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Graduate Certificate in Professional Practice
PostgraduateUNE-PRO-GCE2024
Course information for 2024 intake
Design a bespoke degree with your own team of experts
Benefit from a personal concierge service throughout your degree. Your dedicated team will work with you to refine your goals and create a unique course structure. Draw on areas of passion and experience to achieve your goals.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- Subject may require attendance
- Credit available
- Yes
- Duration
- 6 months full time or part time equivalent
- Total subjects
- 4
- Available loans
- Australian Higher Education Loan Program (HELP)
Graduate Certificate in Professional Practice
About this degree
Upon completion of this degree, students will be able to:
- Confidently decide on a new direction for their career
- Apply themselves to a broader range of career paths
- Use newfound specialised skills in an existing career, or use them to carve a new career
- Present themselves with a competitive edge in their chosen field
- Communicate existing knowledge, new knowledge and past professional experiences articulately to create opportunities
The Graduate Certificate in Professional Practice is one-of-a-kind degree that gives you the support of a concierge team of experts – helping you design and complete a course to fit your goals.
Unlike other courses, you don’t need to know where you’d like to take your career before you start studying.
Throughout this degree, you’ll benefit from a personal concierge service who will help you realise the direction you’d like to take in life. During this process, your team will help you consider your past experiences in both life and work to decide on the next step for your career.
Once your dedicated team has helped you envision your future, they’ll give you the tools to achieve your new-found goals by creating a unique study plan.
Your plan will draw upon your existing experience and the future needs of your career through the course-long core subject, 'Developing Your Professional Practice'.
For the remainder of your course structure, you’ll have the freedom to mix and match subjects from different areas of interest, or stay within one discipline, creating a course that is uniquely ‘you’.
Are you an accounting professional looking to improve presentation skills? You may choose to study a subject in theatre alongside a subject in business. The choice is yours.
Designed for online learning, the Graduate Certificate of Professional Practice is a degree that prioritises how you learn, as well as what you learn – allowing you to build and experience a course unlike any other
Recommended study pattern
DYPP500A and any three (3) OUA Elective Subjects approved by the Course Coordinator.
To access the course rules and plans go to the UNE Course Handbook.
Award requirements
To qualify for the award a candidate must pass 4 subjects including DYPP500A.
Choose your subjects
Electives
Any three (3) OUA subjects approved by the Course Coordinator.
Degrees are usually made up of core subjects and electives. Some degrees include a choice of majors, so you can focus your studies on a specialisation.
This list is a general overview. Download the full Degree Guide for more information.
Students must contact UNE with their intent to graduate.
Open Universities Australia is a not-for-profit organisation. You will not pay any fees for using our services.
Indicative total fee $17,360
The amount shown here is indicative for an Australian citizen studying full-time, which is typically 8 subjects per year.
Fees may vary depending on:
- the subjects you choose
- credit from previous work experience
- your eligibility for government funding loans or subsidies such as HECS-HELP or a Commonwealth supported place.
To learn more, go to Fees or contact a student advisor.
The University of New England is the only Australian public university to be awarded the maximum 5 stars for Overall Experience by the Good Universities Guide, 13 years in a row. UNE has delivered distance education since 1955—that’s longer than any other Australian university. Perhaps that’s why students continue to rate UNE so highly for student satisfaction and teaching quality. With over 170 degrees offered online, and more than 22,000 students, UNE is an expert in online education.
Learn more about UNE.
Explore UNE courses.
- QS World University Ranking 2025, within Australia:
- 36
Entry requirements
This is a restricted degree. Subject enrolment is only available to students admitted into this degree.
Candidates must hold an AQF Level 7 Bachelor qualification or above to meet admission requirements for this degree or; hold other relevant qualifications and workplace experience (at least 5 years full-time professional managerial experience).
GENERAL
(5)When an IELTS (International English Language Testing System), TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or PTE (Pearson Test of English) score is used to demonstrate English proficiency, that score must have been attained within two years of the date of application for admission.
STANDARD MINIMUM ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT
(6)At least one of the following criteria must be met:
- English is the applicant's first language; or
- Satisfactory completion, within five years of the date of application for admission to UNE, of at least one year of full-time or equivalent full-time study at senior secondary, post-secondary or tertiary level in a country in which English is the primary official language or co-official language and in which English was the sole medium of instruction and assessment for the particular period of study claimed, resulting in an AQF award or an award recognised by the National Office of Overseas Skills Recognition (NOOSR); or
- A pass grade or better in an English language subject at Australian Year 12 level or overseas equivalent; or
- An IELTS (Academic) overall score of at least 6.0 with no sub-band less than 5.5; or equivalent TOEFL score of at least 213 in the computer-based test; or at least 79 in the internet-based test with no less than 22 in the written component; or a PTE Academic minimum overall score of 57 with no skill less than 50; or
- Satisfactory completion of the English for Academic Purposes (EAP) program:
- at the University of New England English Language Centre; or
- an equivalent EAP program at an Australian university NEAS-accredited English Language Centre (subject to certification from the university concerned that satisfactory completion of that university's EAP program would entitle the applicant to be accepted into a comparable award-bearing program at that university); or
- at a non-university NEAS-accredited English Language Provider that has a formal agreement with UNE under which it provides an equivalent EAP Program; or
- a NEAS-accredited TAFE NSW EAP Program.
More detailed information regarding these requirements can be viewed at: English Language Requirements.
While UNE may consider Recognised Prior Learning for admission into the course, students can not use prior learning to qualify for Advanced Standing or equivalence for a unit of study.
Find out more about Recognition of Prior Learning.
Career opportunities
Being a highly tailored degree, career opportunities are endless.
Upon completion of this degree, students will have the skills to move into a new field of work based on their passions, further their existing career, or take their career in a new direction.
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Degree FAQs
How long does it take to finish an online degree?
That's up to you! Because we let you choose when to study online, you can actually pick up and pause study when it suits you. Many universities have a set time you need to complete your degree within. For some this is up to 10 years, and for others there is no limit.
There are some degrees that are stricter about when you can take breaks, and about how many years you can take to complete your degree. Please always check with your uni what the limits are.
As a general guide, Commonwealth supported place students have 10 years to finish their undergraduate degree through OUA, However, if you're studying with Griffith University, there's a limit of 8 years to complete your studies. If you want to take a break that lasts more than two study terms, you'll need to apply for a leave of absence. You can apply for a leave of absence for up to 12 months, as long as you complete your studies within the maximum time allowed for your degree.
If you're studying with Macquarie University, with the exception of certain degrees, there's no limit to how long you can take. But, please check with Macquarie Student Administration to be sure.
If you're studying with the University of Adelaide, you have up to 9 years to complete your undergraduate degree and graduate.
If you're studying with La Trobe University and want to take a break of minimum 1 study term, you must apply for leave of absence to avoid being inadvertently withdrawn from your degree.
Through OUA, you can study all year round, so it's possible to fast-track and finish up sooner than studying at a traditional uni would allow. That said, you need to spend around 12 hours a week on each undergraduate subject you do, so taking on extra work to finish ahead of time can be challenging.
How can I pay for my studies?
You may be eligible for a HELP loan from the Australian government, depending on your citizenship status and where you'll be living during your studies. You can also pay upfront with your credit card.
Payment options are explained in Fees, and you can contact a student advisor for more information.
How does studying through Open Universities Australia work?
You might find learning through OUA a little different to how you've studied in the past. It can take time to develop the skills you need for independent online study.
We connect you with subjects and degrees that are taught by leading Australian universities. You can complete single subjects, or follow a degree structure to work towards a specific qualification. Subjects are offered in several study terms throughout the year, so you can choose to study part-time or full-time, continuously or with breaks.
We help you find the subjects or degree that's right for you, and we handle your enrolment in uni and some administration. Your uni sends you your study materials and deals with all academic matters. They're also in charge of your assessment and graduation. If you go on to complete a degree, you'll graduate from the uni offering your degree, for example, RMIT University or Griffith University.
How do I know if I‘m eligible to apply for a course?
Before starting an enrolment, it's important to read the entry requirements for your chosen course to ensure that you're eligible to apply. If you don't quite meet the requirements, we can help you find a pathway into your course through open-entry subjects, which anyone can study. Contact us to find out more.
When is my cut-off date for enrolment?
Our close of enrolment times vary. You can check the cut-off dates for upcoming study terms by visiting Key dates.
Why should I study online through Open Universities Australia?
There are a lot of reasons to study your course online through us.
You can enrol without entry requirements
We have a unique open-door policy that makes it possible for everyone to enrol in university study, no matter their academic history. If you don't meet the entry requirements for a degree, we'll help you get in through single undergraduate subjects and transition into a qualification from there.
You have total control over how you study
Upskill without committing to a whole degree upfront. Or enrol in a full degree, but take it a subject at a time. We'll introduce you to flexible study options you didn't even know about, so you can fit uni around what matters to you.You'll graduate with the same qualification as an on-campus student
Once you enrol through us, you'll study online with the university that provides your degree. This means that when you complete your qualification, you'll graduate with the same degree as on-campus students.We'll help you navigate the university world
Our friendly student advisors will be your guide every step of the enrolment journey. They'll help you compare universities, choose a course, provide documentation and understand your finance options.
How do I enrol?
Here at Open Universities Australia, we make enrolling online as straightforward as possible. To get started, find the course for you by browsing the options on this page. You can also compare different qualifications using our handy comparison tool, or request help from one of our student advisors.
When you've made your choice, click 'Apply now' on the relevant course page and follow the prompts to begin your enrolment. We'll ask you to supply some supporting documentation, including proof of your identity, your tax file number, and a unique student identifier (USI) during this process.
Your university will get in touch with you via email to confirm whether or not your application has been successful.
If you get stuck at any time, reach out to a student advisor and we'll talk you through it.
You can also take a look at our online self-service enrolling instructions.