Student Placements

Are you a Social Work student required to undertake field placements during your studies?

The Australian Centre for Hoarding, Squalor and Clutter (ACHSC) offers field education placements to Social Work students studying in Australia. Field placements with the ACHSC are non-clinical and are made up of project based work with a direct relationship to mental health practice.

What placement activities does the ACHSC offer?

Activities undertaken while on placement may include, but are not limited to:

  • Project-based work furthering the current activities of the ACHSC.

  • Planning and running events, including networking meetings, professional development workshops, strategic working group meetings and other similar events.

  • Developing written resources including fact sheets, website educational content and research summaries.

  • Ensuring the “published research” list remains up to date

  • Supporting the continued development and refinement of the ACHSC’s practice standards in consultation with relevant community stakeholders.

  • Engaging with relevant community stakeholders Australia wide

  • Supporting the collection of statistics and research to support advocacy for and visibility of hoarding, squalor and clutter.

What knowledge and skills are required by students?

No prior assumed knowledge is required and full training is provided to all students undertaking field education at the ACHSC. Students with an interest in pursuing post-graduate work in mental health will be highly regarded.

Some essential skills are required due to the nature of the placement tasks being undertaken. These include:

  • High level written and verbal communication skills. You will be required to submit a sample of your recent written university work as part of your application.

  • Self-motivation. Your field placement will include substantial opportunities for autonomous work. Students require strong, demonstrated skills in self-motivation, autonomy, organisation and time management.

  • IT skills. During your placement you will be required to use a range of online IT platforms (e.g. Canva, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel [basic use], Squarespace). While training is provided for all IT systems, you will require a strong degree of technological initiative, typing skills and problem-solving skills.

Does the ACHSC accept students from disciplines other than Social Work?

We will consider students for field placements from disciplines other than Social Work, although cannot guarantee we meet the supervision requirements of other disciplines. It is recommended students check supervision requirements with their field education coordinator prior to contacting the ACHSC about a potential placement. Please note that the ACHSC does not offer clinical-based placements. 

Want more information about student field education placements?