Application requirements and process
What do I need to do to apply?
You need to apply via the relevant job advertisement for your profession on JobsWA - under 'Agency' select ‘WA Country Health Service’ and search for your profession using the ‘keyword search’.
You will need to submit the following documents and information:
- Information on your residency or visa status
- Contact details for two recent professional referees (preferably one current line manager/supervisor)
- A detailed curriculum vitae outlining your education, professional work experience and other key achievements, skills, attributes and/or experience
- A statement addressing the Suitability Criteria, as listed in the job advertisement
- Your availability to commence or continue employment at WACHS
- Your preferences for regions you are interested and able to work in
- Evidence of course completion and indicate if you meet the professional registration or membership requirements for your profession.
Final year allied health students are able to apply up to two months’ prior to completion of their degree. You should be completing your final placement and/or semester by this point. You will then need to provide evidence of completion of your tertiary qualification and membership/registration to wachsalliedhealthrecruitment@health.wa.gov.au once you have received them.
You will need to provide a copy of one of the following from your university: transcript, testamur statement or enrolment. Once graduated, you will then need to provide evidence of completion of your tertiary qualification and membership/registration once you have received them.
Do you contact my referees?
Yes, we contact at least two referees as part of the selection process, either via email or telephone.
Please ensure your referees are aware of your application at the time of submission. We will not contact you separately to advise that your referees are being contacted. If you need to update your referees after submitting your application, then contact us via wachsalliedhealthrecruitment@health.wa.gov.au
What are Suitability Criteria?
Suitability Criteria are factors that contribute to merit including skills, knowledge, abilities and behaviours required for an allied health position at WACHS. The suitability criteria are derived from the Job Description Form (JDF) and define what will be assessed to determine your suitability for the pool. Please read the job advertisement for the list of Suitability Criteria that you need to address in your written response (maximum three pages).
How much do I need to write in the Suitability Criteria?
Each of the Suitability Criteria for our pools requires a comprehensive answer demonstrating:
- Why you meet the criteria
- How you have met the criteria in practice or clinical placement
- The outcomes of what was achieved
- Use examples with accurate information
Aim to provide at least one example for each criterion demonstrating your skills, knowledge, and experience. Consider the specific needs and contexts of the rural and remote clinical settings at WACHS to ensure your examples are relevant.
As a guide, your response to each of these criteria may be two thirds of a page (assuming single spacing), with the total page limit being three pages.
Here are some frameworks that can be used when providing examples in the suitability criteria responses:
- Situation, Task, Action, Result
- Situation, Action, Outcome
- What, How, Outcome
- Context, Action, Result
Will there be interviews?
The selection process to be appointed to the allied health pools does not include interviews. However, once you are appointed to the pool, a manager may contact you and seek additional information to determine your suitability for a specific role.
How will I know if I am successful/in the pool and what happens then?
Once your application and referee reports have been assessed, you will receive an email letter from Health Support Services (HSS) advising you if you have been successful or not to the recruitment pool.
If you are successful, your application and details will be made available to designated allied health managers in WACHS. These managers will contact you when a suitable position arises to see if you are interested to take up the position. As mentioned previously, managers may contact you at this point to ask additional questions or seek further information to determine your suitability for the position.
Even once you have accepted a position, you can remain in the pool and be considered for an extension of your contract and/or other positions as they arise.
While you are in the pool, it is extremely important that you keep your availability and preferences up-to-date regularly so that you don’t miss out on any opportunities. You will be contacted via email approximately every 2 months to complete a survey to update this information – please ensure you complete the surveys when you receive them.
As a successful applicant to the pool, you will be notified via email about when the pool you are in is ending and provided advice on new pools and how to apply.
When the pool closes, you will need to re-apply to the following pool via the Jobs WA website to have access to opportunities again. You will need to provide an updated curriculum vitae and response to the Suitability Criteria each time. It is not possible to transfer your application from one recruitment pool to the next.
Why would I not be successful to the pool?
If you do not have appropriate working rights, or the necessary qualification and eligibility for registration or membership for that profession, you may not be considered for the pool or a professional allied health position. More information about qualification and registration requirements can be found here.
If you do not provide a written response addressing each suitability criterion, or if your application and/or referee reports do not provide sufficient evidence of your experience, skills, knowledge and personal attributes, we may be unable to determine your suitability for inclusion in the pool.
Decisions will be made in accordance with legislative requirements, including Equal Employment Opportunity and the Public Sector Employment Standard. All decisions are open to review.
How long does it take?
We aim to review and process your application and provide you with notification of whether you have been successful within four weeks of receiving it.
There may be delays; for example, if we do not receive a response from your referees or if staff are on leave.