‘Best Jobs in the World’ Finalists Arrive in Australia

After a tough contest involving more than 600,000 applications worldwide, the 18 finalists in the running for Tourism Australia's ‘Best Jobs in the World’ have finally arrived in Australia to complete their applications.

The contestants will enjoy some of Sydney’s most popular sights and attractions before embarking on a series of challenges across Australia to decide who takes up the six coveted jobs.

After a ‘meet and greet’ at Sydney Airport this morning (13 June), the candidates will head to the Sydney Opera House to relax and enjoy their first views of the harbour and bridge.

On Friday morning (14 June), they will visit Taronga Zoo and later that day take part in a training session with the current Australian Football League (AFL) premiers, the Sydney Swans, organised by 'Best Jobs in the World' partner and Swans jersey sponsor, Citibank.

The following day they will board their Virgin Australia flights to one of six states and territories in the final phase of their quest to win one of the six jobs.

Tourism Australia Managing Director Andrew McEvoy said the challenges had been devised by each of the participating states and territories and involved exercises carefully tailored for each role.

“This is a really exciting part of the competition, and each of the states and territories has done a fantastic job of incorporating some of their best tourism experiences into these challenges which will ultimately determine the six candidates who get these dream jobs,” he said.

The finalists will undergo group and individual tasks to assess their aptitude for the job as well as their social media, presentation and communication skills. The list of challenges includes:

NSW’s Chief Funster: presenting a MTV travel report based on a day of adventure activities in regional NSW and going behind the scenes as a VIP guest at some of Sydney’s leading hotspots.

Melbourne’s Lifestyle Photographer: exploring inner city Melbourne, and capturing the journey in words and photos for a news article entitled ‘What makes Melbourne such a great city?’.

Northern Territory’s Outback Adventure: undertaking a ‘road trip challenge’ through the Red Centre which will include swimming in a waterhole, navigating to local attractions and identifying the Southern Cross constellation.

Queensland’s Park Ranger: participating in a ‘Green Challenge’ – a nature-based adventure through the eucalypt and rainforest canopy, involving treetop rope climbs, Tarzan swings and a giant flying fox.

Western Australia’s Taste Master: exploring one of Western Australia’s most renowned food and wine regions, finding out about the best local culinary experiences and promoting them using traditional and social media.

South Australia’s Wildlife Caretaker: acting as a wildlife tour guide at Seal Bay Conservation Park, tracking echidnas and promoting their experience through social media.

Each candidate will also face a panel interview prior to the six winners being officially announced in Sydney on 21 June 2013.

Tourism Australia’s ‘Best Jobs in the World’ competition is part of a major international marketing push to promote tourism opportunities provided by Australia’s Working Holiday Maker (WHM) program. In 2012, Working Holiday Makers contributed A$2.5 billion to the Australian economy, each spending on average in excess of A$13,000 during their stay.

The 18 ‘Best Jobs in the World’ finalists are:

Chief Funster (New South Wales):  Holly Easterbrook (England); Brittany Macleod (USA); Andrew Smith (USA)

Lifestyle Photographer (Melbourne, Victoria): Moska Najib (Afghanistan); Marie Michiels (Belgium); Roberto Seba (Brazil)

Outback Adventurer (Northern Territory): Allan Dixon (Ireland); Graham Freeman (USA); Aude Mayans (France)

Park Ranger (Queensland): Elisa Detrez (France); Chris Leung (Hong Kong); Jo Muskus (Scotland)

Wildlife Caretaker (South Australia): Hsin Hsuan Hsieh (Taiwan); Greg Snell (Canada); Nick Tilley (USA)

Taste Master (Western Australia): Rich Keam (England); Rebecca Morris (USA); Julian Button (Germany)