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Course-required placements

Many of the courses at the University have compulsory placements or professional experience. These form a core part of your learning, giving you the opportunity to develop your skills and gain experience in a supervised workplace environment.

Different faculties or schools will have different terms for compulsory placements – this includes practical experience, field education, professional experience, internships and clinical placements.

The requirements for each will vary depending on your faculty or school and degree. In many cases you need to complete certain checks or clearances before your placement. This is outlined in the content below.

Depending on your course, additional placement or internship opportunities may be available.

Insurance cover

The University maintains a personal accident insurance policy that covers you while you are undertaking course related activities, including placements. Find out more about this insurance cover, including how to make a claim.

Bachelor of Arts (Media and Communications)

If you are completing the Bachelor of Arts (Media and Communications), you are required to complete an internship as part of your program.

The internship allows you to gain professional training in the media and communications field. Find out more information about your intership.

Education

If you are undertaking an early childhood, primary or secondary teacher education program, you will usually complete professional experience placements and an internship.

  • Professional experience placements provide the opportunity for experienced professionals in the field to assess your suitability, performance and effectiveness as a beginning teacher.
  • Internships give you more independence in the classroom and bridge the end of your pre-service professional learning and your first year of teaching.

You need to get a Working With Children Check and complete training in anaphylaxis before you can register for your placement.

Refer to the Education Professional Experience site for information on professional experience and internships.

COVID-19

Students need to meet the before they can register for a placement in a NSW Public School.

Students need to meet any requirements relating to NSW Public Health Orders issued under the .

Failure to meet these requirements may result in students being unable to complete their degree.

Social Work

If you are undertaking a social work program, you need to complete at least two placements referred to as field education.

Before attending placements, you need to get a national criminal record check. Depending on your placement, you may also need a Working With Children Check.

If your placement is in a NSW Health facility, you need to meet certain requirements and be verified by the NSW Ministry of Health. If your placement is at another provider, you may still need to meet some or all of these requirements.

Refer to the faculty website for information on social work field education.

Practical experience is a compulsory part of all Bachelor of Engineering (including combined degrees) and Master of Professional Engineering courses. You will complete at least 12 weeks of practical experience (or an acceptable alternative) during your degree to gain exposure to professional engineering practice. .

Student Compliance

All students enrolled in degree programs which have student/clinical placements need to provide evidence that they satisfy certain health and character checks. This process is known as Student Verification or Student Compliance. This requirement consists of two separate components: 

  • Checks and clearance requirements as prescribed for placement students by the New South Wales Government Ministry of Health (NSW Health), and;
  • Your program of study, or the site you attend, which may have additional requirements, such as First Aid and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certification, a Working with Children Check (WWCC) or a National Disability Insurance Scheme Worker Check (NDISWC).

Students are required to meet both NSW Health and degree program compliance requirements in your first year of study, regardless of when your first placement is scheduled.  Site-specific compliance requirements need to be satisfied as and when needed (usually six weeks prior to site attendance).

Support in meeting compliance requirements

The Faculty of Medicine and Health's student verification team will provide you with support to meet NSW Health compliance. This includes issuing you with a package of documents for your completion, and communicating the relevant deadlines. The team liaises with NSW Health to arrange your compliance - you will not need to contact NSW Health directly.

Placement officers, or education support officers, assigned to your program of study will assist you to meet any degree program or site-specific requirements. 

It is your responsibility as a student to maintain compliance throughout your enrolment. These important checks and clearance requirements are in place to protect your own safety, and the safety of staff, patients and clients within the health system and other locations. Failure to satisfy compliance standards will prevent you from attending your placement which may result in a FAIL grade for any placement units of study you are enrolled in.  

Registration

Registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), which is free of charge and organised by the University, is compulsory for students enrolled in a program for any of the following professions:

  • Dentistry
  • Medical practitioner
  • Nurse or midwife
  • Pharmacy
  • Physiotherapy
  • Medical radiation practitioner
  • Occupational therapy. 

All students attending placements are covered by University insurance policies while they are engaged on a student placement at placement partner sites.

Dentistry and Oral Health

As a Doctor of Dental Medicine or Bachelor of Oral Health student you will complete clinical experiences during your degree. Before you attend any placements you will need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by NSW Health.

Students are also required to provide evidence of First Aid and CPR certification following enrolment. Students are advised about these mandatory requirements either prior to enrolment, during enrolment or in their first year of study.

You must follow all advice so as not to delay any placements and/or study patterns. Placements may take place outside University standard teaching semesters and you are advised to check placement sessions specific to your program. There are also opportunities to undertake placements in rural and regional settings.

Health Sciences

Allied health students enrolled in a professional pre-registration program undertake student placements in a range of health care settings. Before you attend any placements you will need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by NSW Health.

Students are also required to provide evidence of CPR certification following enrolment. All students are advised about these mandatory requirements in their first year of study. You must follow all advice so as not to delay any placements and/or study patterns. 

Additionally, students are advised to plan ahead for their student placements due to the following:

  • Placements may take place outside University standard teaching semesters and you are advised to check placement sessions specific to your program
  • You may be required to complete at least one placement in a rural, regional or interstate location during your program
  • If your placement is child-related you may need a Working With Children Check.

Medical Sciences

Students enrolled in the Bachelor of Biomedicine and Health may have the opportunity to undertake a placement in an elective unit of study.  Depending on the placement, you may need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by NSW Health.  

Medicine

As a student enrolled in the Sydney Medical Program you will participate in clinical training and experiences in a range of health care settings throughout your studies, including clinical training in Sydney Medical School’s clinical schools in metropolitan Sydney, primary health care and rural settings. 

Students in other postgraduate medical courses may also be required to complete clinical training. 

Before you attend any placements you will need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by NSW Health. Students are also required to provide evidence of First Aid certification following enrolment. All students are advised about these mandatory requirements prior to or during enrolment for their first year of study. You must follow all advice so as not to delay any placements and/or study patterns. 

Placements may take place outside University standard teaching semesters and you are advised to check placement sessions specific to your program.

Nursing

Students enrolled in a pre-registration nursing program at Sydney Nursing School are required to undertake clinical placements in a range of health care settings, including public and private hospitals, mental health services, community health centres and schools. 

Before you attend any placements you will need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by the NSW Health. All students are advised about these mandatory requirements in their first year of study and must follow all advice so as not to delay any placements and/or study patterns.

Placements may take place outside University standard teaching semesters and you are advised to check placement sessions specific to your program.

Nutrition and Dietetics

Students enrolled in the Master of Nutrition and Dietetics program undertake placements in Food Service Management, Community Public Health Nutrition and Individual Case Management settings. 

Before you attend any placements you will need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by NSW Health. Students are also required to provide evidence of CPR certification following enrolment. All students are advised about these mandatory requirements in their first year of study and must follow all advice so as not to delay any placements and/or study patterns. 

  • Additionally, students are advised to plan ahead for their student placements due to the following:
  • Placements may take place outside University standard teaching semesters and you are advised to check placement sessions specific to your program
  • you may be required to complete at least one placement in a rural, regional or interstate location during your program.

Pharmacy

As a student enrolled in a pre-registration pharmacy program you will be required to complete clinical placements in a range of health care settings, including community pharmacies and hospitals. 

Before you attend any placements you will need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by NSW Health. Students are also required to provide evidence of First Aid and CPR certification following enrolment. All students are advised about these mandatory requirements in their first year of study and must follow all advice so as not to delay any placements and/or study patterns.

Additionally, students are advised to plan ahead for their student placements due to the following:

  • Placements may take place outside University standard teaching semesters and you are advised to check placement sessions specific to your program
  • You may be required to complete at least one placement in a rural, regional or interstate location during your program.

Public Health

A supervised work placement in a public health institution is available to eligible students, based on academic merit, and is typically undertaken in place of a Captone unit. Theses placements are approximately six weeks of full-time (or equivalent part-time) work. Placements are typically in Sydney and its surrounding areas but it may be possible to allow placements in regional/rural areas of NSW, other states/territories and countries in specific circumstances. The public health institutions will normally be located outside university environments, although some occur in research institutes.

Depending on the site placement, you may need to fulfil mandatory checks and clearances, including immunisations and police checks, as required by NSW Health.  

Placements may take place outside University standard teaching semesters and you are advised to check placement sessions specific to your program.

Master of Clinical Psychology

If you are completing the Master of Clinical Psychology, you are required to complete both internal and external placements. These placements start during the first semester of your program.

Before you can attend a placement, you need to hold provisional registration with AHPRA's Psychology Board of Australia (PsyBA) and have certain clinical placement checks and clearances.

Q fever vaccinations

It's an inherent requirement of enrolling in certain courses in the Faculty of Science that you have undergone a Q fever vaccination:

  • Bachelor of Agriculture Science (Honours)
  • Bachelor of Animal and Veterinary Bioscience
  • Doctor of Veterinary Medicine.

If you're enrolling in these courses or any other with specific Q fever vaccination requirements, make sure you understand the process for getting your Q fever vaccination.

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine

If you are studying the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) you will need to complete compulsory placements throughout your course.

You will complete a range of preclinical placements in tandem with your coursework study. These placements are completed from the first to third year of your degree and include:

  • pre-clinical industry placements (animal husbandry placements)
  • abattoir placement
  • preparatory clinical placements.

In your final year of study, you will get hands-on experience completing extramural placements (EMS) in a wide range of host organisations and intramural placements (IMS) within the University’s Teaching Hospitals, Sydney and Camden.

Bachelor of Animal and Veterinary Bioscience

A key component of the Bachelor of Animal and Veterinary Bioscience (AVBS) degree is the professional experience placement program.

This is a workplace-based program requiring a minimum of 4 placements totalling 40 days to be completed by the end of the third year (or sixth semester) of your degree, before you commence Year 4. Placements are undertaken across a range of approved work environments as detailed in the guidebook. Your placements will be recorded as 4 x 0 credit point units of study (AVBS2011-2014) associated with the type of placement.

Bachelor of Agricultural Science (Honours)

A key component of the Agriculture Science (Honours) degree is the professional experience placement program.

This is a workplace-based program requiring the completion of one placement core unit (AFNR2001) and at least one of three placement units totalling 40 days to be completed by the end of the third year (or sixth semester) of your degree, before you commence Year 4. Placements are undertaken across a range of approved work environments as detailed in the guidebook. Your 40 days of placements will be recorded as 0 credit point units of study (including your core AFNR2001 and a selection from AFNR2002-2004) associated with the type of placement.

Food and Agribusiness (stream)

If you are enrolled in the Food and Agribusiness stream, you are required to complete a compulsory placement of six weeks duration in Year 4 (FOOD4001).  Placements are undertaken across a wide variety of approved organisations in many business disciplines. 

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Last updated: 19 September 2025

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