If you are not currently employed or volunteering in industry, during your course you will be required to complete vocational placement so you can start practising your new skills in a real-world environment. You’ll be required to work shifts determined by your placement provider, and these can include early mornings or late nights, any day of the week, including public holidays. TAFE Queensland may be able to assist in arranging suitable placements.
Completing placement is compulsory, and you will be expected to manage family and work commitments in order to complete your shifts. You are required to complete 80 hours of placement to satisfy this component of your qualification.
Prior to Placement, you will need to receive and provide evidence of the following checks:
National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
This course requires you to obtain a NDIS Worker Screening Check to be eligible to attend the vocational placement assessment component of your studies.
- You must complete your online NDIS Worker Screening Clearance application at this link - NDIS Worker Screening Unit (WSU), and nominate TAFE Queensland as your employer. There is no cost to students. TAFE Queensland will verify each student.
- Students must also complete the NDIS Worker Orientation Online Modules (4 modules/approximately 90 minutes in total). Upon completion, students will need to provide their Certificate of Completion to both TAFE Queensland and their placement provider.
Working with Children Check
- You will also need a Working with Children Check as care environments frequently include exposure to minors. This is called Blue Card in Queensland, or you will need the equivalent if you are completing your Placement outside of Queensland.
- Please note: you can apply for both the NDIS Worker Screening Clearance and Blue Card by completing a combined application via the NDIS Worker Screening portal NDIS Worker Screening Unit (WSU).
Please note: TAFE Queensland wishes to warn you, as a Blue Card applicant, that it is an offence for a disqualified person to sign a Blue Card application. For further information regarding 'disqualified' persons, please contact Blue Card Services.
Australian Federal Police (AFP) Check
You will be required to provide a current criminal history check obtained ONLY through the AFP website: AFP - Application.
If your check identifies that you have a criminal history, you may be disqualified from being eligible to undertake placement and assessment, which would affect your course outcomes. If you think this might impact you, please speak to the relevant Placement Coordinator of your region for further information.
First Aid
You will also need to provide evidence that you hold first aid competency that is current at the time of placement. This can be in the form of:
- A HLTAID011 Provide First Aid Statement of Attainment, issued no more than 3 years from your date of placement commencement. A current First Aid is to be maintained for the duration of the placement requirements.
- You will also require a current HLTAID009 Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation Statement of Attainment no older than 12 months from the date of placement commencement. CPR currency requires an annual renewal.
Vaccination requirements
Health and Nursing Portfolio students may be required to provide evidence of the following vaccinations.
The majority of aged and acute care facilities across Australia require this to be completed prior to placement.
- Hepatitis A and B
- Measles-mumps-rubella (MMR)
- Varicella (Chicken pox)
- Pertussis (whooping cough - an adult booster dose)
- Influenza (annual vaccination)
- COVID-19 Vaccination (strongly recommended)
