And who should win a $20 gift card to Outback Steakhouse? It could be you. Follow the directions at the end of this post for your chance to win.
Tourism Queensland has been trying to hire someone for the Best Job in the World. Guess how many people applied? 34,000. Yes 34,000. That’s crazy. Why did so many people apply? Simply put, it’s the best job in the world.
You can find the full job description on the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef site, but basically they are trying to find someone who will live on Hamilton Island for 6 months and discover what the area has to offer. They then share with the world what they discover through weekly blog posts, a photo diary, video updates and media interviews.
Pretty sweet, huh? Oh, and for compensation they will receive round trip airfare, luxury accommodations and AUD $150,000 for six months work. Approximately, $95,000 US as of today.
To apply, potential candidates submitted a video application in English telling why they were the best person for the job and shared their knowledge of the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef. This video had to be less than 60 seconds. Creativity was encouraged.
Tourism Queensland was overwhelmed by the over 34,000 applications, but they delivered as promised by watching all of them and narrowing the list down to 50 by March 2nd. The shortlist of the top 50 candidates and their videos can be found here.
Eleven finalist will be picked for extensive interview taking place on several Islands of the Great Barrier Reef in early May. Ten will be picked by Tourism Queensland and the other candidate will be the person who receives the most votes online. Scot and I have picked our Top Eleven List and in no particular order here they are: Mark, George, David, Mitchell, Linda, Marcella, James, Adeline, Anny, Julia, and Erik. We’ll see how many of our Top Eleven advance when Tourism Queensland announces the eleven going to Queensland for interviews. Here are the videos for our Top Three picks.
Scot’s Top Three – in no particular order
1. Mitchell, Canada - You can vote for Mitchell here.
2. Marcella, Canada - You can vote for Marcella here.
3. Mark, United States - You can vote for Mark here.
Stephanie’s Top Three – in order. I love Mitchell, followed by Adeline. It gets a little fuzzy from there. The number three spot could just as easily go to David, Mark, George, Marcella, James or Anny. It was hard choice for me.
1. Mitchell, Canada - You can find Mitchell’s video in Scot’s Top Three List. We both loved it. You can vote for Mitchell here.
2. Adeline, United States – You can vote for Adeline here.
3. Linda, Canada – You can vote for Linda here.
So tell us. Who’s your top pick? You can view all 50, our top 11 or just our top 3, but check out some videos and let us know who your pick is and why. Everyone who leaves a comment with their pick for the Island Caretaker Job and why by 6:00pm EST on Monday, March 16th will be given one entry into our drawing. That evening we will put the qualifying names in a hat and draw one winner on video and post it. That winner will receive a $20 gift card to Outback Steakhouse. That’s as close as we can get you to Australia on our budget!
Start viewing and good luck. Oh, and take the time to officially vote for your favorite on the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef website.
[...] a quick thank-you to Scot and Stephanie Longyear of Trekeo.com, who came to a consensus on their Top 11 from the 50 shortlisted applicants for the Island Caretaker job — and included all three [...]
It was a tough decision between Mitchell and Linda. I think someone who lives in Canada where it’s cold a lot of the time is most deserving to get to live on an island and soak up some sun. Linda showed a lot of enthusiasm, but I think Mitchell might have the best education and background for doing a thorough job of studying the island. So, my vote is for Mitchell.
[...] us out. Oh, and you can even win a $20 gift card to Outback Steakhouse if you participate in the Best Job in the World post. Hurry! You have to enter by 6:00pm EST on Monday, March 16th. For real. Don’t miss this [...]
My fav is Angie (http://www.islandreefjob.com/#/Angie) and it is simply because she is a friend of a friend. I’ve been voting for her as often as I think of it! =)
I think they are all clever and entertaining…tough choice. I’m voting for Adeline, though, because her upside down face tickled me
Mitchell
After viewing a bunch, and your top picks included!
My favorites is/are…
Mark, USA because of his use of props and love the H2O at then end!
Mitchell, Canada has great musical talent and friends that can sing too, very nice!
Adeline, USA the special effects are outstanding!
I feel like Mitchell’s showcases a lot about him.
Tough choice, but I’d go with Linda, Canada. She seems like she’d be VERY good at getting the word out in TONS of different ways and would want to try TONS of different things.
Also, bonus points for HIMYM reference! *G*
I really like Adeline’s creativity but as a music person, Mitchell has my number one vote. Mark had a great video, especially with the water at the end!
I have to lean towards Mitchell…I know how much I was ready for winter to be over, and I live in (comparatively) tropical Indiana. Plus his musical was clever and funny.
As one of the top 50 finalists myself, I am in absolute AMAZEMENT of Mitchell’s video. I think if any one of us should be a wildcard candidate on JUST the video submission, my choice would be Mitchell, but we all know that won’t happen with Claire leading the way with a buh-zillion votes. Anyways, enjoyed your post. Make sure to drop by my blog if you have time. Have a good one!
Juweon – Thanks for stopping by. I very much remember your video. I thought you told a very compelling story and you were a big contender for our Top 11. Good luck as the contest moves forward.