Earlier this month, Minister for Education Ben Carroll announced the expansion of the Career Start initiative to eight new parts of the state, aiming to improve the experience of graduate teachers as they are inducted into the profession.

“First impressions count, and we want to make sure every new teacher in Victoria feels supported as they begin their exciting educational careers,” Carroll said in a statement.

“Starting out in any new job can be a daunting experience, and with the expansion of this program, we’re making it easier for new teachers to take on their new roles with confidence and pride.”

The idea of the program is to help develop graduate teachers in government schools with extra preparation time, practice focused mentoring, professional learning and networking with peers to help them flourish in their first year of teaching.

It has dual aims of increasing graduate teacher retention rates and accelerating the development of graduate teachers’ practice.

Graduate teachers have shared that Career Start has supported increased feelings of preparedness for the classroom, confidence, and wellbeing, and reduced workload-related stress.

Participation in the program has also resulted in more graduates continuing into their second year of teaching.

Career Start as well has benefited mid and late-career teachers, who provide practice-focused mentoring to graduates. These mentors receive tailored support and guidance from Learning Alliance Leaders (experienced teachers).

Mentors have noted benefits to their participation and how the program has empowered them to learn alongside their graduate colleagues.

Career Start is run by teachers, for teachers. Experienced teachers work directly with in-school mentors to grow their capability to work with graduates. They also design and facilitate professional learning for the graduate teachers. In this way, the experienced teachers share their learnings and expertise with the next generation of teachers.

The Victorian Government invested $95.7 million in the Victorian Budget 2023-24 to expand Career Start to support and retain teachers.

In 2024, more than1150 graduate teachers were supported by more than 880 mentors across 370 Victorian Government schools.