Terms & Conditions and Selection Criteria

Entry Period

Entries open at 9am on Thursday 17 April, 2025 (Sydney time) and close at 11.59pm on Monday 12 May, 2025.

Eligibility Criteria

Individuals applying for funding must:

• Be a journalist working primarily in Australia
• Be either Australian citizens or permanent residents
• Have a minimum of five years’ experience as a news journalist
• Demonstrate a need for increased investigative journalism skills in their application and how they would put skills into practice afterwards
• Applications from rural, regional, and smaller media outlets and freelancers will be welcomed

What you will need to submit

All applicants will need to submit:

• Contact details
• A 50 word biography and a headshot in JPG or PNG format
• A CV (maximum 2 pages)
• Up to 800 words outlining the story/investigation they hope to develop through this fellowship
  • Your pitch with its overall aims, and specific activities
  • What the public interest need or rationale is for your story or project
  • What led you to this story?
  • How do you plan to approach it?
• Up to 200 words explaining the challenges they face
• Up to 200 words describing the skills they want to develop through this fellowship
• Examples of three articles, programs or podcasts published in the past 12 months
• Up to 100 words describing the reach and impact of this work

As part of their application, all applicants will also be required to:

• Declare any AI used in creating their application
• Declare that they abide by the MEAA Code of Ethics
• Indicate whether they require financial support towards flights, fuel or accommodation (up to $1000), should their news organisation be unable to fund their travel
• Provide any other requirements as indicated on the application form. Participants must have support of an editor or publisher for their application and an intention to publish a work utilising the skills acquired/enhanced during the course

For applicants applying as freelancers: If you are pitching your project or story to a publisher, please upload a PDF-format letter of intent to publish the finished project from the editor or publisher of your target platform. The reference should also explain why you would be a suitable recipient of the funding and would be able to deliver the proposed work.

Examples of industry professionals who could endorse your work include: an executive producer or a social media lead at a news organisation or production company.

All applications must:

• Be in the English language. Any submissions as part of the application in languages other than English must be submitted with an English translation
• Not discriminate based on race, gender, faith, national origin, sexual orientation or disability in accordance with current Australian legislation
• Not be editorially directed by any government or government agency

There are no entry application costs.

Selection Criteria

Eligible applications will be assessed, and funding recipients will be selected, according to the following Selection Criteria:

• How the fellowship will support the applicant to make journalism that is in the public interest;
• Whether the applicant has provided a clear and compelling description of the investigative work they hope to undertake
• The need and the clarity of the applicant’s application/pitch
• The applicant’s prior journalism practice, using measures such as the quality of previous work published, audience engagement metrics achieved through past published work, as provided in their application

Applications

• Eligible applicants must submit to the Walkley Foundation (online via the link at the bottom of these terms) a completed application form during the Entry Period from 09:00am, Thursday 17 April, 2025 (Sydney time) to 11.59pm on Monday 12 May, 2025.
• Applications will not be accepted after the end of the Entry Period. Applicants are required to complete and answer all sections of the application. Incomplete applications will immediately be disqualified.
• Applications will be assessed and by representatives of the Walkley Public Fund Committee.
• The Walkley Foundation and the judges will have the right to reject an application which in their opinion does not comply with these terms and conditions.
• The judges’ decisions will be final.
• Conflict of interest disclosures will apply to all judges.

Successful recipients

• If required as part of the selection process, video interviews will be conducted with the frontrunners
• The Walkley Foundation will notify successful applicants on or before 9 June 2025
• Successful applicants will be asked to sign an agreement before they are announced in June 2025
• Successful applicants must attend the workshop in Sydney on 5-6 July
• Participants are required to attend at 8.30am on Saturday morning 5 July. Non-Sydney participants can make a case in their application for financial support towards flights, fuel, and accommodation should their news organisation be unable to fund their travel

How to apply

• All applications must be submitted through the online entry form
• Applications must be completed online. NOTE: It is the responsibility of the applicant to answer all questions and provide all materials requested. Incomplete applications may disqualify the applicant

If you have any questions or need help, please email walkleys@walkleys.com.

Supported by

The Masters & McKenzie Investigative Journalism Fellowship is supported by Walkley Public Fund and proudly supported by the Dennoch Fund, a sub-fund of the Australian Communities Foundation.

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