Communities and Justice

Students and graduates

Career opportunities for recent graduates, interns or work placements.


As Australia’s largest child protection agency, we’re constantly on the lookout for bright and resilient Caseworker candidates. If you have just finished your degree in social work, social science, or welfare, or still studying, we have some exciting opportunities to kickstart your career.

All DCJ positions are advertised on jobs.dcj.nsw.gov.au. You can use the ‘Search all jobs’ option to look for positions you are interested in, for example, 'Caseworker', and under 'Agency' select 'Communities and Justice'. This will return a list of our latest job vacancies for you to review.

Student placements for university students

If you’re required to undertake a compulsory student placement as part of your degree in social work, social science or welfare, join our student placement program. Many students who complete their placement with us then go on to work here later.

Placements offer you a unique opportunity to:

  • Apply your theory to practice in real life situations under the supervision of industry-leading staff.

  • Grow confidence in yourself and your abilities.

  • Explore and expand your knowledge and skills.

  • Develop an understanding of the work we do.

If you are a tertiary student interested in a child protection casework, project or policy placement, your request must be made through the student placement officer at your university or college.

Hear what our graduate has to say

"I’d heard a lot about the department and wanted to see what it was all about for myself. I loved it. I love all aspects of being a caseworker and am proud to say my job is to protect children".

- Kristie, DCJ

TAFE or schoolwork experience

If you’re looking for work experience (paid or unpaid) or want to undertake voluntary work, you should explore opportunities in the non-government sector or visit The Centre for Volunteering.  

We work collaboratively with many non-government agencies to help children and families and to improve the wellbeing of our community. Many of these agencies offer volunteer programs.

All related work experience will be well regarded if you later apply for a position with us.

If you think you have what it takes to have one of the most important jobs in the community, then we want to hear from you.


Interns, students and graduates

Various Divisions within the Department of Justice offers opportunities for interns, students, and graduates. Select a link below to explore the opportunity:

NSW Government Graduate Program

The NSW Government Graduate Program goes for 18 months, starting in February each year. During that time, you’ll complete placements in different roles across NSW Government.

The graduate program offers a primary stream, which is open to all disciplines, and four degree-specific streams; a legal stream, digital stream, social work stream, and an engineering stream. DCJ currently offers the primary, legal and social work streams.

You can apply for up to two streams, including the primary stream plus one degree specific stream. Each stream offers on-the-job experience and a tailored learning and development component.

Last updated:

11 Apr 2024