insightful program that dare I say basically changed my life. It gave me so much first-hand insight into the industry that I thought I knew. I clearly did not know so much. It taught me about what my future could be but also about who I am as a person. I have learnt so much about the professional environment and I know it will take some time to improve but at least now I know what I did not know either. I was often put out of my comfort zone but it has helped me grow. It is amazing to think that all of this happened within a space of a week.

Sharon Lo, 2017

It is an excellent program that will kick start your career and help you decide whether a job in business is right for you. You will learn skills that you can use right through your professional life and gain confidence in talking to and networking with professionals. I would highly recommend it to you even if you don't have a commerce background as surprisingly there were roles for me an engineering and science student.

Elif Bahar, 2017

Definitely just apply & see where it takes you, even if you never thought of working for a Big 4 firm/major bank, etc. Such an amazing opportunity to gain invaluable insight into the recruitment process & how a large organisation is run. You will pick up so many great tips/tricks along the way & meet some awesome new people. You will get a chance to see how you could potentially fit in in these firms, even if you're not from a traditional business background.

Henry Liang, 2017

I found GAP to be simply brilliant. In the short time of a single week, I got to visit my top preferences for graduate employers, attend some of the most in-depth workshops and network with some of the most amazing people I have ever met. GAP makes an exciting and action packed week and is the perfect practice ground for you to develop and hone your soft skills in communication, teamwork and problem-solving.

Chris Lo, 2017

Do it. Don't just halfheartedly respond to the questions because with that attitude you won't get much out of the program anyways. Put in the effort and you learn so much and feel the satisfaction of using some of what you have learnt in the business context. I did not know that the GAP program was going to be that much fun. I thought it was going to be formal and uptight where you come in, learn and develop skills and then leave. But I found myself talking and laughing with other students I have never met before within the second or third day.

Places are limited to 60 students.

Our Industry Partners employ a range of students from a variety of disciplines and have expressed an interest in seeing a diverse student pool, so if you are not a Business student, but are interested in professional development and exploring a career in Business, then please don't hesitate and apply.

ACCESS students are also strongly encouraged to apply.

To be eligible you must be:

• Entering your penultimate year (second last year) of study in 2019.
• An undergraduate student.
• Undertaking a degree offered by either the UNSW Business School or the Faculties of Engineering, Science, Law or Arts and Social Sciences.
• A credit average or above student.
• Able to demonstrate a strong interest in securing an internship role with one or more of the GAP Industry Partner organisations.
• Able to demonstrate a strong interest to pursue a career in business.
• An Australian citizen or Australian Permanent Resident.
• Available to attend all scheduled dates and times (9am-5pm, 4-8th February 2019).
  
  

How students are selected

Students who meet the eligibility criteria are then selected based on the quality of answers in the application form. There are no interviews and all GAP participants are selected from their written application.

Who is not eligible

Even if you meet the basic eligibility requirements, students currently on a cadetship, Co-op Scholarship or who have already secured a summer vacation placement/internship with the GAP organisations for next summer are not eligible for this program. If you receive a GAP offer as well as a summer placement offer you must inform the GAP coordinator ASAP and decline your place in the program.

1. The first step is to submit this pre-qualifier survey to ensure you are eligible for the program.
2. If you are deemed eligible for the program, you will be given a link to proceed to the GAP application.
3. It's strongly recommended you preview the Application Questions (PDF version for preview only).
4. Draft, review and finalise your responses to the questions in Word first.
   
   

Additional criteria

In addition to your online application you will also need to add the following documents:

• Current resume (minimum one page, maximum two pages).
• Copy of your academic transcript (no need to order an official copy, just send a PDF of your transcript from myUNSW).

Application closing date

Applications close Monday, 26 November 2018 at 9:00am. Students will be informed of their application outcome by 17 December 2018.