Employment

About ACARA

The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) is a statutory authority established by the Australian Parliament. Its functions include: developing a national K-12 curriculum, including content of the curriculum and achievement standards, developing and administering national assessments, and collecting, managing and analysing student achievement and other data and reporting on school and system performance.

ACARA will also facilitate information sharing arrangements between Australian and State and Territory government bodies in relation to the collection, management and analysis of school data, provide school curriculum resource services, educational research services and other related services and provide information, resources, support and guidance to the teaching profession.
 

Current vacancies in our Curriculum business unit:

Senior Policy Officer, Curriculum Policy & Research

The primary purpose of this position is to provide authoritative policy and quality assurance advice in relation to Australian Curriculum development projects. The position is accountable to the General Manager, Curriculum as well as Curriculum managers in the development and application of policy to ensure all aspects of ACARA’s curriculum development program meet agreed standards. The position requires engagement with stakeholder groups that include multi-jurisdictional education authorities and community groups. The position holder will coordinate and prioritise their work to align to the Curriculum business unit’s workplan, and in doing so, identify and liaise with key stakeholders, manage consultation and review processes, and proactively communicate and manage expectations.

The Senior Policy Officer needs to work effectively with a range of ACARA colleagues within and beyond the Curriculum business unit to ensure work outcomes are delivered on time, within budget and to the required quality standard.

To be successful in this role you will need (Key Selection Criteria):

• A strong understanding and application of education and policy reform initiatives within the national education landscape
• An ability to apply extensive policy and / or project management experience, be able to negotiate favourable outcomes in an environment of competing internal and external stakeholder interests
• High level interpersonal, written and oral communication skills
• Strong organisational capability and project management skills including the ability to deal with wide-ranging and complex issues within tight timeframes and to quality assurance standards
• Strong networking, liaison and representation skills and the ability to interact effectively with key stakeholders including an understanding of those circumstances in which stakeholders might represent competing views and be able to maintain healthy and constructive relationships through consultation and negotiation
• A proven record of success in planning, consultation, communication and implementation of curriculum projects
• High level conceptual and analytical skills, including the ability to undertake research, prepare reports and provide strategic advice to senior management
• High level skill in the use of information and communication technologies.

This role will close at 11.30pm Sunday 5^th February 2012.

This position is located in the Sydney CBD and relocation is at candidates own expense.

Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians are encouraged to apply.

  Position description

Current vacancies in our Curriculum business unit:

Manager, Curriculum

The primary purpose of this position is to lead and manage F-12 curriculum specific development projects, including the development and implementation of effective stakeholder management practices in relation to curriculum activities. This position also plays a key role in ensuring individual curriculum projects are appropriately linked and contribute to the achievement of curriculum goals and objectives.

The Manager, Curriculum is responsible for overseeing all aspects of project planning, including timelines, resource allocation, risk assessment and quality assurance processes for the development of curriculum and related materials and providing direction for the development of strategies, team goals and individual work plans. The Manager, Curriculum through strong networking and negotiation skills will liaise with key internal staff and external stakeholders across school sectors to engage and maintain constructive relationships.

To be successful in this role you will need (Key Selection Criteria):

• High level knowledge of F-12 curriculum design, including its application to learning areas, general capabilities and cross curriculum dimensions
• Extensive curriculum development experience and expertise, including an ability to develop, monitor and evaluate curriculum and support implementation at a systemic level
• Significant knowledge of the current national education landscape, including knowledge of the functions and responsibilities of ACARA, its relationship to related agencies, and key stakeholders
• Strong organisational and project management capability, including the ability to lead and develop the capabilities of individuals
• Highly developed written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to negotiate with key stakeholders
• High level conceptual and analytical skills, including the ability to undertake research, prepare reports and provide strategic advice to senior management.

This role will close at 11.30pm Sunday 5^th February 2012.

This position may be located in the Sydney CBD office, or other locations by negotiation.

Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians are encouraged to apply.

  Position description

Current vacancies in our Corporate Services business unit:

HR Administrator

The primary purpose of this position is to provide administrative support to the ACARA human resources function to ensure high quality and timely HR service delivery. In particular, the HR Administrator will focus on HR operational activities to support a range of existing and planned HR programs.

This role is offered as a part time (0.8) 3 month contract with the possibility of extension.

To be successful in this role you will need (Key Selection Criteria):

• Knowledge of the human resources function including a broad awareness of the Fair Work Act
• Well-developed knowledge of and experience in HR program / project management processes, including a capacity to manage priorities and meet deadlines
• Sound experience in HR records management, including a well-developed understanding of issues of confidentiality specific to the handling of HR information
• Strong analytical skills and willingness to challenge assumptions and contribute ideas/ suggestions on how to improve processes or methods
• Excellent oral and written communication (including drafting correspondence to relevant stakeholders) and interpersonal skills including the ability to deal professionally and courteously with a diverse group of internal and external clients
• Demonstrated knowledge and skills in business and office administration, including intermediate skills in the Microsoft Suite, capacity to learn and administer proprietary systems, and undertake internet-based research
• An understanding of the customer service requirements of the position and a demonstrated record of strong commitment and achievement in meeting customer needs, including recognising potential conflicts and seeking to resolve issues efficiently and courteously.

This role will close at 11.30pm Sunday 12^th February 2012.

This position is located in Sydney.

Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians are encouraged to apply.

  Position description

Current vacancy in our Corporate Services Unit:

Manager, Information Communication Technology (ICT) Development

The primary purpose of this position is to develop software and systems and provide operational advice to the Senior Manager, Technology and Planning, in the development and ongoing management of ACARA’s and third party infrastructure, websites and communications technologies required to deliver on ACARA’s objectives. The position is a hands-on management role and will lead a team of developers and analysts to produce and maintain in-house applications, as well as evaluating the effectiveness of relevant applications and recommending ICT improvements.

This position will be responsible for delivery of various projects through the use of strong communications and negotiation skills with stakeholders, drawing on well-developed project management experience. The position is required to identify team strengths and act to develop team members’ knowledge across various technologies as a means of developing others’ careers and managing inherent risks.

It is expected the role will be spread approximately 50% of the time on management and technical leadership and 50% on development and implementation of software/systems.

To be successful in this role you will need (Key Selection Criteria):

• Experience in managing a development team within an Agile environment, setting goals and monitoring progress to improve team effectiveness
• Demonstrated experience in delivering IT business solutions within agreed time, cost and quality expectations and identifying instances where process controls need to be reviewed or improved and alternatives identified
• Highly developed applications analysis, development, improvement and implementation skills and structured application lifecycle development methodologies in one or more of the following data modelling, ETL, agile application development, prototyping, web services and object orientated analysis, design and programming principles
• Demonstrated ability to develop and support n-tier applications using multiple Microsoft tools and platforms including technologies such as C#, MVC3, SQL Server and ASP.Net
• Capacity to work in a dynamic environment where there is an ongoing need to balance change management demands with compliance, best practice and quality assurance requirements
• Relevant tertiary qualifications or industry certifications would be highly regarded.

This role will close at 11.30pm Sunday 19^th February 2012.

This position is located in Sydney.

Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians are encouraged to apply.

  Position description

Current vacancy in our Corporate Services Unit:

IT Support Officer

The primary purpose of this position is to support ACARA’s core office information and communications systems across a geographically distributed workforce and a large stakeholder base. This role is critical in ensuring systems run and are utilised effectively to facilitate both internal and external communication, and will provide technical support to end users as required.

Regular ongoing support will be provided to systems including: TRIM, Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft Office and Dynamics CRM.

Skills and Experience and Knowledge (Key Selection Criteria)

• Demonstrated experience in contributing to the delivery of IT business solutions within agreed time, cost and quality expectations and identifying instances where process controls need to be reviewed or improved and alternatives identified
• Sound experience supporting Microsoft SharePoint, Dynamics CRM, Lync and Office in a corporate or government environment
• Understanding of data security, privacy and industry best-practice in access control
• Ability to prioritise conflicting requirements from multiple business stakeholders
• Demonstrated ability to take responsibility to ensure compliance with policy, guidelines and better practice frameworks for ICT system architecture
• Understanding of development project management and system development lifecycle management for a business unit
• Knowledge of HP TRIM or other EDRMS would be advantageous
• Relevant tertiary qualifications or industry certifications would be highly regarded.

This role will close at 11.30pm Sunday 19^th February 2012.

This position is located in Sydney.

Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians are encouraged to apply.

  Position description

How to Apply:

Please ensure you have submitted your application via email to employment@acara.edu.au by the closing time and date and include the following:

• A cover letter stating the role you wish to apply for addressing your suitability for the role
• Your application must address in detail each of the KEY SELECTION CRITERIA (this is located in the Position Description)
• Your current CV
• Any other information that you consider supports your application for this position.

Note:
If you apply for a role with ACARA you are required to lodge an application that addresses key selection criteria. ACARA short-lists applicants based on their ability to satisfy the selection panel that they have the necessary capabilities required to perform in the role.

If you do not address the ‘key selection criteria’ your application may not be considered.

No calls from agencies please

For more information please email employment@acara.edu.au