Key information
- Status: Closed
- Grant amount: From $1 to $7,500
- Application opened: 5 November 2025
- Application closed: 10 December 2025, 5:00 pm
Program objective
This professional development program provides staff and volunteers of museums, galleries, or Aboriginal cultural organisations with an opportunity to extend their knowledge, enrich their skills and cultivate new networks through access to the expertise and resources of larger or specialised cultural organisations.
Volunteer Placements provide volunteers from NSW volunteer managed museums, galleries, and Aboriginal cultural spaces with the opportunity to spend up to two weeks with staff and resources of larger or more specialised cultural organisations.
Mentorships provide opportunities for emerging and mid-level staff from NSW museums, galleries, and Aboriginal cultural organisations to spend two weeks with a state, national, or smaller, more specialised organisation.
Fellowships offer senior staff from NSW museums, galleries and Aboriginal cultural spaces the opportunity to spend two weeks at an international or interstate cultural organisation to build networks and develop skills.
This program is administered by Create NSW.
Eligibility
Who can apply
Mentorships and Fellowships
To be eligible you must:
- Be working in a paid position in a NSW public museum, gallery, or Aboriginal cultural space (staff based in major state or national cultural organisations are ineligible to apply)
- Be able to fulfil the placement between 1 July 2026 – 30 June 2027 over two consecutive weeks
- Agree to abide by the Terms & Conditions of the grant program
- Not have previously received an M&G NSW Mentorship or Fellowship
- Not have applied for, or received, Create NSW funding for the same activity.
Volunteer Placements
To be eligible to apply you must:
- Be a volunteer in a volunteer managed or small museum (maximum of 2 full-time equivalent paid staff), volunteer-run not for profit gallery, or Aboriginal cultural space in NSW.
- Be able to complete the placement between 1 July 2026 – 30 June 2027. (Up to 10 days, which may be spread over several weeks)
- Not have previously received an M&G NSW Volunteer Placement
- Agree to abide by the Terms & Conditions of the grant program (below)
- Not have applied for, or received, Create NSW funding for the same activity.
Types of projects funded under this grant
In person placements with a host organisation to develop skills in the museum and gallery sector.
When the project can start and end
The project should be started by 1 July 2026 and the project must be completed by 30 June 2027.
What your application needs to include
Prepare your application with this checklist
Fellowships
Attach an up-to-date copy of your CV (3 pages max.)o Provide a letter of support from your employer or management body Provide a letter demonstrating endorsement by the host organisation. A schedule of the program and activities you propose to undertake. (2 pages max.) You may choose to supply additional budget details (1 page max.)
Mentorships
Attach an up-to-date copy of your CV (3 pages max.)o Provide a letter of support from your employer or management body Provide a letter demonstrating endorsement by the host organisation if placement has not been facilitated through M&G NSW You may choose to supply additional budget details (1 page max.)
Volunteer Placement
Provide a letter of support from your museum, Aboriginal cultural centre, or management body
Provide a letter demonstrating endorsement by the host organisation if you have arranged your own placement (i.e., you did not choose a placement from the hosts listed in these guidelines).
Address the eligibility criteria
Each applicant, as part of an application response, must confirm that they meet the eligibility criteria.
Applicants that do not address the eligibility criteria in full may be excluded from the application process at the department's discretion.
Start the application
- Contact the Training and Engagement Manager via email dalem@mgnsw or (02) 5663 2337 (Tue-Fri) to discuss your proposal before you submit your application
- Submit your application on the relevant online application form
- Submit the relevant support material:
- Attach an up-to-date copy of your CV (3 pages max.)
- Provide a letter of support from your employer or management body
- Provide a letter demonstrating endorsement by the host organisation if placement has not been facilitated through M&G NSW
- Fellowship applications should also submit a program of activity for their placement.
- You may choose to supply additional budget details (1 page max)
Note: If you are a new applicant to SmartyGrants, you will need to register and create a password. If you are already registered, you can log in with your existing username and password.
Apply now
After the application is submitted
Successful applications will be decided by: Create NSW
Applications are assessed by a panel of creative sector peers facilitated by M&G NSW and approved through Create NSW.
Where successful applicants do not match available hosts, M&G NSW will assist in obtaining alternate placement opportunities.