Types of placements

Career-ready placements are discipline-specific and take many forms. For our undergraduate students, placements are compulsory for graduation. In certain degrees, placement requirements are set by the relevant accrediting or governing bodies, such as those in health, education, engineering, psychology, and social work. Placements can be short-term, long-term, or take the form of an industry-led project or research.

Students are required to complete a minimum 140 hours of work-related experience which may fall into one of two categories:

  • Role-based: Students work with your organisation in your workplace. Placements may be local, regional or international.
  • Project-based: Students develop a project based on a brief provided by you. Projects can take place on or off-campus, and you will provide support and mentorship along the way. Students may work individually or as part of a group.
Designing a role-based placement Proposing a project-based activity

Designing a role-based placement

Role-based placements provide students the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they have developed during their studies in a professional environment. If you’re interested in hosting a student in your workplace, here are some things to keep in mind:

  • Placement activities: The placement should provide students with suitable, course-aligned duties that allow them to apply their academic knowledge and skills in a professional setting, mirroring entry-level or, where appropriate, more advanced roles. You will be asked to supply a placement description outlining the proposed activities. You can download a Placement Position Description template here (Word, 51KB).
  • Paid or unpaid placements: Placements are an opportunity for students to gain important industry experience outside of their assessable course curriculum. Unpaid placements are lawful under the Fair Work Act 2009 so long as they form part of a course requirement and are approved by the university. However, host organisations can opt to pay participating students for their placement experience, with paid placements offering a number of benefits. This includes attracting strong candidates through a competitive selection process while also allowing for greater flexibility. Paid placements are an opportunity for host organisations to enhance their workforce capability and foster a strong sense of value and contribution, ultimately benefiting both the student and the employer.
  • Supervision: You will need to assign a dedicated placement supervisor to be a point of contact for the student/s throughout the experience, offering support, mentoring, feedback and guidance.
  • Work environment: You will need to provide a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment free from sexual harassment, bullying, and discrimination.
  • Orientation: To ensure a smooth transition to your workplace, provide students with a comprehensive orientation covering relevant organisation-specific information. This may include WHS, emergency protocols, privacy, culture, behavioural expectations, workplace rules and procedures, privacy and confidentiality policies, supervisor/colleague introductions, and supervision arrangements.
  • Equipment and training: You will need to provide any necessary equipment, resources, and/or training for the student/s. Where required, you will need to implement reasonable workplace adjustments for identified student needs, in consultation with the University and the student/s.
  • Assessment: You must monitor and evaluate the student/s performance during the placement. This includes making observations, providing feedback, and potentially completing a post-placement evaluation. In some cases, we might ask you to provide University staff with reasonable access to your premises to facilitate student assessment and monitoring.
  • Special requirements: Consider if the student/s must meet any requirements or preconditions to undertake placement in your workplace, such as Working with Children Checks, police checks, vaccinations, first aid or compliance certificates.
  • Intellectual property: You should consider whether the tasks undertaken by the student are likely to generate intellectual property, and if required, enter a separate agreement with the student relating to intellectual property rights ownership.

Visit placement essentials to learn more about what's involved in offering a career-ready placement experience.

Placements vs jobs

If your organisation has an opportunity that needs to be filled quickly, is for a term not aligned with our career-ready placement courses or is for a specific purpose not aligned to course learning outcomes, your opportunity may be better suited as paid employment. The Careers and Employability team can help with advertising employment opportunities to our students.

Proposing a project-based activity

Some of our disciplines offer students the opportunity to meet their career-ready placement requirements by completing an industry-led project instead of a role-based placement. If you would like to offer a project-based activity, keep in mind the following:

  • Project proposals: Project proposals should align with both the student’s studies and the organisation’s goals. Each project should be standalone and able to be completed by an individual or group of students within approximately 140 hours* of effort per student over 12 weeks. You will be asked to supply a project brief outlining the challenge and relevant parameters. You can download a Project Brief template here (Word, 48KB).
  • Location: You may organise to have students complete your project on-campus, onsite in your workplace, or a combination of both. If your project will be run on-campus, the project supervisor may be asked to attend one or more face-to-face and/or virtual workshops with the student/s to provide input and guidance.
  • Supervision: You must assign a dedicated project supervisor to be a point of contact for the student/s during the semester, offering support, mentoring, feedback and guidance on the project.
  • Assessment: The project supervisor will be asked to provide feedback on the final project, which may be presented face-to-face or virtually by the student/s.
  • Intellectual Property: You should consider whether the project is likely to generate intellectual property, and if required, enter a separate agreement with the student/s relating to intellectual property rights ownership.

Visit placement essentials to learn more about what's involved in offering a career-ready placement experience.

*In some instances, such as for our Computer Science students, the commitment may be longer e.g., 240-280 hours over two semesters.