Why study health at Victoria University (VU) Online
Victoria University (VU) Online offers a suite of health qualifications that you can complete 100% online with our unique and award-winning study model.
Let’s take a closer look at the advantages and how your career can benefit from studying health programs at VU Online.
Why study health at VU Online?
Victoria University (VU) Online’s postgraduate health courses have been developed with industry experts, including through our partnership with Orygen—Australia’s centre of excellence in youth mental health.
These courses are designed for healthcare professionals who want to enhance their career, or those in other industries who want to drive a positive impact in health.
We’ve taken a student-centred approach to create a learning experience with engaging activities, self-determined assessments and no exams or textbooks.
Award-winning block model
In addition to removing of exams and textbooks, we also removed 12 week semesters to create our award-winning postgradute block model.
Instead, we created six study periods (or blocks) each year that run for seven weeks each. That means you can complete six units of study per year, while focussing on only one subject at a time.
It also means that you can choose from six different start dates each year—so you can begin your course sooner.
And if life or work get in the way, you can skip a block and then pick up where you left off with the next study period.
These are just some of the reasons Victoria University (VU) Online won four Platinum awards at the 2021 LearnX Awards.
Support 7 days and in the evenings
To increase your chances of success in your postgraduate studies, you’ll have access to five layers of academic and administrative support, seven days a week and in the evening.
Your Online Facilitator is available by phone, email, or SMS every day and in the evenings.
Your Unit Coordinator leads fortnightly teaching seminars and is available for online office hours every week.
Your Student Success Advisor is available by phone or email, Monday to Friday, to answer your non-academic questions.
You have access to a personalised network of IT, library, language, literacy and numeracy support.
Designed by industry
Victoria University (VU) Online’s health courses are created and updated to meet real-world industry standards with a consistent emphasis on employability.
These industry-focused courses are delivered by high-calibre facilitators and academics.
In fact, we’re Australia’s top university for employability in the QILT Employer Satisfaction Survey 2019-2021.
With a portfolio of in-demand health degrees designed and developed with industry, Victoria University (VU) Online Health is innovative and dynamic, with the ability to respond to changing world circumstances in health to stay at the leading edge of online education.
For individuals passionate about making an impact in health, Victoria University (VU) Online offers postgraduate courses in nursing, mental health, mental health nursing, child and adolescent mental health, and public health.
Master of Public Health
While most health qualifications generally prepare you to provide health interventions to individuals, the online Master of Public Health gives you the skills to influence the health of entire populations.
There are lots of answers to the question ‘why study public health?’. But for many people, it’s the opportunity to be part of the solution to global issues.
Who is this course for?
After witnessing the public health response to COVID-19, you might be considering a career change to make an impact in the public health workforce. If that’s you, then you’ll be pleased to hear that you don’t need to have a background in health to start your Master of Public Health.
To apply for this course, you will need an Australian Bachelor degree in any discipline, or an Australian graduate diploma in a similar discipline.
What you will learn
Victoria University (VU) Online’s Master of Public Health will help you develop the skills you need for a public health career, such as communication, leadership and technical skills.
With the Health Promotion Specialisation, you can enhance your communication skills to develop innovative, coherent and realistic approaches to advocate for change in global health.
In the Global Health Leadership specialisation, you’ll improve your leadership skills by actively applying negotiation and mediation skills to address global public health challenges.
Career outcomes
The public health career outcomes from this course are diverse and include positions such as Public Health Medical Officer, Lecturer in Health and Medical/Health Adviser.
To better prepare for your desired career outcome, you can choose between two specialisations in Victoria University (VU) Online’s Master of Public Health.
The Health Promotion specialisation prepares you for a variety of roles, including NGO Manager, Health Promoter and Public Health Researcher.
The Global Health Leadership specialisation provides you with the skills for another broad range of jobs, including Disease Preparedness Researcher/Coordinator, Infection Preventionist and Health Informatics Specialist.
Industry demand/future of work skills
Most of the career outcomes that come from studying health programs at Victoria University (VU) Online are categorised as Health Care and Social Assistance by the Government’s Labour Market Insights.
Health Care and Social Assistance is the largest employing industry in Australia and it’s a section of the workforce that has grown by 24 per cent in the past five years. Over the next five years, that growth is forecast to continue at a rate of 14.2 per cent.
To ensure the future of your public health work skills, Victoria University (VU) Online is a member of the Council of Academic Public Health Institutions Australasia (CAPHIA). This relationship gives you ongoing access to CAPHIA’s resources, events and development programs.
Master of Nursing
Victoria University (VU) Online’s Master of Nursing is about delivering better nursing by empowering nurses to challenge, reform, improve and transform Australian healthcare.
This course is delivered part-time and 100% online, so that our valuable nursing workforce can continue to work while they upgrade their skills.
Who is this course for?
Nursing is a very specialised career and this is a course that has been designed to meet the needs of Registered Nurses who hold a Bachelor of Nursing and are currently registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
If you are a Registered Nurse without a Bachelor of Nursing, you may also be able to gain access to this course via Victoria University (VU) Online’s Graduate Certificate in Nursing.
What you will learn
You may be wondering just how do online postgraduate nursing courses work?
Firstly, you don’t need to complete a placement because you are already working as a Registered Nurse. Secondly, the coursework is designed to complement and build on your daily professional practice.
The Master of Nursing is aimed at nurses who want to become an expert in a specialised area of nursing—and there are two specialisations to choose from.
The Chronic Disease and Ageing specialisation has been developed to meet the patient care needs of our ageing population.
The Nursing Leadership specialisation will prepare you with the skills and knowledge to take the next step in your nursing career.
Career outcomes
As an Australian Registered Nurse, the first career outcome from successfully completing this course is that you’ll be eligible for the postgraduate qualification allowance.
There’s also a variety of prospective career paths open to you, including Clinical Nurse Specialist/Consultant/Educator, Nurse Unit Manager and Director of Nursing.
Industry demand/future of work skills
We currently have a nursing shortage in Australia.
While the Master of Nursing won’t necessarily bring more nurses into the system, it will prepare nurses to take on the senior roles vacated by those who retire.
It will also enable you to be a 21st-century problem-solver when you take on those senior roles.
Master of Mental Health Nursing
As a mental health nurse, you might work in emergency care or mental health unit within a hospital, or you could be working in community health services or aged care homes.
Assessing and treating patients, promoting mental health and supporting families are just part of what mental health nurses do.
Who is this course for?
Mental Health Nursing is a specialised field in a career that is already highly regulated.
Enrolment for this course requires you to hold a Bachelor of Nursing and be currently employed as a Registered Nurse or Registered Midwife in a mental health setting.
If you meet all the entry requirements, but you’re not currently working in a mental health setting, you can still qualify to apply for this course if you have completed Victoria University (VU) Online’s Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma in Mental Health Nursing.
What you will learn
You’ll have four electives to choose from to customise the course to your particular career goals—psychological therapies, perspectives on addictive behaviours, nursing leadership and management, or health and wellbeing for the older person.
This course also meets the education requirements of the Australian College of Mental Health Nurses (ACMHN) Credential.
Career outcomes
The Master of Mental Health Nursing will build on your years of experience in nursing practice to develop the skills you need to lead multidisciplinary teams and create transformational change in clinical mental health.
The typical salary in Australia for mental health nurses is $90,000.
Industry demand/future of work skills
Victoria’s Mental Health System currently has hundreds of vacancies with nobody to fill them.
And according to Seek.com, the projected growth in jobs for mental health nurses over the next five years is higher than the rest of the Health Care and Social Assistance sector at 15.6 per cent.
Master of Mental Health
Even though mental health is becoming more common in public discourse, many people struggle to access mental health services.
With a Master of Mental Health, you’ll be in a position to help people bridge the gap between a variety of health or social services and services for mental health.
Who is this course for?
The Master of Mental Health is a career-enhancing course for allied health and social care professionals who want to apply contemporary approaches to mental health in their work.
To qualify for this course, you’ll need to have a Bachelor degree in related courses such as Health Science, Social Work, Psychology, Medicine, Youth Work or Education.
What you will learn
With an increasingly ageing population, one of the key areas you’ll focus on is improving the mental health of older people.
Another important area that you’ll learn about is at the other end of the lifecycle—child and adolescent mental health.
Designed by mental health experts, this course helps you build a comprehensive mental health practice.
Career outcomes
When you take a closer look at how to become a mental health worker, you might be surprised by how many possible career outcomes arise.
In the first instance, you’ll have the skills to lead change and multidisciplinary teams in mental health support.
And if you’re looking for a career change, you can also consider combining your existing experience and skills with this qualification to drive positive impact in public policy for mental health.
Industry demand/future of work skills
According to an analysis of recruitment ads by Burning Glass, mental health skills was one of the most requested specialised skills across all jobs in 2020.
In addition, the Australian Bureau of Statistics recently revealed that two in every five Australians have experienced a mental disorder at some time in their lives.
With a Master of Mental Health, you’ll develop skills that are in demand now and well into the future.
Master of Child and Adolescent Mental Health
Victoria University (VU) Online’s Master of Child and Adolescent Mental Health is the only university qualification for child and adolescent mental health in Australia.
This course recognises the growing need for mental health support for our young people, as well as the value of additional research to contribute to better mental health outcomes.
Who is this course for?
Like the Master of Mental Health, this is a career-enhancing course for allied health and social care professionals who want to apply contemporary approaches to mental health in their work.
To apply for this course, you’ll need to have a Bachelor degree in related courses such as Health Science, Social Work, Psychology, Medicine, Youth Work or Education.
What you will learn
The aim here is to make a difference with work-based knowledge and skills that enable you to successfully engage with children and adolescents, as well as their families and carers.
You’ll learn how to apply those skills and knowledge in differing educational, therapeutic, community and clinical settings.
Career outcomes
Some of the career titles that naturally flow from this course include Student Counsellor, Mental Health and Wellbeing Coordinator, and School Mental Health Practitioner.
Student counsellors are part of the Counsellors occupation in the Government’s Labour Market Insights—an area that’s predicted to grow by 14.2 per cent in the next five years.
Industry demand/future of work skills
In 2021, the Government introduced the National Children’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy.
The strategy is a framework that will guide investment in the mental health and wellbeing of children and their families over the next decade.
With over four million children under the age of 12 in Australia and the knowledge that half of all adult mental health issues emerge before the age of 14, industry demand for these skills is likely to grow as the strategy progresses.
At Victoria University (VU) Online Health, the future of health is innovative, connected with industry, creates opportunity and is supported by community. Our vision is to provide the best online education in Australia. We’re ambitious and passionate, and determined to make a positive impact on health.
Contact a Student Success Advisor and learn more about our online health courses today.
