Inherent requirements
Inherent requirements are the abilities, attributes, skills and behaviours needed to meet the learning outcomes of a course.
You need to be able to demonstrate that you hold, or can acquire, the inherent requirements for your degree.
Our commitment
Victoria University (VU) is committed to:
- enhancing students' access, participation and success in higher education
- embracing the diversity of the communities we serve.
We strongly support the rights of individuals who wish to pursue a degree to achieve their potential personal and professional career objectives.
Reading the inherent requirement statements
The information on your course's inherent requirements page is designed to help you make informed decisions for study and access to services. It should also guide any discussions with the University, based on a mutual understating of the requirements.
We may be able to make reasonable adjustments to help you manage circumstances that impact your studies – provided these don't fundamentally change the academic integrity of the degree.
Inherent requirements are divided into domains and sub-domains and contain the following information:
- introduction
- rationale as to why it is an inherent requirement
- examples of things you must be able to demonstrate, or have the ability to acquire and demonstrate, during your degree (please note this is not an exhaustive list).
You should carefully consider the inherent requirement statements as:
- a guide for your learning during the course
- a way to identify challenges you may have in meeting these requirements.
Students with a health condition or disability
Often, studying with a health condition or disability does not impact on studies. Many students with disabilities or other difficult circumstances have successfully completed university, with and without reasonable adjustments made to their learning conditions.
If you have a disability or health condition, or other circumstances such as cultural or religious considerations, discuss these with university staff such as the course adviser or Accessibility Services. They will consider your needs for reasonably adjusted learning conditions. We recommend that you discuss your circumstances with VU staff as early as possible; reduced timeframes may impact the adjustments.
If you have a disability or health condition contact Accessibility Services to:
- provide an experienced reference point
- facilitate reasonable adjustments
- assist with strategies.
The University has no requirement to adjust for conditions that it is not aware of. You need to disclose any circumstances that pose a health or safety risk to yourself or others.
If the inherent requirements cannot be met with reasonable adjustments, University staff can provide guidance regarding other study options.
Legal & contextual Considerations
Inherent requirements need to be met while preserving the academic integrity of the university’s learning, assessment and accreditation processes.
Please note reasonable adjustments must:
- be consistent with legislative and regulatory requirements, and not compromise codes, guidelines and policies
- not result in unethical or unprofessional behaviour
- meet the necessary standards of timeliness, accuracy and functional effectiveness to ensure that safety is not compromised
- address the need to perform the full range of tasks, including undertaking learning activities in mixed gender environments, which reflect the Australian context
- ensure that performance is consistent and sustained over a given period.
