1. Will I be notified of receipt and the outcome of my application?

Yes. Applicants receive an email confirming the ACC's receipt of their application within three business days from submission.

While every attempt will be made to notify applicants of the outcome of their application either via email or post, it is essentially the applicant’s responsibility to regularly check APSjobs for notices pertaining to the exercise they applied for.

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2. What is merit based selection?

Section 10(2) of the Public Service Act describes merit in relation to engagement and promotion in the APS. It states that for all engagement and promotion positions assessment must be:

• made of the relative suitability of the candidates for the duties, using a competitive selection process
• based on the relationship between the candidates' work-related qualities and the work-related qualities genuinely required for the duties
• focused on the relative capacity of the candidates to achieve outcomes related to the duties
• the primary consideration in making the decision.

Examples of work-related qualities that may be taken into account in making an assessment include:

• skills and abilities
• qualifications, training and competencies
• standard of work performance
• capacity to produce outcomes from effective performance at the level required
• relevant personal qualities
• demonstrated potential for further development
• ability to contribute to team performance.

Other selection decisions

For other selection decisions (such as assignment of duties at level or to a lower classified position, whether on an ongoing or temporary basis or temporary assignments to a higher classification) merit is defined at Clause 2.3(1)(b) of the Public Service Commissioner's Directions

'for any other employment decision in the Agency—the decision is made on the basis of an assessment of a person's work-related qualities and the work-related qualities required for efficient and effective organisational performance.'

There is no requirement to advertise or hold a competitive process in such cases.

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3. I've never responded to selection criteria before, help!

For all advertised vacancies it is necessary to submit a statement of claims against the selection criteria. The selection criteria assists the selection panel with making their shortlisting and final selection decisions and gives the applicant the opportunity to detail relevant professional and personal qualities that demonstrate suitability for the advertised position.

Your statement of claims should be prepared keeping in mind the particular expectations outlined in the selection criteria and duty statement. You should cite examples of situations you have faced and describe in detail your actual involvement. Your examples of past behaviour should reflect your knowledge, skills, experience and qualifications.

The key in preparing your statement of claims is to:

• demonstrate capability by providing evidence of how you meet the selection criteria
• provide specific examples
• where possible, include an indicator of success as a result.

An easy way to do this is to use the CAR approach where ever possible, that is:

It is preferred by the ACC that your statement of claims does not exceed one page in length for each selection criteria.

More information about answering selection criteria can be found at the Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) website.

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4. How long do selection exercises take?

Selection exercises vary in length. Some may take a month, with more complicated exercises taking many months to finalise.
You should contact the convenor of the exercise or the Recruitment team at recruitment@crimecommission.gov.au if you are curious as to the stage of the exercise you are involved in.

ACC recruitment exercises may take longer than other agencies due to the rigorous security assessment that must be undertaken on successful candidates.

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5. Does the ACC offer work experience opportunities?

Currently, the ACC does not offer work experience opportunities.

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6. Does the ACC have a temporary employment register?

Currently, the ACC does not have a temporary employment register.

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7. Can I send in my application to keep on file for a future vacancy?

No, the ACC is required to advertise all vacancies and applicants must submit an application specific to the position in order to be considered.

In accordance with the Privacy Act we are not required to keep any of your details on file. We encourage you to regularly check the ACC’s website for roles that may be of interest to you.

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8. I have been successful in winning a position with the ACC. What happens now?

Congratulations! Your manager will soon be in touch with you to discuss the finer points of the offer and begin negotiating a commencement date with you. You will then receive a security pack, letter of offer, personnel forms and contract (for non-ongoing positions) and you should complete and return this documentation as soon as possible. The Recruitment team can assist you should you have questions or difficulty in completing these forms—contact us at recruitment@crimecommission.gov.au.

Our Security Vetting team will then conduct background and integrity checks and will advise the Recruitment team and your manager of the outcome. Providing you have successfully been security cleared to the required level (a minimum of Highly Protected is required for all ACC positions), you will be able to start on the negotiated commencement date.

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9. I am not happy with the selection process and wish to make a complaint/lodge an appeal against a promotion.

We happily accept all feedback and endeavor to respond to all emails within 3 business days. Please contact the Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@crimecommission.gov.au.

Appeals against promotions

If you have applied for a promotion to a particular job(s) but have been unsuccessful, you are entitled to apply to have the decision reviewed by a Promotion Review Committee (PRC) under the following circumstances:

• you are an ongoing APS employee who has applied for promotion to the job(s)
• the job(s) is at the APS 2 to 6 classification
• the successful applicant is an ongoing employee of the APS who will be promoted to the job, or is an ongoing Parliamentary Service employee to be ‘engaged’ in the APS at a higher classification than their current level
• the promotion decision was not made on the recommendation of an Independent Selection Advisory Committee
• the promotion decision did not result from a review conducted by a PRC.

The only ground for a review of a promotion is merit, for example, the review applicant believes they have stronger claims, in terms of skills and other work-related qualities, to the particular job than the person who was promoted.

If you would like to lodge an appeal against a promotion decision, see APSC website for more information on review of promotion decisions. The full process is detailed by the APSC on their page, Merit Protection and Review.

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10. What is an ‘Order of Merit’?

When a selection exercise is completed, there may be several candidates who are considered suitable for the position. Their order of suitability is termed the ‘order of merit’. Once an order of merit is created, the ACC is able to draw from this list to fill the same or similar vacancies as they arise within 12 months from the date that the advertisement appeared in APSjobs.

While the ACC may choose to draw from the order of merit, it is not under an obligation to do so, and may choose to advertise the vacancy instead.

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