This subject requires you to do a practical placement, please see Additional Requirements for more information.
Practice Placement
PostgraduateACU-PUBH6552024
Course information for 2024 intake
Put your preparation into action during this public health professional work placement. Bolster what you’ve learned during your Master of Public Health with practice-based experience. Showcase your placement in a presentation, portfolio, and report.
Enrolments for this course are closed, but you may have other options to start studying now. Book a consultation to learn more.
- Study method
- Online & on-campus
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Entry requirements
- Part of a degree
- Duration
- 13 weeks
- Loan available
- FEE-HELP available
Practice Placement
About this subject
On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:
LO1 - Describe personal learning objectives for the practice-based project (GA2, GA5, GA7);
LO2 - Describe public health problems and feasible ways to address them in a particular area of public health practice (GA4, GA5, GA6, GA7, GA8);
LO3 - Apply specialised knowledge and skills in public health to a particular practice-based project, in alignment with appropriate professional standards (GA3, GA4, GA5, GA6, GA8, GA9, GA10);
LO4 - Apply relevant ethical standards, community engagement principles and practice reflections throughout the public health activity (GA1, GA2, GA3, GA4, GA5, GA6, GA7, GA8, GA9, GA10).
- Practice based experience.
- A broad range of public health projects, activities or fieldwork can be undertaken in ACU-PUBH655, subject to approval of the Lecturer in Charge. These include, but are not limited to, any of the following:
- * Project/activity: practice-based quality improvement; knowledge transfer; capacity building; program development, implementation, evaluation; policy analysis or advocacy activity; practice-focused research and reporting. Any project/activity undertaken must have a pre-defined, measurable output for a student to report on.
- *Fieldwork: students may undertake fieldwork within their area of public health interest. Students must demonstrate that their fieldwork contributes to the health of the relevant community and/or improves the health program, service or system they are working in.
ACU-PUBH655 Practice Placement is the second of two subjects (ACU-PUBH649 Preparation for Practice and ACU-PUBH655 Practice Placement) where students apply and consolidate learning acquired in the Master of Public Health program to prepare them to practice as public health professionals. It is linked to the Australian Qualifications Framework and supported by educational theory on the importance of experiential learning for preparing students for professional practice. A major learning activity of ACU-PUBH655 Practice Placement is a project consisting of a practice-based public health activity or fieldwork that involves the integration of knowledge and skills across multiple public health areas, allowing students to directly apply learnings with the aim of improving and advancing population health.
Students will undertake ACU-PUBH655 Practice Placement at the completion of ACU-PUBH649 Preparation for Practice, where they will apply knowledge acquired in -PUBHPUBH649 Preparation for Practice. In ACU-PUB655 Practice Placement, students are to demonstrate core public health competencies as appropriate, for example community engagement and ethical practice. Overall, the aim of ACU-PUBH649 Preparation for Practice and ACU-PUBH655 Practice Placement is to enable students to apply and integrate their public health skills and knowledge within a summative public health practice experience.
A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes consistent with University assessment requirements.
Assessment tasks include student reflections on practice readiness (before their project/practice placement), as a continuation from -PUBH649 Preparation for Practice. Assessment tasks will provide the opportunity for students to reflect on their competency levels prior to their placement project, to refine their knowledge, understanding and skills in public health in a practice environment, to develop confidence in the presentation of real life project work to their peers, and to enhance their writing skills and workplace readiness through the compilation of a report and portfolio.
In order to pass this unit, students are required to obtain an aggregate mark of greater than or equal to 50%. The assessment tasks for this unit are designed for students to demonstrate their achievement of each learning outcome.
All assessments will be submitted electronically.- Hurdle: In Place workplace compliance (Hurdle - Must Pass)
- Written placement proposal and reflection: Enables students to acquire knowledge informing the aims, activities and proposed outcomes of their project and their practice readiness . (30%)
- Presentation: Enables students to assimilate specialised knowledge (community engagement, the value of partnership, cultural competency or ethical practice) in relation to their placement or alternate project. (20%)
- Portfolio and report: Enables students to apply public health knowledge in public health practice, by showcasing activities and project outcomes. (50%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
Established in 1991 after amalgamating four eastern Australian Catholic tertiary institutes, Australian Catholic University now has seven campuses, from Brisbane to Melbourne and welcomes students of all beliefs. Specialising in arts, business, education, health sciences, law, theology and philosophy, ACU encourages its students to think critically and ethically and bring change to their communities and offer this online through Open Universities Australia.
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Entry requirements
To enrol in this subject, you must be admitted into a degree.
Prior study
You must have successfully completed the following subject(s) before starting this subject:
Additional requirements
- Placement requirements - Students will undertake 100-120 hours of practice-/fieldwork-based activity, not including time spent organising their practice-based experiences or the preparation of assessment tasks for this unit. Where appropriate, students will incorporate an element of community engagement within their practice-based activity in order to demonstrate the relationship between public health practice and community engagement in enhancing the health, wellbeing and dignity of people and communities, especially those most marginalised and disadvantaged. Students are required to meet mandatory or other requirements as indicated by ACU or placement sites (e.g. vaccinations, Working with Children checks, CPR training, hand hygiene and others).
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.