STEM sidebyside FAQs

Frequently asked questions.

Q1. I am a career academic researcher, is this program for me?

A1. The program is tailored for individuals whose main aspiration is to secure a leadership role in either academia, industry, govenrment or not-for-profit STEM sector. 

Q2. I am an Australian citizen/permanent resident not currently residing in Victoria.  Am I eligible to apply?

A2. Yes.  If your application is successful you must attend all program events to be held in Melbourne.  Associated travel costs would have to be self-funded.

Q3. What does 'post primary degree' refer to?

A3. This refers to any postgraduate studies such as Masters or PhD studies, which should be counted in the calculation for FTE.

Q4. Do I need to provide a photograph?

A4. Yes.  Please ensure the image is in Jpeg format and a minimum size of 1MB.  Your image should be a professional headshot. This will be used for promotional purposes should your application be successful.

Q5. How do I calculate 10 years FTE?

A5. To be eligible for the program, you must have worked for a minimum of 10 years at 1.0 FTE in an academic, Government, industry and/or not-for-profit STEM sector(s).

Full-time equivalent (FTE) is a unit that indicates the workload of an employed person in a way that makes workloads comparable across various contexts. An FTE of 1.0 is equivalent to a full-time worker, while an FTE of 0.5 signals half of a full work load.

To calculate your FTE:

Take your employers standard working week hours and times this by the number of weeks in a year, i.e. 38 hours per week x 52 weeks per year = 1,976 employers standard full time hours per year;

Calculate your contracted hours per week, i.e. if you work for 2 days per week you would take your employers standard working week hours, divide this by 5 (days in the week) and times by the 2 days you work - (38/5) x2 =15.2 hours per week. Then 15.2 x 52 (weeks of the year) = 790.4 your total hours worked in the year; and

Finally, divide your total hours worked per year by the employers standard full time hours per year - 790.4/1,976 = FTE 0.4.