Work in regional NSW

A good financial move

Not only can regional NSW be an amazing place to advance your career, but certain positions come with amazing financial and non-financial incentives.

This means that your take-home pay can often be higher when working in a regional area due to the range of financial incentives employers provide to attract and retain skilled workers. There may also be other incentives such as extra paid annual leave, and support for schooling and housing.

NSW Health incentives

NSW Health offer a range of financial and non-financial incentives for some jobs that are hard to fill and/or essential to service provision. These incentives are over and above standard employment entitlements. Information on incentives and scholarships can be found at NSW Health’s ‘Imagine Rural’ website.

Individual Local Health Districts (LHDs) also have information about benefits and incentives they offer. Check out the perks of living and working for NSW Health in these regions.

Housing benefits

NSW Health employees living and working in over 100 rural and remote locations in NSW may be entitled to remote area housing benefits, giving them more tax savings and increasing their take home pay.

NSW Department of Education incentives

Teachers who work in NSW public schools in rural or remote areas may be eligible for a wide range of financial incentives and other professional benefits, depending on location. Visit NSW Department of Education’s Choose rural site to find out more about the benefits and incentives associated with specific rural and remote locations and learn about the areas and schools involved.

NSW Department of Education also offers scholarships for HSC and university students looking to teach in rural and remote NSW public schools. For more information, visit the teach.Rural Scholarship website.

Rental Subsidies

Teachers working for the NSW Department of Education may be eligible for rental subsidies of up to 90% if working in select rural and remote schools.

Make Coonamble your home - rural teachers

“The incentives of working in a rural community make it a lot easier for you to relocate and stay in that community.”Jess - Teacher, Coonamble High School

It's a great place to grow your career

Many essential workers find working in regional and rural settings is a career advantage, in many cases progressing faster than they would in a metro environment.

Professional development and career growth are just some of the advantages of regional working. You are often exposed to a range of different tasks and responsibilities, and by ‘wearing multiple hats’, you will quickly grow your professional skillset.

Regional NSW offers unique career opportunities, typically with wider scopes of practice and exposure to tasks that you won’t get elsewhere. In smaller towns, you’re not just a small cog in a big wheel, you’re a valued member of the team with the ability to make closer relationships with senior staff and the capability to make an outsized impact on the community.