Applications are now open for the Swinburne University of Technology-Melbourne Press Club ‘Beyond the Fault Lines’ Fellowship. The Fellowship is an exciting opportunity for an experienced journalist to tackle the most polarising challenges in our public debate, and mentor the next generation of journalists to develop new work that highlights the importance of balance and nuance.

The Fellowship, valued at $15,000, will be awarded to a journalist, providing time to work with Swinburne students across a 12-week program, beginning at the start of semester 2, 2024. The Fellow will deliver a public lecture on an issue in journalism, while also using the time to reflect and write about their own practice.

Applications close 30/04/2024

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Established by Swinburne Adjunct Professor, Dr Michael Liffman AM, the program will be encouraging and exemplifying respectful debate, open-mindedness, and critical thinking, within the university and in the wider community. Participants will be sharing this through journalistic writing, thought leadership and opinion pieces. 

“With the world in a state of flux it is becoming increasingly difficult to be able to find common ground in addressing the great challenges we face as a society,” said Dr Liffman.

“It is the role of a university to make sense of these challenges and having a highly regarded journalist facilitating that understanding and mentoring students on how to communicate about these topics in the most respectful and articulate way to all audiences, will be powerful for our next generation of graduates.”

To apply for this Fellowship, the applicant must have:

• Demonstrated 5+ years of experience in journalism, showing a commitment to balance and rigour
• Passion for creative thinking and educating our next-gen graduates 
• Evidence of achievement through published or broadcast pieces
• Australian citizenship or permanent residency

Applications will be assessed against: 

• A brief rationale for how journalistic practice has instigated a deeper questioning of a social, cultural, or modern complex problem, ideally the drawing together of people or communities to create positive change
• A 200-word (approx.) proposal for a themed mentored multimedia project  
• Current CV 

Contact:

For further information about the Fellowship or to apply, please contact Katherine Goldman at kgoldman@swinburne.edu.au