If you are thinking about undertaking a placement in Semester 1 2026, you still have the option to secure your own placement or collaborate on an industry project.

Remember: The process of sourcing and securing an opportunity can be just as valuable as the placement itself!

University WIL Subjects

The University WIL Subjects include options for undergraduate and postgraduate students and for students who want to undertake longer placements of up to 400 hours.

Find out more about the University WIL subjects including Industry Projects.

Key dates

Take the next step

1. Choose your path – Placement or Project
2. Enrol in your chosen subject
3. Submit your application by the above dates using the ‘apply now’ link below.  

Once enrolled, we’ll send you an email outlining the next steps.

Contact us

Want to know more? Reach out via our enquiry form. We’re here to help.

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Established many years ago in memory of Kerry Faul, a respected local nurse-midwife tragically killed in a vehicle collision while returning from a shift at Wodonga Hospital, the prize honours commitment, compassion, and excellence in nursing. It is awarded annually following a competitive essay submission and interview process.

This year’s award was presented during the Rotary Club of West Wodonga’s annual leadership changeover event, a major occasion in the club’s calendar attended by senior Rotarians and community leaders. Vanessa delivered a heartfelt speech on the night, which was met with deep appreciation and praise. According to Matt Burke, Secretary of West Wodonga Rotary, Vanessa’s address was “the best I’ve heard in 25 years of the prize.”

Vanessa expressed her gratitude and commitment to the values of the nursing profession:

“I’m deeply honoured and humbled to receive the Nursing Prize in memory of Kerry Faul. I extend my sincere thanks to the Wodonga West Rotary Club for their generous sponsorship and ongoing support of nursing students.

This award inspires me to continue striving for excellence and to uphold the values of empathy, respect, and dedication that are so essential to our profession.

I’m also incredibly grateful to my lecturers, mentors, and peers at La Trobe University’s Albury-Wodonga campus. It’s been a privilege to be part of such a supportive and passionate learning community. The encouragement and shared commitment to caring for others have been fundamental in shaping the nurse I am becoming.”

Vanessa’s recognition reflects not only her academic and personal excellence but also the strength of La Trobe’s nursing program and its strong connection to the local health community.

We extend our congratulations to Vanessa on this well-deserved honour and thank the Rotary Club of West Wodonga for their continued support of the next generation of nurses.

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Vibhi’s experience as an international student

Let’s be honest: being an international student trying to break into the job market in Australia can be overwhelming. You’re juggling part-time work, staying on top of assignments and adjusting to a new culture. On top of all that, you’re figuring out how to land a professional role in your field. Trust me, I know from experience.

That’s exactly why La Trobe runs career workshops tailored to international students, which I had the incredible opportunity to help with this year as a Career-Ready Ambassador. What started as a volunteer role turned into something much more meaningful when a few students came up after the session and asked for my LinkedIn to stay in touch. While it might seem like something small, it made me feel like I was making a difference.

What do we cover?

Our career workshops are designed to boost your confidence about getting a job. This includes guidance on Career Hub resources, how to be a strong applicant in the Australian job market, staying confident during interviews, hidden job opportunities and much more.

We don’t just talk about writing a resume – we walk through it together. We don’t just say ‘network more’ – we show you how with practical steps.

The best part? You’re not alone. You’re in a room full of students just like you who are asking the same questions and chasing the same goals, which does a lot to boost your spirit.

Real talk: my job search journey

I found my own placement at the end of my first year, and it wasn’t easy. I applied to so many roles, tweaked my resume dozens of times and got rejected more times than I can count. But I learned something important: while luck plays a small part, you can improve your odds.

The more I expanded my domain by trying new tools, attending events, working on my resume and LinkedIn, and staying consistent, the better my chances became. That’s the message I try to pass on in these sessions: you don’t need to have it all figured out, you just need to start.

Take the next step in your career with a workshop

The Career-Ready team are here to answer your questions, even if they seem small or too silly. Most importantly, we’ll remind you that your dream placement isn’t some far-off fantasy. It’s just a series of small, achievable steps, and we’re here to take those steps with you.

Jackson’s experience as a domestic student

A new perspective

Assisting with these workshops was incredible rewarding. It gave me so many insights into the challenges facing international students shaping their career in Australia.

It’s already so ambitious to leave your home country, your support networks and even your first language behind with the goal of beginning your career in a different country.

However, Australia’s job market has its own unique customs, and it can be challenging to get your head around these..

Make your journey an asset

While all students need to learn how to build a resume, a cover letter and key selection criteria responses, it’s also important to know what employers are looking for and why. These workshops provide key insights that many domestic students might take for granted.

This is an essential way to make yourself a competitive candidate as an international student. By attending workshops like this, you can learn how to stand out from the crowd and make your unique journey an asset rather than a drawback.

Join the next International Career Workshop from 3.00 pm – 4.30 pm on Thursday 29 May in the Library at our Melbourne (Bundoora) campus.

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SMART goals are useful because they guide our progress and provide enough detail so we can approach our goals with confidence. Research (Chase et al, 2013) shows that SMART goals are more likely to be achieved when they’re aligned with your values.

Exploring your values

Your values are the things that you care about most. You’ll find that they’re the things that you naturally want to spend time and energy on, and the aspects of yourself and/or your friends that you think are the best things about them.

To work out what you value most, it’s worth setting aside some time to explore your values. This personal worksheet is an excellent tool for this, or do this simple activity to explore your values.

Aligning your values with your goals

Now we’re going to look at SMART goals again, but in that “R” (relevant), we’re going to make sure we’re mentioning the values that the goal aligns to. If you can’t work that out, reflect on whether that’s YOUR goal or a goal you think you should have.

SMART goal refresher

SMART goals have the following attributes:

S – Specific – instead of “improve my results at Uni”, try “get at least a 70 in Biology”

M – Measurable – use numbers or ways to show success – instead of “go for a run more often”, try “run at least 5km three times a week”

A – Achievable – think about small steps starting from where you’re already at – instead of “I will try all the vegetables at the store”, try “I will try a new vegetable each week”

R – Relevant – it aligns to your values – why do you care about it?

T – Timely – when will you do it by – is this a weekly, monthly, end of semester, end of year or 5 years from now kind of goal?

Some examples

If you’re not sure what your goals are or how to build them, check in with our Health, Wellbeing and Inclusion services who can help you identify and develop your values and goals.

Reference:

Chase, J. A., Houmanfar, R., Hayes, S. C., Ward, T. A., Vilardaga, J. P., & Follette, V. (2013). Values are not just goals: Online ACT-based values training adds to goal setting in improving undergraduate college student performance. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 2(3-4), 79-84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2013.08.002 

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Congratulations to all our staff and student entrants for their thoughtful and moving contributions! The competition, which sought to explore what ‘respect is’, has produced diverse and powerful visuals of respect.  

Thank you so much to everyone who engaged with the competition.  

Exhibition Displays on Bendigo and Melbourne (Bundoora) Campuses

Please join us for the opening of the Picturing Respect Photography Exhibition. Opening events will occur at both Bendigo and Melbourne (Bundoora) Campuses.   

Come along and meet the talented competition winners, learn more about La Trobe’s prevention work and immerse yourself in thought-provoking displays. Food will be provided and feel free to pick up some resources.  

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to show your support for ‘Picturing Respect’, La Trobe’s 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence event.  

Register for the events below: 

Note** The Melbourne (Bundoora) exhibition will be live from 28 November – 8 December in the Library Exhibition Room next to Seminar Room 1.34.

Competition Winners 

After careful consideration and review against the ‘Respect Is’ competition criteria, we are excited to announce the following competition winners: 

Staff Category 

First Place $250 voucher: Tracey Khan 

Description: Despite the outcome of the Voice Referendum, First Nations and proud Yamatji Noongar woman, Sharon Brindley, showed up for us on 19/10/23 as guest speaker at an event aimed to raise awareness of Australian native foods and Indigenous land management practices. It turned into an emotional event as Sharon shared her truth-telling with us and the impact of the Referendum outcome on her and her peoples. The emotion unexpectedly brought the event alive and took it to a whole new level. This photo captures Sharon’s strength, spirit and desire to raise awareness of Indigenous culture, in spite of the enormous hurt she was feeling. 

Second Place $100 voucher: Babak Dadvand 

Description: I captured this photo at a Melbourne inclusion and multiculturalism festival, symbolizing the city’s harmony and diversity. The colourful bubbles represent a celebration of differences, while people of various genders, ages, and ethnicities embody our multicultural, respectful society. 

The judging panel was unable to decide on just one third-prize winner. The following entries were both awarded the third place prize: 

Third Place: $50 voucher: Emily Beiber  

Description: Respect is young women comfortably catching public transport late at night. I took my daughter and her bestie to see a musical in town. Public transport is everyone’s space to occupy. 

Third Place: $50 voucher: Corina Modderman 

Description: Respect is listening. Fourth year La Trobe Rural Health School Social Work students on Yorta Yorta Country, Shepparton campus. 

Student Category 

First Place $250 voucher: Laavanya Raturi 

Description: Respect is unconditional. Respect is unvoiced yet understood. Respect doesn’t need to be earned; Respect is a birthright. 

Second Place $100 voucher: Jeska Rees 

Description: Tabitha joins the Women’s March on Melbourne following President Donald Trump’s inauguration, January 21 2017. 

Again, we had so many excellent entries, two third-place prizes have been awarded of $50 each. 

Third Place $50 Voucher: Alyssa Serra  

Description: Respect is accepting that people have differing opinions on particular topics. We need to begin to respect these differing opinions instead of silencing one or the other.  We need to look beyond the bushes and the trees to see the sun. The sun is a reminder that no matter what opinion we have we still live on this earth and we must respect all opinions and views. 

Third Place $50 Voucher: Ragini Patil  

Description: Respect is a two-way street. Making sure my baby understands this and respects the ones that can speak but also the ones who can’t! 

NOTE: If this content has raised any issues for you, please reach out for assistance through the following services: 

• La Trobe’s Safer Community Service – 9479 8988 / safercommunity@latrobe.edu.au, latrobe.edu.au/safercommunity 
• La Trobe’es Health, Wellbeing and Inclusion services – latrobe.edu.au/wellbeing
• National Hotline for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault – 1800 Respect (1800 737 732) 
• Victorian Sexual Assault Crisis Line – 1800 806 292 

The post Picturing Respect – Photography Winners Announced  appeared first on MyLaTrobe.

The following diagram shows how feelings of concern can evolve into distress, and how our feelings about global events change depending on our circumstances: 

We all exist on this continuum somewhere for every major issue. Those events or topics that we are concerned about might inspire action, because concern is healthy and productive, leading to us wanting to make change. However, if that concern turns to excessive worry, we can feel distressed. Worry is different from concern because it is less productive – it often lives in the hypothetical and can feel paralysing and decrease our ability to act for change.  

Move away from distress

So how do we stay in the region of caring enough to take action, but not feeling distress? It’s a tricky place to be, but here are some tips to help you move away from distress and back to active concern: 

1. Acknowledge and validate your emotions – it’s normal to feel upset and grief when the world around us seems to be changing in unpredictable and often scary ways. Let yourself feel your emotions – write about them, talk about them, cry, be angry… all of these things are reasonable and appropriate 

2. Find, build or connect with community – it can be helpful to find people who share your values and take action together 

3. Keep balance in your life – sometimes something we’re concerned about can take up a lot of time and energy, but it’s important to make time for other things; not just study and work, but also friends, family, hobbies and other things that fulfil you (and sometimes distract you) 

4. Normalise taking action about things you care about in your networks – make small actions that people might notice, and share and own them – invite others to join you 

5. Get outside into nature sometimes – it might sound cliché, but getting some fresh air and sunshine can be relaxing and rejuvenating 

6. Show yourself compassion – it’s ok to not go to that rally or need to turn off your social media for the day. Resting is important. Along the same lines, you might not be perfect in your activism – mistakes are normal, and we are all growing and learning 

7. Practise media literacy – be careful about where your information is coming from. Limit use of media that reports unverified information, and be aware of the impact sharing distressing images or stories might have on others  

8. Seek support – if you are still feeling distressed or can’t stop thinking about something that’s concerning you, you can access free supports through www.latrobe.edu.au/wellbeing  

La Trobe Supports

• Not sure what sort of wellbeing support you need? Fill in this form to request a callback from our Health, Wellbeing and Inclusion team. 
• Use our La Trobe University Crisis Line for Out-of-Hours Mental Health and Wellbeing Support. Phone 1300 146 307 or text 0488 884 100. This service operates 5pm-9am on weekdays and 24 hours during weekends and public holidays. 

External supports and links: 

• Lifeline – For anyone experiencing a personal crisis, 24 hours a day 13 11 14. 
• Switchboard – for LGBTIQA+ specific support and referral 
• Sane Australia  Get more information and tips to manage distressing global news 

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