If you live in Sydney, Brisbane or Adelaide, it can be hard to tell from a page on graduate programs in NSW or any other state whether a seat exists near you. The national food and beverage employers quoted below publish one graduate page for the whole country, and those pages say very little about where you would actually sit.
This guide sets out what the official pages say about NSW, Queensland and South Australia, where they say nothing, and what to ask before you relocate for a graduate program or book a flight for an assessment centre. It is not a state-by-state company list, because the pages do not support one. Programs, streams and dates change, so confirm each detail on the employer's own page before you apply.
What the graduate pages say about NSW, Queensland and South Australia, and where they stay silent
A graduate program page is built to describe a program: the streams on offer, how rotations work, who can apply and how. It is rarely built to tell you which city you will work in. That gap matters most to readers outside Victoria, because the first thing you need to know is whether a seat exists within reach of where you live.
Treat each page as a description of the program, not a promise about location. Where a page does mention a state, this guide quotes it and says what it covers. Where a page is silent, read the silence as a question for the employer, not as a yes or a no.
Four other employers publish pages that tell you about intake timing rather than location:
- Nestle. Nestle's NextGen page lists the streams and a document checklist but shows no application dates, so check the page for the current intake.
- Mars. Mars Australia's graduate page says applications will reopen in 2027 for the 2028 program and invites readers to register their interest.
- Coles. Coles Group's talent programs page says pre-registration is open and that applications open in 2027. Coles is a supermarket retailer, so it is listed here as retail and FMCG-adjacent, not as a food maker.
- DuluxGroup. DuluxGroup is a paints and consumer products group, not a food or beverage maker. Its graduate page says it recruits for positions right across Australia and New Zealand and that applications for its 2027 program are open. The page gives no closing date, so check it before you plan around it.
NSW: Bega's head office and P&G's Sydney office, neither a placement statement
Bega Group
According to Bega's graduate page for its RISE Graduate program, the company has "locations across Australia and our head office in Bega NSW". That is the one NSW fact on a graduate page, and it describes the company. It does not say whether a graduate would sit at head office or elsewhere.
According to Bega's recruitment page, the business has multiple sites in New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia. That describes the whole business. It is not a statement that graduates are placed in any of those states.
P&G and Fonterra
According to P&G's Australia locations page, the company has a Sydney Head Office at Macquarie Park NSW and a Melbourne Head Office at Hawthorn VIC. Those are company addresses. The same page carries job listings that show where each role is based or how many locations it is available in, so check the current graduate listings there instead of guessing from an address. Fonterra's graduate page also lists a Sydney sales office, which is likewise a company office and not a graduate placement.
Queensland and South Australia: no graduate page names a base for graduates
No employer graduate page names a Queensland or South Australian base for graduates. That is the plain answer for graduate programs in Queensland and graduate programs in South Australia alike.
Two company facts can look like an answer. Bega's recruitment page lists sites in both states for the business as a whole. Fonterra is a dairy company, and its graduate page gives a head office in Richmond, Melbourne, eight manufacturing sites across Victoria and Tasmania, and sales offices in Sydney, Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane. The Brisbane and Adelaide offices are sales offices, and the page does not say where graduates sit. Put these questions to the employer:
- Base. In which city and at which site would I start, and is that written into the offer?
- Rotations. Do rotations stay in one city or move between states?
- Stream. Does my stream (a factory, a sales team, a head office function) exist near where I live at all?
- Relocation. Is any help with moving costs offered, and is it in writing?
Moving for a program: the Mondelez travel rule and questions to put to every other employer
Mondelez is the one employer in this guide whose pages speak directly to the cost of getting there. In Mondelez's early careers FAQ, an applicant based outside Melbourne asks whether the company covers travel expenses for assessment centres. The answer is that it is unable to cover travel or accommodation expenses associated with attending them.
Read that wording closely. The FAQ does not say where assessment centres are held, and it says nothing about any other employer.
No other page here answers the travel question, so ask it of every employer before you accept an invitation:
- Is there an in-person stage? If so, ask where and for how many days.
- Who pays? Ask whether travel and accommodation are covered, partly covered or yours to carry, and get the answer in writing.
- Is there a remote option? Ask rather than assume.
- What is the total cost? Add flights, a few nights' accommodation and time off work before you commit.
Paid work in your own state while you wait
Some programs take applications only once a year, so there can be a wait between intakes. Paid work is its own decision: it covers the bills while you wait, and it is not a step into any graduate program.
Chandler Personnel is an independent, Melbourne-based blue collar specialist with offices in Melbourne CBD, Brisbane and Adelaide and a presence in NSW, supplying labour hire and permanent recruitment across manufacturing, warehousing and logistics, and food production. If you are in NSW or Queensland, its pages on warehouse work in NSW and warehouse work in Queensland describe the labour hire side of the business in each state. It also publishes a Brisbane staffing guide and an Adelaide staffing guide, both written for employers, if you want background on agency work in those cities.
Chandler Personnel does not run, recruit for or place people into these graduate programs; apply on each employer's own page.
Related Resources
- Warehousing labour hire in NSW
- Warehousing labour hire in Queensland
- Candidate questions answered
- Bega Group graduate page
- Bega Group recruitment page
- P&G locations in Australia
- Mondelez early careers FAQ
Common Questions About Graduate Programs Outside Victoria
1. Which FMCG graduate programs hire in NSW?
Bega's graduate page gives its head office as Bega NSW and says it has locations across Australia. P&G's locations page lists a Sydney Head Office, and Fonterra's graduate page lists a Sydney sales office. Those are company addresses, so ask each employer where your stream is based, and check P&G's job listings for where each current graduate role sits.
2. Are there graduate programs in Queensland?
The graduate pages do not tie any program to Queensland. Bega's recruitment page lists Queensland sites for the whole business and Fonterra's graduate page lists a Brisbane sales office, but neither says graduates are placed there. Ask before you assume a Queensland seat exists.
3. Are there graduate programs in South Australia?
The graduate pages do not tie any program to South Australia either. Bega's recruitment page lists South Australian sites for the business, and Fonterra's graduate page lists an Adelaide sales office. Neither is a graduate placement claim. Put the question to the employer in writing and keep the reply.
4. Do I have to move to Melbourne for a graduate program assessment centre?
Mondelez's early careers FAQ answers a question from applicants based outside Melbourne, but it does not say where its assessment centres are held. Other employers' pages do not answer this either. When an invitation arrives, ask where each stage takes place and whether any part can be done remotely.
5. Will an employer pay for my travel to an assessment centre?
Mondelez's FAQ says it is unable to cover travel or accommodation expenses for assessment centres. For other employers, do not assume it either way. Ask in writing, before you book anything, who pays for travel and accommodation, and work out the total cost first.
Ask Where You Will Sit Before You Apply
The official pages tell you plenty about streams and dates and very little about location outside Melbourne. Bega gives a head office in NSW, P&G and Fonterra list Sydney offices, and Mondelez is plain that it does not cover assessment centre travel. Pick the two or three programs that suit your degree, open each employer's own page, and write down what it says about base, rotations and travel. Then ask the employer for whatever is missing before you commit time, money or a move.
