Introduction
The Director, Design and Infrastructure Standards at the NSW Department of Education shapes the standards that guide education facilities, design and operations. The role maintains and improves the Educational Facilities Standards and Guidelines and provides expert advice across infrastructure planning. It is a Public Service Senior Executive Band 1 position based in Eveleigh. View the official job ad before you begin.
How to apply for Director, Design and Infrastructure Standards comes down to two written materials: a résumé and a cover letter explaining how your capabilities, knowledge and experience fit the role. No cover-letter page limit is given. Plan for a focused letter that shows the design decisions you have led and how those decisions improved facilities or service outcomes.
The panel needs to see senior design leadership and influence across a large organisation. A useful example will explain the standards or design problem, the stakeholders whose needs differed, the options you assessed and the outcome. Keep your qualification, registration and Working with Children Check details separate from those capability examples.
Contents
- Role snapshot
- Application requirements
- Candidate evidence
- Example application structure
- Before you submit
Director, Design and Infrastructure Standards role snapshot
| Role title | Director, Design and Infrastructure Standards |
| Organisation | NSW Department of Education |
| Location | Eveleigh, Sydney |
| Job reference | 16317-44451693 |
| Work type | Ongoing, full time |
| Remuneration range | PSSE Band 1, $225,174 to $250,868 per annum |
| Closing date | Sunday 11 October 2026 at 11:59pm |
| Official job ad | View the official job ad |
Application requirements for Director, Design and Infrastructure Standards
Education is asking applicants to explain why their experience fits this specific infrastructure-standards remit. The written application has to follow the document instructions and make your senior design evidence easy to assess. Read the role description alongside the vacancy before you finalise the letter.
- Résumé.
- Cover letter describing the capabilities, knowledge and experience that make you suitable for this role.
Use the cover letter to connect specific design and infrastructure outcomes to the role’s responsibilities. A focused two-page letter is a practical choice when no maximum is stated, subject to any instructions in the online form.
The role also lists relevant tertiary qualifications or equivalent knowledge and experience, eligibility for NSW Architects Registration Board registration, and a valid Working with Children Check clearance. These are role or employment conditions, so verify your own status and state it accurately where requested.
Candidate requirements for Director, Design and Infrastructure Standards at the NSW Department of Education
The vacancy emphasises senior experience delivering high-quality design services, influence with senior stakeholders, complex priorities and commitment to public education. The table translates those points into evidence you can prepare; it does not add new official focus capabilities.
| Evidence area from the role | How to demonstrate it |
|---|---|
| Senior design-services leadership | Show the standards, facilities or design service you led, the scale of the portfolio and the improvement delivered. |
| Influencing senior stakeholders and partners | Use a decision where technical, operational and education needs differed. Explain how you negotiated a workable standard or design outcome. |
| Managing complex priorities | Describe how you set direction when safety, quality, cost, schedules and future use all mattered. Identify the trade-offs you made and the result. |
| Commitment to public education and Aboriginal education outcomes | Explain how your work supported learning environments and how you applied relevant policy or partnership commitments in practice. |
Example application structure for Director, Design and Infrastructure Standards
The application requires a cover letter and résumé, with the letter explaining how your knowledge and leadership fit the position. No maximum letter length is stated, so a focused two-page response is a practical starting point. The outline below keeps the evidence tied to infrastructure standards and education outcomes.
| Cover letter section | What to include |
|---|---|
| Opening | State your senior design or infrastructure scope and connection to education facilities. |
| Design standards | Explain a standards, design or facilities challenge you led and the improvement that followed. |
| Stakeholder influence | Show how you worked with technical, operational and senior partners to resolve competing needs. |
| Education outcomes | Connect your work to teaching, learning, public education or Aboriginal education commitments where you have direct evidence. |
| Closing | Reinforce how you would lead the Educational Facilities Standards and Guidelines function. |
What the panel will want to see in your examples
- Specific standards or design outcomes you led at senior level.
- Clear influence over partners with different technical or operational priorities.
- Judgement on quality, delivery and long-term facility use.
- Understanding of the education setting and the communities facilities serve.
Before you submit
Read the official role description and check that your letter explains the design work behind each claim. If you want help selecting examples and making the application easier for a panel to assess, Team 3Thirty can help with the written application.