Policy Graduates Programme
At MSD, we bring together extraordinary people, like you, to be part of our whānau. We are a dynamic community of problem solvers who thrive on embracing differences and influencing initiatives through providing politically neutral advice that impacts the lives of people throughout Aotearoa New Zealand.
We provide you with the foundations for success, and the opportunity to fast-track to a permanent policy analyst role advising the Government of the day.
You’ll be joining a supportive, values driven and team-based workplace to launch your policy career
Over the course of our one-year grad programme you will work in two of our policy teams. Given MSD’s broad mandate, you could be providing policy advice to Ministers on addressing child poverty, improving housing outcomes, employment programmes or community development. Across all these work areas we are continually thinking about how we support the Crown in its relationship with Māori under Te Tiriti o Waitangi and how we can deliver better for Māori. The opportunities to learn are endless.
You will be part of a cohort of other talented graduates who all start together. This peer network gives you another layer of support, with opportunities for collaboration and comradery as you share early career experiences together.
Policy work is as diverse as the people who work in policy – the only requirement is a degree, any degree
We are looking for people who are critical thinkers, problem solvers, and willing to learn. Don’t be concerned about your GPA or type of degree, just as long as you graduated in the last 2-3 years, regardless of your age. We are more interested in people who are collaborative, responsible, curious, enthusiastic and share our values.
We want to hear from you if you can support our goals to be an uplifting environment for all Māori staff, understand the diverse perspectives of Māori and be stewards of exceptional social policy outcomes for Māori.
We celebrate an inclusive and diverse workforce, including through our staff networks for Pasifika, disabled people, Rainbow and Māori staff.
Rosie Anderson, Principal Advisor
Having studied Law and Politics, I joined MSD's Grad Programme in 2017 because it gave me the chance to create positive change for New Zealanders.
The programme was challenging, rewarding and gave me a really strong basis for the other roles I've had. The training, development and support enabled me to build policy skills quickly and learn about the type of policy I was most interested in. In the first year I provided advice on supporting young people into employment, measuring outcomes for disabled people and had opportunities to do cross-agency work and public engagement. Since then, I've primarily worked on population policy for disabled people, carers, children and young people and now older people.
Kam Salt, Policy Analyst
I studied a Bachelor of Science in Genetics and Zoology at Otago. Through studying science, I encountered a recurrent theme that whilst we are starting to understand a lot about the challenges we face, we often struggle to resolve them.
I applied to join the 2023 policy grad programme, seeing it as an opportunity to step outside the lab and learn the process on how decisions are informed and made, and bring some of the research I was studying into this space.
The programme supported me well at transitioning into a new industry, developing new skills, and learning about all the considerations beyond research that are fed into policy. Spoiler, it is less simple than I thought it was! At the same time, the programme helped me apply and grow the unique skillsets a background in biological sciences gave me in the policy space.
I started in the Older Peoples policy team, where I worked on pension eligibility settings. I then moved into the Housing policy team, where I have worked on policy related to Emergency Housing, Accommodation Supplement, and Social Housing.
Josie Coombes, Policy Analyst
I studied a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Criminology at Victoria University of Wellington. Whilst I loved my studies, I felt lost as to what kind of career I could move into upon the completion of my degree.
I applied for the 2023 policy graduate programme at MSD, having no idea what policy was, primarily because the programme invited students from a range of academic backgrounds to apply.
Through the programme I gained an abundance of skills that have set me up well to work across a number of work programmes. I started my time at MSD in the Welfare System team where I contributed towards key manifesto commitments, before moving into the Older Peoples Policy team for the second half of the programme. I have remained in the Older Peoples Policy team where I work across pension policy, residential care supports, and other key programmes that the team leads and supports.
Join Our Talent Community
Keep in Touch
If you are interested in hearing more, including receiving a link to the application once it is live, please email us at Policy_Graduates@msd.govt.nz.
Join Our Talent Community
Keep in Touch
If you are interested in hearing more, including receiving a link to the application once it is live, please email us at Policy_Graduates@msd.govt.nz.
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