New hosts for School of Professional Practice awards

On 11 December 2024, the University Council made the decision to close the School of Professional Practice, effective 31 December 2024.

The School of Professional Practice was established in late 2022, as a strategic initiative to meet current and future needs in faith-based agencies, churches, and other organisations for mature practitioners in a range of professional disciplines, including Counselling, Professional Supervision, Leadership and Clinical Pastoral Education.

Earlier this year, the School of Professional Practice was identified by Council as an area where changes could help improve the University’s financial position, as current and projected enrolments were not sufficient to meet the costs of operating the School as an independent entity. The University determined that the best way to allow the awards delivered by the School to grow and succeed would be to incorporate them into the collegiate system. Colleges were invited to participate in an extended collaborative exercise to identify mutually beneficial alternative models for delivering the awards.

As a result of this process, the following three agreements for award and unit delivery are being put in place:

• The Bachelor of Counselling will be hosted by Australian Lutheran College.
• The Graduate Certificate and Graduate Diploma in Professional Supervision, as well as units in Clinical Pastoral Education, will be hosted by Whitley College.
• The Graduate Certificate in Leadership will be hosted by Uniting College for Leadership and Theology, with elective units available at a number of other Colleges.

Student and staff associations will be transferred from the School to the respective Colleges prior to the commencement of semester 1 2025. It is expected that there will be minimal impact on unit delivery and student experience, and students and staff will benefit from the improved access to resources and support that come with being part of a larger College community.

The University commends the tireless work and caring approach of the staff of the School of Professional Practice to developing and consolidating these important courses of study, and looks forward to seeing them continue to flourish in their new forms in 2025 and beyond.