About The Australian Career Book Award

Applicants must send a copy of their nominated book and the nomination form to both the Award Convenor in Melbourne and the Director of the RSA in Brisbane. There is no submission fee. Receipt of nominations will be confirmed by email.

After an initial assessment by the Convenor and the RSA Oceania Director, finalists will be invited to send an extra four copies to the RSA Oceania Director for distribution to the full Award Committee.

The Award will be announced at the Presentation Ceremony in October. 

Multiple nominations from the same author are permitted, but each book must be submitted in accordance with the complete nomination process. Books by joint authors are also acceptable, but not compilations. 

It is the responsibility of the nominator to ensure that books arrive by award deadlines, and that insurance, if necessary, is arranged, and that book tracking procedures are implemented. The Award Committee will not take responsibility for any loss or delay of books through postal or courier delivery. 

Books will be archived by the Award Committee to inform future committee procedures or for training of new committee members.

Books will be assessed on the 5Rs: readable, reachable, reliable, relevant, and researched.  

• Readable: The book should be suitable for audience and purpose, and be at an appropriate readability rating level.
• Reachable: The book should have the widest popular reach with consideration for the target audience.
• Reliable: Book content should be accurate and internally consistent.
• Relevant: Book content should be aligned with the career and employability needs of the contemporary Australian audience.
• Researched: Current research on career issues should be used to support opinions, propositions, and practices deployed by the author.

A set of descriptors has also been developed to guide the Award Committee in assessing the books. The descriptors may change from year to year and are not available to applicants or those not on the Award Committee.

The Award will go to an Australian career book published after January 1 of the calendar year prior. The book will be Print-on-Paper (PoP), printed and readily available to a wide audience, not an e-book. 

Books can cover any aspects of career development, employability, and the skills needed to gain and improve work. They should combine innovation with rigour, to inspire change in the reader’s career understanding, as well as strategies to improve individual or group outcomes. An Australian career book will target the Australian career readership with information based on the Australian employment context.

Books nominated in previous years will not be considered unless they are part of an integrated set of volumes constituting a new edition, or have been substantially re-configured as to present a new book.

We welcome submissions from authors of diverse backgrounds and working in various fields, including career counsellors, HR operatives, industry experts, or individual authors.

Authors do not have to be resident in Australia to nominate for the Award; however, their publication must be readily available via Australian bookstores, author and publishers websites and internet platforms and focus specifically on the Australian job market. 

Books may be produced by a traditional publisher, a niche publisher, or the author as a self-publisher implementing traditional printing or Print-on-Demand technology.