JUMP is a competitive program with a limited number of places available. Take a minute to read the advice of our previous selection panellists about what makes applications competitive:

• Stretch yourself. Approach artists working in your dream job, not just your next job, and ask them to mentor you. Even if they can’t undertake a mentoring role on this occasion, they might be able to recommend mentor options you wouldn’t have been aware of otherwise.
• Give plenty of notice. Remember that a Mentor Statement Form from your potential mentor is vital to the eligibility of your application, but mentors are likely to be busy. So allow enough time to have an initial chat with your mentor if you can, so they can provide thoughtful responses to the questions on the form.
• The primary purpose of the JUMP program is mentorship, not project funding. The funding is provided to support your mentorship, so when you talk about your project, highlight how it will enable you to maximise the transfer and application of skills, experience and advice from your mentor.
• Don’t go for more of the same - identify gaps in your artistic practice. Tell us where you want to go next in broadening or deepening your practice, and what skills you need to develop to get there.
• Why now? Explain why having a mentor is the best learning option for you in the current stage of your career.
• Be realistic about study. Especially if you’re a full time student, as well as being clear on how you will keep your JUMP project completely separate from assessable work, and what your tertiary institution’s policy is on external programs, think carefully about whether you’re going to have enough time to complete both study and mentorship commitments to the best of your abilities.
• Be realistic about other funding. If you’re including other income in your budget, try to secure it, or at least apply for it, before or soon after you submit your JUMP application. In some cases your acceptance into the program may be made conditional upon confirmation of other funding you have detailed in your budget.
• Compile work samples with the same care you put into writing your application. Be judicious when choosing the best examples of your work, and seek your potential mentor’s feedback on your selection of samples if possible. Viewing your work samples should be technically straightforward, and make the panel feel immediately confident in your ability to deliver on the mentorship project you’re proposing. Consider details like the effectiveness of work sample format (eg performance-based artforms are often better represented in audio/video than still images) and content (eg a brief synopsis sets the scene for a written excerpt).