34,684 apply for the Best Job in the World

Tourism Queensland has pulled out all stops and added extra staff to process the incredible 34,684 would-be Island Caretakers who have applied for The Best Job in the World.

Tourism Minister Desley Boyle said she was “blown away” by the interest in the Island Caretaker role, which closed at 9.59am this morning Queensland time.

“A last minute rush saw more than 7500 applications come in during the last 48 hours alone making the role of Island Caretaker for the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef arguably the most sought-after job in the world,” Ms Boyle said.

“Initially we said we would look at closing applications off at 30,000 from a logistical point of view, not really envisaging we would actually reach that number.

“We hit that figure on Saturday evening with around 36 hours still to go until the cut-off time and after some discussions, decided to waive the cap and keep it open until the cut-off time to give as many people as possible the opportunity to apply.

“This has meant that in addition to the core team processing the videos, Tourism Queensland has pulled additional staff from their regular duties and trained them on application processing to ensure all submissions are processed over the next couple of days.”

Ms Boyle said there had been some technical issues with the www.islandreefjob.com website over the weekend due to the massive number of people trying to upload their videos at the last minute.

“At one point there were 4000 people around the world all trying to upload their videos at the same time,” Ms Boyle said.

“We had been advising people for a couple of weeks not to leave their submission until the last minute as we were expecting a huge spike but nonetheless many still left it until the last day or two.

“This massive amount of traffic slowed the site down, and regretfully some people weren’t able to get their video application in by the deadline.”

Ms Boyle said The Best Job in the World had drawn the attention and imagination of millions of people from throughout the world.

The highest number of applicants had come from the US with 11,565, followed by Canada with 2791, Great Britain with 2262 and Australia with 2064.

“I think we are safe in saying that this is the most sought-after job in the world and has catapulted Queensland, particularly the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef, into the workplaces, homes, pubs and online communities of just about every nation in the world,” Ms Boyle said.

“With applications from more than 200 countries, the Best Job in the World gives a whole new meaning to the term ‘global campaign’.”

The Best Job in the World is part of a Tourism Queensland marketing campaign raising awareness of the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef as a holiday destination.

For a salary of $AUD150,000, the successful candidate will spend six months based on Hamilton Island, exploring the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef and reporting on their experiences via a range of communication channels including website and video blogs.

“One of the most amazing things has been watching the way in which the Best Job in the World has developed a loyal global community with applicants talking to each other, giving each other advice, commenting on applications and even drawing up their own top list of candidates,” Ms Boyle said.

The focus will now turn to short-listing the Top 50, which will be announced on Tuesday March 3 (Queensland time) on the www.islandreefjob.com website.

The Top 50 will be narrowed down to a final 11, 10 of whom will be chosen by Tourism Queensland, and an 11th ’wild card’ applicant chosen by popular vote.

“We are anticipating thousands of people throughout the world will vote for the person they most want to become the Island Caretaker,” Ms Boyle said.

“This applicant, along with the Top 10 chosen by Tourism Queensland, will fly to Hamilton Island in early May to take part in the final selection process with the successful candidate announced on May 6.”

Ms Boyle said there was no clear indication as to who would become the Island Caretaker for the Best Job in the World.

“Applicants are all ages, nationalities and come from all walks of life - including writers, tour guides, marine biologists, environmentalists, students, bloggers, mums and dads and retirees.

“There have also been celebrity applicants, including an Amazing Race winner, a New Zealand travel show host and a former Young Australian of the year.

“We don’t know yet where the Island Caretaker will come from, but we do know they will be adventurous, a great communicator, have a passion for the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef and be willing, in the Aussie way, to ‘have a go’.”

For further information on the selection process, including timelines, visit www.islandreefjob.com.


Further information:
Minister’s office – 3225 1005
Tourism Queensland – 3535 5010