Graduate Programs in Victoria Worth Benchmarking: What Asahi, Fonterra, P&G and Coles Publish

A list of graduate programs in Victoria can blur two different things: where a company has an office and where it places its graduates. This guide keeps them apart. It uses the employers' own pages as they read on 20 October 2026 and covers Asahi Beverages, Fonterra, P&G and Coles, with a note on what a Victorian employer can copy from each.

The distinction is simple. According to Asahi Beverages' graduate page, several graduate streams are based in Victoria, including Sales, Marketing, Revenue Management, Business Insights, Data Science and Logistics at Southbank Head Office. Fonterra (Richmond head office), P&G (Hawthorn head office) and Coles (a Hawthorn East address in its page footer) are listed for the office address their pages show, not because the pages say graduates are placed there. This guide covers Victoria only, so it says nothing about Queensland or South Australia.

Key Takeaways

• An office address on a careers page is not a graduate placement: Asahi Beverages names Victorian locations for its graduate streams, while the Fonterra, P&G and Coles pages show office addresses only.
• Asahi publishes a five-step process that runs from online testing to an assessment centre, but its page shows "Applications closed", so treat it as a design example rather than an intake to quote.
• Fonterra's 18-month program and P&G's Sales role with no rotations show two different ways to structure a first job.
• A smaller Victorian employer can copy a single start point, a named mentor and a staged assessment without a graduate budget.

Graduate programs in Victoria: what each page names

The table keeps to the wording each page uses. A cell that reads "not published on the page" means the page does not say, which is different from the employer having no rule.

• Asahi Beverages - Victorian location named on the page: Southbank Head Office for Sales, Marketing, Revenue Management, Business Insights, Data Science and Logistics; Abbotsford and Tullamarine manufacturing sites for some Supply Chain pathways; Length: 12 to 15-month options; Streams: Sales; Marketing; Revenue Management; Business Insights; Data Science; Supply Chain; Logistics; What the page says about selection: Five steps: application; online cognitive assessments; one-way video interview; assessment centre; offer. Open to Australian or New Zealand citizens or permanent residents who graduated within the last two years
• Fonterra - Victorian location named on the page: Head office in Richmond, Melbourne (an office address; graduate placement not stated); Length: 18-month program (one graduate quote on the page mentions a 2-year period); Streams: Commercial; Supply Chain; Automation Engineering; What the page says about selection: Stages not published on the page. Final year of undergraduate studies or within 2 years of graduating; credit average of 65 or higher; Australian or NZ resident or citizen
• P&G - Victorian location named on the page: Melbourne Head Office in Hawthorn (an office address; graduate placement not stated); Length: Sales graduate role has no rotations; length not published on the page; Streams: Sales (Business Development Manager role); What the page says about selection: Stages not published on the page. P&G Australia generally considers Australian or New Zealand citizens and Australian permanent residents eligible for hire (general hiring, not a graduate-only rule); no employment-based visa sponsorship
• Coles - Victorian location named on the page: Hawthorn East address in the page footer (graduate placement not stated); Length: Not published on the page; structured rotations mentioned; Streams: A range of career streams; not listed on this page; What the page says about selection: Stages not published on the page. Pre-registration open; applications open in 2027

Read the second column first. A head office address is useful context if you are planning a graduate program for a Melbourne head office, but it does not tell you where a graduate would work each day. Only the Asahi entry names graduate locations.

The four programs one at a time

Asahi Beverages

Asahi's page describes 12 to 15-month program options across seven streams. The Sales, Marketing, Revenue Management, Business Insights, Data Science and Logistics streams list Southbank Head Office in Victoria, and some Supply Chain pathways list Abbotsford or Tullamarine manufacturing sites. The page publishes five steps: application, online cognitive assessments, a one-way video interview, an assessment centre and an offer. It also carries an "Applications closed" banner.

Eligibility is published too: Australian or New Zealand citizens or permanent residents who graduated within the last two years, with the Sales stream open to any degree discipline. What to copy: publish your steps before anyone applies.

Fonterra

According to Fonterra's graduate page, the head office is in Richmond, Melbourne, with eight manufacturing sites across Victoria and Tasmania and sales offices in Sydney, Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane. The program runs 18 months across three streams (one graduate quote on the page mentions a 2-year period), and the eligibility rules sit in one list. The page also says graduates are hired into a permanent role. The page shows no application window and does not say which office or site a graduate works from. What to copy: state eligibility in one place.

P&G

P&G's Australia locations page lists a Melbourne head office in Hawthorn beside a Sydney head office. The separate Sales graduate page describes a Business Development Manager role with a company car, says P&G does not offer rotations, and promises accountability from day one. Neither page says where Sales graduates are based. The locations page adds that P&G Australia generally considers Australian or New Zealand citizens and Australian permanent residents, and does not sponsor employment-based visas. What to copy: if the job is one job, say so.

Coles

Coles is a supermarket retailer, so it counts as retail and FMCG-adjacent rather than manufacturing. According to Coles' talent programs page, pre-registration is open now, applications open in 2027, and graduates get structured rotations and mentoring. The only Victorian detail is a Hawthorn East address in the footer. What to copy: a register-your-interest list tells candidates when you will next hire.

What a Victorian employer can copy

None of this needs a cohort of fifty or a dedicated graduate team. Each practice below is tied to something a page publishes, and each suits a Melbourne graduate program in FMCG or any other sector.

• A single start point. Asahi's page describes starting with an induction alongside the cohort, and Fonterra's offers a company induction and an 18-month learning calendar. One start date and one induction day replace a patchwork of first weeks.
• A named mentor. Fonterra says graduates are mentored by senior management and coached by rotation supervisors. A smaller employer can name one senior person for career conversations and one supervisor for daily work.
• A staged assessment. Asahi puts online tests and a one-way video interview ahead of its assessment centre. If you receive applications in bulk, an early skills check shortens the pile before anyone spends interview time.

The staged assessment is where a tool can help. One practical option is Righteo's AI skills assessment, which covers technical, personality and cognitive tests, and its guide to screening applicants in high-volume hiring covers the wider pipeline. A test, a video answer or a short case shows how a candidate works, which a polished written application alone does not, and the post on the impact of AI on graduate hiring covers the wider pressure on graduate intake.

These practices suit any employer building Victorian graduate recruitment benchmarks, because they cost planning time rather than money.

Where this list stops

Some limits are worth stating plainly. Fonterra lists manufacturing sites in Victoria and Tasmania, but its page does not say graduates are placed at them. Only the Automation Engineering stream describes rotating through teams at manufacturing sites, and it does not name which ones. P&G's Melbourne address is an office, and Coles' address sits in a footer. If a page gives you only an address, write "not stated" in your own comparison sheet rather than filling the gap with a guess.

Bega Group, Mondelez, Mars and DuluxGroup are left out because their graduate pages do not name a Victorian graduate location, so nothing can be said about a Victorian discipline list for them. A separate guide to FMCG graduate programs in Australia covers those employers on what their pages do publish. Open and closed status also moves, so open each page before you quote an intake to anyone.

Related Resources

• AI skills assessment for candidates
• AI changes graduate hiring
• Screening high-volume applicants
• Asahi Beverages' graduate page
• Fonterra's graduate page
• P&G's Australia locations page
• Coles talent programs

Common Questions About Graduate Programs in Victoria

1. Which graduate programs in Victoria name a location on their page?

Of the four covered here, Asahi Beverages is the one that does. Its page lists Southbank Head Office in Victoria for several streams, and Abbotsford or Tullamarine manufacturing sites for some Supply Chain pathways. Fonterra, P&G and Coles show office addresses, but their pages do not say where graduates are placed.

2. Does a head office address mean graduates work there?

No. An address shows where a company has an office, not where a graduate sits. Fonterra's page names a Richmond head office and eight manufacturing sites, yet says nothing about where graduates are placed. Treat an address as context, and ask the employer where graduates actually work before you copy a location choice.

3. Are these Victorian graduate programs open for applications?

Asahi's page shows an "Applications closed" banner. Coles shows pre-registration, with applications opening in 2027. The Fonterra and P&G pages show no application window, so none is stated here. Status changes quickly, so open each page yourself before you tell a graduate anything.

4. Do these programs require a specific degree?

Not always. Asahi's Sales stream is open to any degree discipline, with business degrees highly regarded, although several other streams, including Marketing, Data Science, engineering and brewing, list required degrees. Fonterra says it looks for fresh thinkers instead of specific degrees, and asks for a credit average of 65 or higher.

5. What can a small Victorian employer copy from these programs?

Copy the structure, not the scale. Publish your steps and eligibility before anyone applies, name a mentor and a day-to-day supervisor, hold one induction day, and test skills early before spending time on interviews. Each is a published choice from the pages above, and each takes planning rather than a graduate budget.

Build Your Own Benchmark Sheet From Three Pages

Pick three of the pages above and open them yourself. For each, write down the location the page names, the length, the streams and any selection steps, and leave a cell blank wherever the page is silent. Then choose one practice, such as a staged assessment or a named mentor, and write it into your next graduate round. Check each page again before you quote an intake, because open and closed status changes.