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Emerging Leaders program

Become a future leader in the psychology profession

Are you an early-career psychologist looking to add leadership skills to your toolkit? The APS Emerging Leaders Program is designed to equip you with the essential skills you'll need to become a future leader in the psychology profession, in the context of an APS Member Leader.

What does the program entail?

The APS Emerging Leaders program is a free, 6-month leadership development program for APS early-career psychologists. Including both leading APS presenters and external experts in their respective leadership fields, the program aims to empower and support participants by providing them with skills and resources to become future leaders of the psychology profession, utilising the APS to further the profession, utilising the APS to further the profession.

The program includes a combination of live and pre-recorded sessions and workshops, along with self-paced learning and group discussions and reflections.

Download Program Guide

What do participants get out of it?

As well as access to the course content and a host of leading experts, you will gain the practical skills to enhance you career for future leadership roles and empower you to be an effective APS member leader.

You might also like to take advantage of the APS Mentor Program at the same time as the program. Your mentor can support career development, act as a sounding board and share their own experiences and knowledge. 

There will also be a dedicated group in PsyCommunity for all Emerging Leaders participants to network, learn and share ideas from each other.

It’s important for us to build and support the future leaders of our profession. A career in psychology is all about life-long learning.
Dr Zena Burgess, APS, CEO

  Learn more about Mentoring

What are the time commitments?

This program runs over a calendar year. Each month participants will engage with learning modules and activities that range between 4-8 hours in length.

The program framework facilitates emerging leadership skills to be applied in real-time, even if you’re not in a formal leadership role yet. It will allow you to take what you learn and apply it during the program through assessment activities and peer-to-peer group discussions. Participants will need to commit to all aspects of the program outlined below.

English as a second language psychology students

 Live sessions

You will need to be available for five live online sessions on the following dates:

4 March 2025: 90 Minute Session 1pm – 4pm AEST – Onboarding webinar Get to know your cohort, our member groups team, and get set up with the tools to support the program.

1 April 2025: Half Day Session 1pm-4pm AEST – Discover your own leadership style Hosted by Non Profit Training establish your personal leadership brand and provide essential leadership skills in the context of a committee leadership role to positively influence change.

6 May 2025: 90 Minute Session 1pm - 2.30pm AEST – Industry knowledge Join APS President Dr Catriona Davis-McCabe and APS CEO Dr Zena Burgess for an intimate online live session. Hear about the current and emerging issues, challenges and opportunities facing the profession and join in the discussion.

4 June 2025: Half Day Session 1pm - 4pm AEST – Leadership expert, Senior leader and leadership coach Andy Fell will deliver an interactive workshop to further develop leadership of self-skills and influencing without authority. With a 30-year career in senior leadership roles for large organisations, Andy brings a unique and experienced take on building winning teams even when not in a formal leadership role.

13 August 2025: Half Day Session 12.30pm - 4.30pm AEST – Difficult and necessary conversations  Hosted by Scott Dutton, co-founder of Fighting Fair and conflict and communication expert. Scott promises a fun session navigating challenging topics. Learn the skills and techniques for having difficult yet necessary conversations and gain confidence to manage these discussions effectively.

Program Timeline

  • October 2024: Applications open
  • November-December 2024: Participants join the program for the following year
  • March 2025: Program begins - Complete Module 1 
  • April 2025: Complete Module 2
  • 1 April 2025: Live online session
  • May 2025: Complete Module 3
  • 6 May 2025: Live online session
  • June 2025: Complete Module 4
  • 4 June 2025: Live online session
  • July 2025: Complete Module 5
  • August 2025: Complete Module 6 
  • 13 August 2025: Live online session
  • September 2025: Program wrap up and graduation

Applications for our 2025 Emerging Leaders Program have now closed, however, you can join the waitlist for expressions of interest for our 2026 Program below. We will be reviewing all applications in late 2025 and notifying successful candidates by the end of the year.

Register your interest

 

Any questions about the program?


Contact Jacqui Plozza
[email protected]