Features of Learning in the Workplace and Community programs

Join us in providing students with valuable workplace learning, through an arrangement that best suits you:

• practical placements
• industry and or community projects
• cooperative education
• internships

Students can work with your organisation in a variety of ways including:

• practical placements - structured workplace learning practical placements that prepare students for the workplace in particular discipline areas. These placements are a component of many courses offered across the University. They help students take classroom learnings and put them into practice in a workplace setting eg nursing practical placements in hospitals or clinics.
• industry or community organisation projects - individuals and groups of students undertake projects on behalf of organisations e.g. developing a database
• cooperative education - students are employed full time by organisations to undertake work tasks or projects, e.g. a junior accountant
• internships - students undertake short-term placements with an organisation to work on activities related to their course, e.g. Recreation student developing programs for a local municipality

To find out which model of LiWC will best suit your organisational needs and circumstances, pleasecomplete the onlineLiWC Enquiry Form.

The Centre for Work Integrated Learning is a dedicated unit within the Faculty of Business and Law. It was designed to support and assist Business and Law students in preparing for employment. Our coordinators work with employers to secure positions for registered students. We offer CV and interview workshops, networking advice, industry expos and more.

Benefits to industry and community organisations

Access enthusiastic and skilled students

Enhance the capability of your organisation with students who have the latest skills and
knowledge. Our highly motivated students can bring fresh perspectives, new skills and
innovative ideas to apply to your organisation.

Preview future employees

Many organisations that take on our students go on to hire them permanently. This means
improved efficiency, and lower recruitment and training costs for your organisation. When you see our students perform in your workplace, you'll know whether they're the right fit for your organisation.

Become one of our partners

When you access our students, you become one of our educational partners, providing an
important contribution to academic programs that will shape our future graduates. We are
committed to supporting our partners and will be available to provide advice and assistance along the way. As a partner, we want this to be as valuable an experience for you as it is for our students.

What employers are saying

Managing Director, Flexible Drive Agencies:

"We have endeavoured to align ourselves with educational institutions over many years but have been somewhat frustrated by the divide between industry and these facilities. We are fortunate that we have met people at VU who have made it far easier to close that gap. For FDA, I would say we have experienced a great benefit in facilitating two project teams from the University. The students have been keen to fulfil the tasks assigned and our people have also benefited from the interaction."

What students are saying

We receive a lot of positive feedback from our students after they've been on a placement.

Lauren Nowak, BA Communications graduate:

I saw the course's compulsory three-week work placement as an opportunity to differentiate myself from other job applicants. On my last day I was asked if I wanted to work for Ambulance Victoria on the days I wasn't at university. Read more.

Milan, Computer Science graduate:

"I was given the opportunity to apply knowledge gained from Victoria University to tackle issues that software developers face on daily basis. Working on the project as a lead programmer improved my task and time management because I had to delegate and assign tasks to my team members, to improve our productivity as a team, and to deliver our IT solution within time constraints."

Ella, Tourism and Recreation Management graduate:

"My recreation internship was a great opportunity to get some industry experience before I graduated. Now I've come back to a position at the employer I did my internship with originally. It's really come full circle, as I now supervise our current VU intern. The senior management are really keen to have qualified people to join our industry, which is why they support this internship program."

Read more student testimonials

Contact us

For more information about Learning in the Workplace and Community and how your organisation can get involved, please contact Dr Derek Kosbab in the Learning in the Workplace and Community Unit.