Member of Parliament
What the work is
Represents the interests of people in a constituency as their elected member to national, state or territory parliament.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Represents constituents in parliament
- Attends and participates in parliamentary sessions
- Votes on legislation and policies
- Researches and analyses issues
- Meets with constituents
- Advocates for constituents in committees
- Collaborates with other members on legislation
- Represents political party or coalition
- Engages in public communication
- Stays informed on current events
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a fictional shire council and its surrounding towns, as an elected councillor. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A project residents have asked about for years finally gets approved
- A resident who came in angry leaves feeling that someone listened and followed up
- A tough vote ends with councillors from different sides still respecting one another
Hard days
- Two groups of residents want completely opposite things and both are right about something
- Giving up another evening and weekend for meetings, with no extra time to be at home
- Being blamed in public for decisions that were made years before you were elected
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 121332, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.