Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Program

Guidelines 2019

Student Leadership, Career Development and Employment

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 Table of Contents
1 Purpose of guidelines............................................................................... 3
2 Aims and Structure of the Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Program ............ 3
2.1 Tier 1 - Discover ........................................................................................................... 3
2.2 Tier 2 - Contribute ....................................................................................................... 4
2.3 Tier 3 – Achieve ........................................................................................................... 5
3 Eligibility and entry requirements ............................................................ 5
3.1 General requirements ................................................................................................. 5
3.2 Requirements for Tier 1 .............................................................................................. 5
3.3 Requirements for Tier 2 .............................................................................................. 6
Eligibility of experiences for each category .................................................................... 6
Eligibility of professional learning requirements ............................................................ 8
Submission, extensions and late submission .................................................................. 9
3.4 Requirements for Tier 3 .............................................................................................. 9
4 Assessment ............................................................................................ 10
4.1 Assessment Tier 1...................................................................................................... 10
4.2 Assessment Tier 2...................................................................................................... 10
4.3 Assessment Tier 3...................................................................................................... 11
4.4 Revision of Assessment ............................................................................................. 11
5 Support, guidance and communications ................................................ 12
5.1 Workshops................................................................................................................. 12
5.2 Face-to-face consultations ........................................................................................ 12
5.3 Online resources ....................................................................................................... 12
5.4 Email .......................................................................................................................... 12
6 Annex .................................................................................................... 13

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 Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Program’ Guidelines 2019

1 Purpose of guidelines
The purpose of this document is to provide students, staff and external organisations with clear
guidelines outlining the Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Program’s structure, entry requirements,
availability, assessment process, documentation, rubrics and forms.

2 Aims and Structure of the Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Program

The VCLP is an opportunity for the University to formally recognise and reward the contributions
students make to the community, as well as the experiences they have while studying at the University
of Tasmania. The aims of VCLP are to support students to:

a) develop their leadership and employability skills through critical self-reflection, experience
and professional learning;
b) develop capacity to identify, evidence and articulate leadership values and experiences and
the impact of these on personal and professional growth;
c) build confidence, self-reflective capacity and self-awareness that can guide authentic
engagement and positive impact on community; and
d) take initiative and use their skills to contribute to their future and the future of our collective
societies.

Through this program, University of Tasmania students engage with a broad cross section of the
community, both local and global, through work experiences and internships and through community
and civic service and events. The VCLP also allows students to contribute to the broader Australian
community and to the international community through global exchange.

There are three tiers to the VCLP. The first two can be taken independently, or in any order, but if a
student wants to engage in the third tier they must first successfully complete the first two tiers.
Students can exit with recognition from any of the tiers, but only successful completion of all three
tiers will result in the students being recognised with the Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Award. The
requirements of each tier are outlined below:

2.1 Tier 1 - Discover

Tier 1 is the academic component of the VCLP. It provides opportunities for students to explore and
discover their leadership potential through engaging in an academic unit of study: XBR110 Discover
your potential: Leadership, service and employability. XBR110 is a fully online, 12.5% weighted unit.
The unit content introduces theories of leadership and provides a range of self-reflective activities to
set the foundations for self-development and growth.

This unit can be taken either as breadth unit or as a student elective towards a student’s primary
degree. If students have no capacity within their course structure to include XBR110 in their study

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plan, they may be admitted into a companion degree to enable enrolment. Prior to enrolment, an
Expression of Interest must be lodged for assessment with the VCLP team. Expression of Interests are
available online via Career Connect.

An obligation of the unit is that students are required to volunteer for at least 10 hrs with an
organisation of their choice. These hours of volunteering can be accrued either up to 12 months before
the commencing of the unit or; during the semester of enrolment if they are accumulated before the
assessment deadline included in the unit outline*.

*Important: When the unit is undertaken in one of the intensive sessions these hours need to be
accumulated before the start of the unit.

The assessment requirements of the unit will be included in the unit outline delivered for each study
period.

For information about the availability of the unit for each study period please refer to the Course and
Unit Hand Book.

2.2 Tier 2 - Contribute

Tier 2 provides students with opportunities to follow their interests and reflect on their leadership
development. Completion of the requirements and subsequent successful assessment of Tier 2 will be
recognised on the student’s academic transcript as one or two citations added in the section of Awards,
Scholarships and Prizes (See annex 1).

To complete a citation, students are required to complete extension experiences during their studies
at the University of Tasmania. These experiences can include global exchange, research, volunteering,
internships or part-time work (3.3.1 Eligibility of experiences for each category). Please note that
experiences achieved prior to commencement of studies at the University of Tasmania cannot be
recognised through the VCLP.

Tier 2 is structured around 6 citation categories or theme areas. Applicants can apply for up to 2
citations during their degree. The choice of citation category depends on a student’s personal goals
and aspirations for leadership and employability. Each citation acknowledges that the student has
engaged in a minimum of 45 hours of experience and undertaken at least 6 hours of professional
learning to enhance their experiences. The 6 citation categories are:

a) Industry Experience and Entrepreneurship

b) Community and Civic Service
c) Research Experience
d) Global Experience
e) Peer Mentoring and Support
f) Contributions for Sustainable Development

Applicants must submit a written reflective piece called the citation reflection along with a reference
letter and professional standard resume. The citation reflection asks students to describe their
experience, its relevance to the nominated category and their learning and skill development from
this experience, noting how this has enhanced their future leadership and employability. Using the
chosen citation category as a focal point, applicants are required to describe the context of their
experiences, the value they have brought to the communities or organisations they have worked with,

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the skills and competencies they have developed, and how they provide and articulate the impact and
evidence of this skill development throughout their experiences. This application must be submitted
online through Career Connect.

2.3 Tier 3 – Achieve

This is the final section of the VCLP and only students who have successfully completed the two
previous tiers are invited to apply for the culminating Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Award. Tier 3
applicants are required to develop and submit a final portfolio that highlights their employability
through clear reflections on their whole-of-program learning and clearly articulates the skills and
competencies they have developed. This portfolio must also include a professional standard resume
and LinkedIn profile that highlight how their experiences give them a ‘competitive edge’ for future
employment.

Applicants must attend an interview to share and showcase their leadership vision with a selection
panel made up of a representative of UTAS senior management, a representative from the Tasmanian
Leaders Program, a representative from the Student Employment Service, and a member of the
Student Leadership team. During the interview applicants must address reflective questions about
their personal leadership philosophy and values, and how these have been developed through their
VCLP experiences.

3 Eligibility and entry requirements

3.1 General requirements
The VCLP is a co-curricular program available to all University of Tasmania students. To join the
program students are required to submit an Expression of Interest form available on Career Connect.
All students wishing to complete one, two or the three Tiers must meet the following general
requirements:

a) Be currently enrolled in a degree at the University of Tasmania.

b) Submit an Expression of Interest available on Career Connect.
c) Complete their experience hours and professional learning hours while studying at the
University of Tasmania.
d) Complete their experience hours and professional learning hours within the last five years.
e) Complete all requirements of the program prior to the final submission date for VCLP
applications prior to their graduation.

3.2 Requirements for Tier 1

XBR110 is a fully online, 12.5% unit available as a breadth unit or student elective. Students intending
to complete this unit as part of Tier 1 need to follow this process:

a) Check with the Course Information Officer of your College if XBR110 can be counted towards
your primary degree. When students do not have capacity in their primary degree to enrol
XBR110 in their study plan, they may be admitted into a companion degree to enable
enrolment.

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 b) Submit an Expression of Interest available on Career Connect.
c) Complete 10 hours of volunteering with an organisation that meets the Volunteering Australia
National Volunteering Standards. This volunteering experience is a pre-requisite to
completing one of the assessment tasks in the unit. In some instances, volunteering hours can
be completed concurrently while taking the unit. Volunteering commenced before the unit
(but no more than one year prior and while a current student at the University of Tasmania)
can be counted*.

*Important: When XBR110 is undertaken in one of the intensive sessions (Either Summer, Spring or
Winter School) volunteering hours need to be accumulated prior to commencing the unit.

3.3 Requirements for Tier 2

Tier 2 provides an opportunity for students to be recognised for the range of extension experiences
they undertake during their time at the University of Tasmania. Tier 2 highlights how students apply
their learning and develop their leadership and employability skills through a range of experiences
that may be within or outside of the curriculum. Students aiming to apply for a citation need to meet
the following requirements:

a) Complete 45 hours of extension experience(s) of your choice (See 4.3.1. for examples).
b) Complete 6 hours of professional learning (See Professional Learning Guidelines).
c) Choose a category to claim the experience against. This category must be chosen based on
the interests that students have both professionally and personally and must relate to the
extension experiences logged.
d) Complete an online guided reflection available on Career Connect*.
e) Provide a reference letter. This should be issued by the supervisor, manager or coordinator of
the experience. In cases where this is not possible, students can seek the endorsement from
a person who can verify the leadership and employability skills they have gained.
f) Submit a professional standard resume.

*Important: Tier 2 application forms are available after the VCLP team has reviewed and approved a
student’s Expression of Interest on Career Connect.

Eligibility of experiences for each category

* Important: While it is not necessary to have an identified leadership role in any of Tier 2 experiences,
the citation reflection requires students to reflect on and articulate how their experience has
developed their leadership and employability skills. This can be in terms of your self-awareness or self-
leadership, or in relation to their collaboration within a team.

a) Industry Experience and Entrepreneurship: Any experience students have completed within
any industry can be counted towards this category. To qualify for this category, applicants
must describe the industry or entrepreneurial experience and highlight the way in which this
experience has drawn and enhanced their leadership and employability skills. Experiences in
this category may be self-initiated or draw on those opportunities provided through their
degree. Activities can include: any paid or unpaid work, internships, start-ups, industry or
work-placements and Workplace Integrated Learning (WIL).

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b) Community and Civic Service: Any unpaid experiences within UTAS or for external not-for-
profit organisations or charities can be counted for this category. Activities include:
volunteering for UTASLife, holding a committee seat for a club, society, or board, volunteering
at a local church, volunteering for a charity i.e. Red Cross, World Wildlife Fund for Nature.
*Important: The 10 hours of service required for XBR110 cannot be counted towards the
hours required of this citation category.

c) Research Experience: This category is for students who participate in research activities
beyond the main purpose of their degree. This could include undergraduates who participate
in research activities that enhance the core component of their degree, or Honours, Masters
and PhD students who participate in research experiences that are not required of their core
research project. Any research activity can be counted if the application sufficiently evidences
how leadership and employability skills were drawn on and/or advanced to complete the
project. For this category, a research experience cannot be double counted for the 6 hours of
professional development required to apply. For example, if presenting at a conference is
counted for the ‘experience’ portion of the application, the same conference cannot be
counted for the ‘professional learning’ portion. Research undertaken within UTAS or through
external organisations may be counted in this category. Research activities include: Dean’s
Summer Research Scholarship; presenting research at a national conference; Scientists in
Schools, Young Tassie Scientists, Research Assistance.

d) Global Experience: For domestic students, this experience must be undertaken outside of
Australia and demonstrate their engagement with activities, events or involvement with a
different culture or community. For international students living in Australia, they may apply
for this category to have their Australian experience recognised as long as they can
demonstrate their extended engagement with the local community either at UTAS or more
broadly. In both cases, if students are studying abroad experiences to be claimed as part of
this Tier must be additional to their studies. Activities can include: participation in
international symposiums (i.e. United Nations Youth Summit), cultural programs (i.e. Teaching
Abroad), working or volunteering overseas (i.e. UTASLife or Habitat for Humanity).

e) Peer Mentoring and Support: The University of Tasmania offers several peer programs
through which students can develop and exhibit their leadership skills. Experiences had in
these programs all apply to this citation category. Other experiences had outside of the
university can also provide experiences under this category if they can demonstrate ways in
which peer learning and mentoring of peer or colleagues was central to the development of
leadership skills. Activities include: Pass Leaders; Student Success Leaders, Student Learning
Drop-In Advisors; Career Peers; Roaming Information Officers, Young Mile Mentors,
Tasmanian Leaders Program, Business Mentoring, mentoring youth in the community.

f) Contributions to Sustainable Development: Experiences under this category relate to activities

or initiatives that contribute to achievements in areas outlined by the United Nations
Sustainable Development Goals. These activities can be on-campus or off-campus and can
include both paid and unpaid experiences. Activities include: sustainability fellows,

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 participation in the Sustainability Integration Program for Students, humanitarian work, Ally
network activities, working with or for Sustainable Living Tasmania.

Eligibility of professional learning requirements

To qualify for a citation, a student must complete at least six hours of professional learning. In the
reflection citation application, they will need to describe how the professional learning undertaken
relates to the citation category they are applying for and/or explain how they will be able to use it in
the future.

Professional learning activities can include any self-initiated learning engaged to develop knowledge
around a certain topic relevant to the category being applied for. The activities students engage with
can be completed at UTAS or externally (subject to approval). Some of the sessions available at UTAS
will be available to complete through MyLO and some will be needed to be attended and require
registration through Career Connect. If there is an external professional learning activity you wish to
have counted and it does not appear in section ‘d’ of this part, please email the VCLP team at
Career.Connect@utas.edu.au with details of the event (Name of event, provider, intended learning
promoted, format and location, and date undertaken). The VCLP team will assess the eligibility of this
activity and advise of its acceptance or otherwise.

Examples of pre-approved activities that can be counted towards your professional learning hours
include:

a) Available on Career Connect

• Prep Workshop
• Intercultural Communication
• Mental Health Awareness
• Dealing with Difficult Behaviours
• Wellbeing De-brief*
• Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Training
• Disclosures of Sexual Violence – ‘Trauma 1st Aid’
b) Available on MyLO
• Consent Matters
• Responding to Disclosures of Sexual Violence
• Work Health and Safety Induction and Training
• Resume Plus
c) Available on UTAS Website
• Fair Play on Campus
• Ally Network Training
• College, School or Institute run events or activities, i.e. seminar or workshop that was not
also a requirement for a course or unit
d) External
• First Aid Certificate
• Professional Association’s events (e.g. professional sessions, workshops and seminars)
• Employer information sessions
• Professional or Academic Conferences (as long as these are not being counted as
experience hours in your citation application)

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 • Certified Leadership Development Courses (e.g. Leadership for Women, Outward Bound)

*Important: Professional Learning hours must be completed outside of the requirements of a

student’s primary degree program except in the instance where a program of study requires students
to engage in professional learning opportunities that extend beyond the curriculum of the course and
are directly related to the experience being applied for in Tier 2 (i.e. first aid certification to undertake
a medical placement).

Units in a course that contribute knowledge to an experience but are not directly related to that
experience are not on their own eligible to be counted for professional learning hours (e.g. a 3rd year
Accounting unit cannot be counted for professional learning hours to support a citation application
for an accounting internship).

Students can only apply for one citation using professional learning hours logged from within a primary
degree. A second citation application must log professional learning hours acquired outside of the
primary degree.

If a student enrols in a secondary degree or qualification (i.e. BPhil, TAFE course or other RTO) they
can credit hours from this experience that are directly relevant to their citation application – note, this
must be undertaken during their time as a UTAS student.

Submission, extensions and late submission

a) Students must submit their final and complete applications through Career Connect before
the deadline. Submission dates are published on the VCLP website.
b) Extensions for submissions will only be considered if there are exceptional circumstances
beyond a student’s control which prevents them from meeting the submission deadline. A
request for an extension must be made in writing to the VCLP Coordinator on or before the
assessment due date and must be accompanied by documentation substantiating the case for
an extension.
c) The new due date must not extend beyond the date for the resubmission date of the assessed
citations.
d) Late submissions of citation applications without an extension won’t be assessed until the
following round and only if a student complies with the general requirements of the VCLP.

3.4 Requirements for Tier 3

a) Only students who have successfully completed Tier One and Tier Two are invited to apply for
the Vice-Chancellor’s Leadership Award.
b) Students will only have the opportunity to apply for Tier 3 once. Second interviews will not be
granted, even in the event that students still have time left in their degree.
c) Potential applicants must be in their final year of their primary degree to apply.
d) Tier 3 must be completed before graduation.
e) Application for the VCLA includes;
• Application letter
• LinkedIn profile
• Professional standard resume
• Referee details for contact

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 f) Students also must book and attend an interview. The interview will be conducted by a
selection panel consisting of at least three members drawing on representation from UTAS
senior management, the Tasmanian Leaders Program, external industry or community sector,
the Student Employment Service, and the Student Leadership team. Interview times and dates
will be available on Career Connect. Interview questions will be sent to each candidate one
week before the interview. When interview date and/or time does not suit the candidate, an
alternative time may be arranged by formal request to the VCLP Coordinator.

4 Assessment
4.1 Assessment Tier 1
The assessment of Tier 1 is listed in the XBR110 Unit Outline released for each study period by the
teaching staff of this unit.

4.2 Assessment Tier 2

Students must submit their application according to the key dates specified in the schedule
established for each submission period. The key dates for each round are available on the VCLP
website. After the submission deadline the VCLP Assessment Committee will assess citation
applications based on the following criteria:

The extent to which the citation reflection:

a) provides a clear rationale and description of the experience and links this to the chosen
citation category
b) Uses the STAR technique to identify, evidence and articulate the employability skills
developed in the experience;
c) Discusses observations of leadership and the impact of this on the student’s own leadership
development; and
d) Links the experience and the professional learning undertaken to the student’s learning about
themselves as a leader and future professional.

Following assessment written feedback will be provided by the VCLP coordinator to applicants and
when necessary, a resubmission date and time will be provided. Applicants will have seven calendar
days after the feedback email is sent to adjust and resubmit their citation application based on the
feedback.

One (1) face-to-face or phone consultation will be available for students to discuss the feedback
received. Appointment bookings for these consultations will be available through AppointmentHub
and must be booked before the resubmission deadline.

After the resubmission deadline the VCLP Assessment Committee re-assesses the application based
on the extent to which the feedback from the initial submission has been addressed. If the reflection
still does not meet the criteria, the student will be notified about the outcome and invited to resubmit
in a subsequent round as long as the student meets the general eligibility requirements of that
program at the time of the submission next round. If the resubmission is assessed to have adequately

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met the requirements of the feedback provided in the first round, the submission goes through for
final review and endorsement. Final review and endorsement of all Tier 2 applications is made by the
VCLP task force, made up of a delegation of staff and students from the Student Experience Committee.
Following this meeting, the VCLP team will notify applicants of the final outcome.

*Important: Extension for resubmissions will be considered only if there are exceptional
circumstances beyond a student’s control. A request for an extension must be made in writing to the
VCLP Coordinator on or before the resubmission due date and must be accompanied by
documentation/explanation substantiating the case for the extension.

4.3 Assessment Tier 3

Applications for Tier 3 must be submitted with all required components according to the submission
dates specified in the schedule established for each submission period. This schedule is available on
the VCLP website and Career Connect.

The application form for Tier 3 will be available on Career Connect once a student has been confirmed
to be eligible for this Tier.

The application must include an application letter as well as the applicant’s LinkedIn profile link,
updated resume and a professional photo. This application package will be assessed by the Careers
team and the VCLP Team. Applicants also must book the interview on Career Connect. The VCLP Team
will send the interview questions to the applicant one week before the interview.

The interview panel will assess candidates’ interview performance based on their answers to each
interview question. The interview is intended to assess the extent to which the applicant is able to
clearly articulate their personal leadership philosophy, how they lived this philosophy through their
VCLP experiences, the impact of their experiences on their own personal and professional growth as
well as the communities they worked with and how they will use the learning from their experiences
in the VCLP to identify and develop their leadership goals in the future. Candidates are welcome to
bring notes to the interview, however reading responses is not encouraged as this deflects from the
interview.

Final review and endorsement of all Tier 3 applications is made by the VCLP task force, made up of a
delegation of staff and students from the Student Experience Committee. Following this meeting, the
VCLP team will notify applicants of the final outcome.

Tier 3 applicants will have the opportunity to attend only one (1) interview. Unsuccessful candidates
may still graduate with citations, but no candidate will be re-interviewed. When students are unable
to attend the interview, they need to contact the VCLP team to let them know the reason. It may be
possible to arrange a new interview time and date only if medical evidence is provided and an
interview panel can be convened. Any rescheduling must fit within the VCLP assessment calendar for
that round.

4.4 Revision of Assessment

In the event an applicant does not agree with an assessment of their Tier 2 or Tier 3 applications, they
have the right to appeal the decision in writing to the VCLP Task Force of the Student Experience
Committee. This can be submitted via Career.Connect@utas.edu.au

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Considerations and any resultant re-assessments could take up to a month to be completed, after
which an applicant may have their assessment changed following their graduation. To register an
appeal, an applicant must submit a revision of assessment enquiry within five business days of notice
of the outcome of the original assessment.

5 Support, guidance and communications

The VCLP team will provide students with support, guidance and advice for their engagement with any
Tier through a range of different options available for both on campus and off campus students.

5.1 Workshops
There will be general information sessions about the VCLP as well asTtier 2 workshops to help students
with questions and VCLP citation applications. Information about these workshop dates and locations
is available on Career Connect and the VCLP website.

5.2 Face-to-face consultations

Bookable through AppointmentHub will be available every week. To be eligible to attend a face-to-
face consultation, students must first attend at least one of the general information workshops
available through the year.

5.3 Online resources

There are important and useful resources available on MyLO that students can access anytime. These
resources can assist students in the preparation of a professional standard resume, using the STAR
technique to reflect on and respond to the selection criteria in the Tier 2 application, and to prepare
for an interview. Additional resources are also available through Career Connect, including a resume
builder and interview practice software.

5.4 Email
Official communications regarded VCLP feedback, important news as well as any general or specific
enquiry will be managed by the VCLP Team through the Career.Connect@utas.edu.au email account.
Students must check their UTAS email regularly to ensure they are receiving up to date information
from the VCLP team. The VCLP team will not in any circumstance communicate with students through
personal email accounts.

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6 Annex

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