Graduate Profiles

Sarah Boxhall

I graduated from the University of Newcastle with a Bachelor of Social Science (Recreation and Tourism) majoring in French. After graduation I spent several years working in international cultural exchange organisations and university administration in Australia and overseas. I completed a Master of International Social Development at the University of New South Wales and joined the Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development (AYAD) program in 2004 working in student services at the Vanuatu Institute of Technology.

After completing the AYAD program I was offered a position in the AusAID graduate program. With no prior experience in the public service, the graduate program represented an opportunity to gain an insight into development from the perspective of a bilateral donor.

My first rotation in the graduate program was in the Humanitarian and Emergencies Section working as part of the emergencies team. During this time I learned about Australia's emergency response system and participated in a week-long training program on emergency response and humanitarian relief work. I also worked closely with the Emergencies Manager to organise a bi-annual meeting of officials from the Australian, New Zealand and French Governments on disaster relief coordination in the Pacific.

My second rotation was in the Africa and Multilaterals Section where I worked on policy relating to Australia's engagement with international development organisations such as the United Nations and the OECD Development Assistance Committee. During my time in this section I also worked on Australia's position on the role of emerging donors in the Pacific such as China and Taiwan.

Since completion of the graduate program I have been working in the Fragile States Unit- a whole-of-government unit established to develop a range of tools for Australia's work with fragile states in the Asia-Pacific region. The Fragile States Unit is comprised of representatives from Defence, AFP, Treasury as well as AusAID and through working as part of this team I have developed an understanding of how various Australian Government agencies operate and work together in the delivery of Australia's aid program.

Despite not being a recent graduate I elected to join AusAID through the graduate program as it is an opportunity to work in several areas within the agencies to gain a general overview of the agency. The training and support offered to graduates is unique and prepares you well for a career in development.