Alcoa Australia Vacation Student Program opens

Alcoa is seeking university students aspiring to work in the resources sector and with a thirst for knowledge, to join one of their 16 paid summer vacation roles.

Alcoa Vacation Student Program participants will gain practical hands-on experience over three-months and build their understanding of aluminium production. Commencing in November 2025, students will work at Alcoa’s operations near Perth and in Portland, Victoria.

Roles are available across a range of disciplines including mechanical, electrical and chemical engineering as well as occupational hygiene.

Former Vacation Student Program recruit Monika Eyer who participated in the program three times and is now working for the capital projects team at the Alcoa Bindjareb Office, said she had no idea just how different each aspect of the business could be.

“I've seen a lot of interesting meetings, which sounds kind of boring but I found it’s a great way to see all the sides of a great many stories and meet a whole lot of people from across the industry. I’ve worked with environmental teams, financial and legal, as well as engineers.” Monika said.

“My last vacation program was done at the Pinjarra refinery, which was a whole different world. It’s a lot more fast paced in terms of things happening. It’s been kind of interesting to see the difference between the practical skills needed to work on the refinery, in capital projects and what I’ve been learning at university.”

For chemical engineering student Shannon Henderson the Vacation Student Program was instrumental in her career goals, leading to casual work with the Chemical Engineering team at Pinjarra and future goals of landing a position in the Alcoa Graduate Program.

“The vacation student program was the perfect opportunity for me while I was at Uni,” Shannon said.

“I worked in Calcination and Clarification. Having the opportunity to work on two different projects and apply some of the skills I learned at Uni in a hands-on role at the refinery was amazing.”

“I was able to work with some of the experienced chemical engineers here at Alcoa and really learn from their experience while I was here, which lead me to a casual position that I work in now with that team. I’m hoping to get a graduate role with the team in the future and continue my work here at the refinery.”

Among the locations where vacation students will work are the Pinjarra and Wagerup alumina refineries, offices in Pinjarra and Booragoon, and Alcoa’s aluminium smelter in Portland. Students are paid for these full-time roles.

Applications for Alcoa’s Vacation Student Program open today until 10 June 2025. To apply and learn more, follow the link: https://www.alcoa.com/careers/en/our-talent-program-opportunities#australia-talent