Pharmacy
Pharmacy students are generally required to complete at least one rural placement during your university degree. But why stop at one?! A rural placement gives you a vibrant learning experience, opportunities to engage in community activities such as outreach health clinics and career support that could help you secure a great internship after graduation.
Enrich your pharmacy studies and gain valuable experience for your internship year and beyond by undertaking one or more multi-week rural placements with us.
Each day brings a new learning experience! I have been helping with receiving, unpacking and putting away stock, observing the preparation of doses, joining clinical pharmacists on various wards (medical, surgical, rehab, stroke and mental health) and more.
Angela, Pharmacy
Top reasons pharmacy students choose rural:
- Exciting patient-centred learning experiences
- Competitive advantage for internship year
- Opportunities to engage with the local community
- Subsidised student accommodation*
*Students can access free accommodation in Moree or apply for subsidised accommodation at one of our other main locations. Read more about student accommodation in our Student Orientation Manuel.
Interdisciplinary educational opportunities
Your rural pharmacy placement will give you both clinical and interdisciplinary learning opportunities to help your resume stand out from the crowd. From attending talks with local healthcare professionals, to teaching primary-school students about health and hygiene, there’s never a dull moment! You’ll have plenty of opportunities to put your clinical knowledge into practice with close academic support at every step.
Choose your placement preferences
Once allocated a rural placement site, you will have the option to complete a pre-placement survey about the kind of pharmacy experience you’re looking for. For example, you may wish to experience a smaller, quieter rural pharmacy or maybe you want a busy regional pharmacy. Your survey responses will help us place you with a pharmacy that best suits your needs and desired placement outcomes.
Some of our pharmacy placement sites include:
- Armidale Hospital
- Manning Base Hospital
- Coffs Harbour Base Hospital
- Port Macquarie Base Hospital
- Tamworth Hospital
- Local community pharmacies within our footprint
Funding support
You may be entitled to a scholarship or grant to assist your studies, such as Health Education and Training scholarships or the University of Newcastle’s Betty Josephine Fyffe Rural Health Scholarships. To find out more, talk with your university on application.
How to apply
University of Newcastle students must nominate their desired placement locations through the placement portal, “SONIA”. Each university has its own placement portal. If you are studying at another university, please consult your university for more information.
Once you have your rural placement, you will need to register with us via our placement portal to access community and accommodation support.
More information
Tamworth
Sonja Littlejohns
Phone: +61 2 6755 3500
Email: sonja.littlejohns@newcastle.edu.au
Taree
Claire Frewin
Phone: +61 2 4055 1900
Email: claire.frewin@newcastle.edu.au
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.