Information to assist with a successful clinical placement

Students should refer to their student checklist for a comprehensive list of mandatory pre-placement conditional requirements.

All clinical/field placements are arranged by the Course Coordinator and the CPU. Students are not to negotiate their own clinical placements. Please check with your Clinical Coordinator or contact the CPU.

Students should refer to the teaching schedule provided at the time of their enrolment or re-enrolment for details of their clinical placement dates and times throughout the year. These dates and times are set in advance and are not negotiable.

Students are notified of placement details well in advance and are expected to be able to organise personal life commitments and travel arrangements to undertake these as scheduled. 

Variations to placement allocations are only considered in specific circumstances. Please refer to the Clinical Placement Policy (PDF 311KB) criteria for requesting a variation to your placement allocation. If you believe you have circumstances that may impact on your ability to attend certain placement locations, then you are strongly encouraged to submit a pre-allocation request to the CPU. This must be submitted, with supporting evidence, at least 12 weeks prior to the placement commencement date.

Student requests for variation to placement allocation must be submitted on the Variation to Placement form (PDF 141KB). The completed form and attachments must be lodged with the CPU within the specified time frame, following the initial notification of your placement allocation unless otherwise advised by the CPU. For details about how to submit/upload documents to the CPU, please refer to your student checklist.

Each request for variation to a placement will be considered by the Course Coordinator. A student may appeal a Course Coordinator's decision by making a written submission. Please contact the CPU for information if you wish to make an appeal.  In the case of appeals for Nursing placements, please contact the Program Director ELA,  should you wish to appeal the decision.

Students with an Access Plan may need adjustments to their placement, depending on the requirements of the student. The Student Engagement Unit (SEU) recommends that a student with an Access Plan that has a placement requirement meets with their Program Director, Course Coordinator, and Access and Inclusion Advisor, as soon as practical to work through the adjustments that might be required, including if/how disclosure will be made to the host placement provider. This will ensure the best success at placement, and that the student’s needs are catered for in a structured, safe and supportive way.

Nursing and midwifery students are required to complete the Fitness to Practice in Clinical Placement documentation prior to placement.

UniSA reserves the right to change clinical placement dates to suit clinical practice sites' availability if necessary. Students will be notified as soon as possible should such a circumstance eventuate.

Students are strongly advised to read the Clinical Placement Policy (PDF 311KB) prior to placement.

All students must adhere strictly to the requirements around clinical placement practice for their program. The requirements are detailed in the Course Outline and other course documentation.

Students should also refer to the Practicum, Field and Clinical Placements clauses in the current year's Assessment Policies and Procedures Manual, for further information on their rights and responsibilities while on placement.

UniSA students are covered under the University of South Australia's insurance policy while on placement, provided that certain criteria are met.

Information on uniform policy can be found in policies and forms.

Some programs will require students to undertake a rural or interstate clinical placement. All nursing and midwifery students will be required to undertake a rural placement at least once during their program. Medical Radiation Science (all streams) students are also required to undertake a rural placement.

Further information can be found on the Rural Placements page.

Students who will be undertaking a placement interstate will require a current National Police Certificate (NPC). Please note that other states often require a NPC that has been issued within the past 6-12 months. Each state also has its own WWCC requirements for which it is the student’s responsibility to meet. For example, in the Northern Territory this is called an Ochre Card and in Queensland this is a Blue Card. You can find out more here.

To find out more about obtaining your NPC and WWCC, please visit the Criminal history and background checks page. 

Victoria Police does not have an expiry date for validity of National Police Certificates. The police certificate is the result of a check of police records only up until the day it is issued. It is up to each organisation (in the absence of any legislation applicable to their industry/profession) to determine how often they require a new certificate to be issued. Some areas do have either direct legislation or licensing requirements which require a police check be conducted at certain intervals. The best source of information in regard to this is the professional or industry governing body which relates to the area. To apply for a National Police Clearance in Victoria, see the Victoria Police website.

The COVID Screening Questionnaire is a university wide complinace requirement and further information about the requirement is available here.

Most students will need to be fit tested prior to placement.

• CPU will contact you via email to let you know when you need to book in for a fit test appointment (most likely 6-8 weeks prior to placement)
• It is your responsibility to book and attend your fit test appointment prior to placement (after being notified)
• You are required to sign a consent form prior to appointment
• There is no cost for UniSA students for fit testing
• UniSA provides the fit test service but will not supply masks. Placement sites will supply masks where necessary.
• Evidence of fit testing is not required to meet your conditional evidence until you are notified by CPU that you need to be fit tested. Do not contact the fit test clinic for an appointment until you are directed to do so.

Please note: UniSA’s Fit Test Clinic does not accept any appointments for students who do not have an upcoming placement.

If students receive a reminder to be fit tested, and evidence has been uploaded to InPlace - you do not need to book another appointment.

Open Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome and type in the following InPlace web address: https:\\unisa-prod.inplace.com.au. Please note that InPlace is not optimised for Internet Explorer.

1. Open InPlace using either Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome
2. Click on Staff and Students and you will be directed to the log in screen
3. Enter your UniSA student username and password
4. When you log into InPlace for the first time you will need to accept the terms and conditions in order to use the system.

For information about password security and resetting your password please visit the Ask IT website. 

• Submitting your placement preferences 

1. Once logged in, you will be directed to your ‘Home’ page.
   
   
2. Navigate to the ‘To Do’ widget, this will display a notification that preferencing is open and it will prompt you to submit your preferences.
   
   
3. Click the Agency Preferences link or  icon to submit your preference, you will be directed to the ‘Agency Preference’ page.
   
   
4. Under your Placement Block Name, you will see the number of preference choices you are required to submit.
   
   
5. Use the scroll bar to navigate through the list of available agencies or search using the filter function.
   
   
6. To select an agency, click the icon, this will change your selection to  indicating that you have preferenced an agency.
   
   
7. You can use the filter tool to make searching for available agencies easier.
   
   
8. Once you are happy with your selected agencies, and have reached the maximum number of preferences click the “NEXT> Rank preferences” button to order your preferences.
   
   
9. If you do not reach the maximum number of preferences, you will be unable to click the “NEXT> Rank preferences” button to order your preferences.
   
   
10. Click the “NEXT> Rank preferences” button to navigate to “Order of Preference” page.
    
    
11. Use the icon to drag your preferences into your chosen order.
    
    
12. Once you have finalised your preference selection, click the ‘Submit preferences’ button, the pop-up below will display at the top of the screen when you have successfully saved your preferences.

During the preferencing period you can still log in to make changes. Once the preference period closes, you will no longer be able to view your agency preferences. If you want to keep a record of the preferences you submitted - take a screenshot or write them down.

• Login to InPlace and return to the ‘Home’ page.
• Navigate to the ‘To Do’ widget, this will now display an  icon rather than an  icon to denote that preferences have been submitted.
• Click the Agency Preferences link or  icon to resubmit your preference.

• Submitting a pre-allocation request (PDF 723KB)
• If you believe that your request complies with Section 5 (i) of the Clinical Placement Policy, please complete a pre-allocation request form and attach supporting documentation, as a single file, at least 12 weeks prior to the commencement of your placement.
• Special consideration requests will only be considered in the following circumstances:
  • Students with an Access Plan
  • Students who are the registered Carer for a sick or disabled dependent child or relative, with documented evidence
  • Students with a major health problem requiring frequent and specialised treatment, which is only available at certain locations, with documented evidence
  • Other highly extenuating medical, compassionate, or special circumstances such as those outlined in Clause 7 of the Assessment Policies and Procedures Manual. 
     
• Log in to InPlace. Click the my details  icon, to navigate to the ‘student details’ page.
• Scroll down to navigate to the optional information sections.
• Click the  icon to open the drop-down menu.
  
  
  
  
• Ensure that you click and download the Pre-Allocation Request form from the link provided.
  
  
  
  
• Complete your application form and include any supporting documentation, by saving as one file, and upload to InPlace.
• Enter today’s date and add any comments, if applicable.
  
  
  
  Or click the “Select or drag a file” button to locate your file to be uploaded.
  
  
  
  You can also drag your file from your desktop directly into InPlace.
  
  
  • The file name will be listed underneath Select or drag a file” section when it is has been uploaded.
  • Click the “X” button if you want to remove the document and upload an alternative file.
• Click the “Submit” button to complete the requirement, the following pop-up will alert you if you have been successful and will return you to the My Details page.
  
  
  
  
  • The verified bar will be automatically set to blue and ‘Submitted’ until it is verified by clinical placement unit (CPU) administrative staff. Please allow two business days for your document to be verified.
    
    
    
    
  • You will know your file has uploaded successfully when a paperclip icon displays. Clicking the  icon will download your document.