18 Finalists Enter Next Stage of Australia’s Best Jobs Competition

The 18 finalists for Tourism Australia’s ‘Best Jobs in the World’ – three for each of the six dream jobs – have been chosen and will travel Down Under next month to spend a week undergoing the final stage of the global competition.

The lucky candidates from twelve countries will face challenges set by the states and territories, including creating content for inspiring tourism videos, writing blogs of their Australian travel experiences and handling the pressure of an impromptu media conference.

Tourism Australia Managing Director Andrew McEvoy said the 18 hopeful contenders would now have to demonstrate, in person, their job credentials to their prospective employers within the state or territory where their dream job would be based.

“After six weeks, 620,000 applications by 330,000 individuals from 196 countries, 46,000 video entries and thousands of supporting references from some of the most famous celebrities in the world, we are down to the final 18. It’s show time. The candidates now face their very own Australian working holiday - a week of tests and challenges which will ultimately decide who ends up winning these six dream jobs,” Mr McEvoy said.

The finalists were each selected on the basis of their original 30 second video entry and their success in securing high profile endorsement and publicity to support their application.

The 18 candidates come from 12 different countries: United States (5), England (2), France (2), Afghanistan (1), Belgium (1), Brazil (1), Canada (1), Germany (1), Hong Kong (1), Ireland (1), Scotland (1) and Taiwan (1).

They will be flown to and around Australia by Virgin Australia, and spend a week undergoing a series of challenges relevant to their chosen job. The six winners will be 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.

The six ‘best jobs’ are: Wildlife Caretaker (South Australia), Chief Funster (New South Wales), Park Ranger (Queensland), Taste Master (Western Australia), Outback Adventurer (Northern Territory) and Lifestyle Photographer (Melbourne, Victoria).

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

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

Chief Funster (New South Wales)
• Holly Easterbrook, England
• Brittany Macleod, USA
• Andrew Smith, USA

Park Ranger (Queensland)
• Elisa Detrez, France
• Chris Leung, Hong Kong
• Jo Muskus, Scotland

Taste Master (Western Australia)
• Rich Keam, England
• Rebecca Morris, USA
• Julian Button, Germany

Outback Adventurer (Northern Territory)
• Allan Dixon, Ireland
• Graham Freeman, USA
• Aude Mayans, France

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

Fast facts: ‘Best Jobs in the World’
• 6 dream jobs
• 18 finalists from 12 countries
• 620,000 entries submitted by 330,000 people from 196 countries
• 46,000 videos

Ms. Carmen Tam, Manager, Hong Kong, Tourism Australia said, "It's very exciting to see an Hong Kong applicant among the 18 finalists. Chris Leung is a youngster with a highly engaging personality. He's determined, not afraid of hard work and has performed well academically. It would be great to see him fulfill his dream of getting the job of Park Ranger in Queensland and I'm sure that, like me, all Hong Kong people will be rooting for him. Go Chris!!"