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Health Sciences placements
Work integrated learning - building our future health workforce
Our students undertake a number of placements throughout their degrees, giving them an opportunity to learn from practitioners in their field and apply their classroom learning.
About our placements
Embedded placements are an opportunity for students to:
- situate their theoretical and evidence-based learning within the workplace context
- gain professional attributes associated to their discipline
- gain exposure to inter-professional learning
- develop competence in clinical reasoning
- develop work readiness skills.
Placements are offered in a variety of public and private hospitals, as well as private practices, residential aged care, and community or school settings (depending on your degree). They are available in metropolitan Sydney, rural and remote locations, and interstate. Students are required to undertake at least one placement outside of Sydney.
For detailed information on placements, please visit the handbook.
Important information
There are certain checks and clearances you will need to complete before you can undertake your placement. You must have:
- a Working with Children check
- a current Australia CPR Certificate
- vaccination and immunisations in compliance with the NSW Health Policy Directive
- a Criminal Record Check
- familiarity with privacy and confidentiality policy.
Find out more about these pre-placement requirements on the current student website. For current students, there is also information on preparing for your placement on Canvas.
All relevant information about the expectations placed on students before, during and after placement will be provided at the placement briefing sessions.
Many of the dates for placement fall outside of the regular semester time. You need to be aware of the specific placement calender prior to organising any personal activities including holidays or paid work until you have confirmation of your placement.
Limited extenuating circumstances impacting on a placement may be considered with more information available once you are enrolled in your course.
2020 placement calendars
The 2020 placement calenders are now available for reference. Note that these dates may be subject to change and may not apply to students following a non-standard placement progression:
- diagnostic radiography (pdf, 373kb)
- exercise sport science and exercise physiology (pdf, 144kb)
- occupational therapy (pdf, 112kb)
- physiotherapy (pdf, 77kb)
- rehabilitation counselling (pdf, 471kb)
- speech pathology (pdf, 98kb)
All placements are provided with the aim of meeting the course, Australian professional accreditation and (where appropriate) Australian regulatory authority requirements. You must therefore complete all required placements in order to graduate and be eligible for professional registration membership.
For more detailed information about placements for health sciences students, please read our frequently asked questions document.
About us
Work Integrated Learning (WIL) at the Sydney School of Health Sciences is nationally and internationally recognised for its leadership in innovation, research and teaching in work integrated learning education.
We are a unique team of interdisciplinary academics and professional staff who are responsible for high quality placements and simulated learning experiences. We work closely with the health sciences disciplines to ensure integration between coursework and placement learning outcomes.
Discipline contacts
Academic staff
Professional staff
- Viola Retsinas
- Carla LeCordier
- Email: shs.mis-placements@sydney.edu.au
Academic staff
- Julia Blackford
- Dr Amabile Borges Dario
- Justine Dougherty
- Michele Fairbrother
- Dr Belinda Judd
- Georgia O'Hara
- Tracey Pearce
Professional staff
- Jolie Chantharath
- Stephen Howe
- Email: shs.physioclinical@sydney.edu.au
Academic staff
- Dr Kate Thomson
Professional staff
- Viola Retsinas
- Email: shs.rehabplacements@sydney.edu.au
Non discipline-specific staff include:
- Dr Gillian Nisbet, Director, WIL
- Marcelle Alam, Manager, placements and WIL
- Sarah Aley - Lead, placements and WIL
FitAbility clinic
FitAbility provides physical activity and exercise programs for people with spinal cord injury, acquired brain injury and other disabilities. The purpose-built clinic contains specialised equipment and is accessible for clients with disabilities. Exercise and physiology students have the opportunity to undertake placements at our FitAbility clinic.
Each exercise program is designed specifically to suit each individual with most programs consisting of a range of progressive resistance training, aerobic exercise and functional activities. For more information about FitAbility, please contact FitAbility coordinator on shs.fitability@sydney.edu.au or 9351 9886.
