

Graduate Certificate in Human Services
Graduate Certificate in Human Services
Enhance your knowledge of social work
Be intrigued by the human mind

Overview
The Graduate Certificate in Human Services will provide students with specific knowledge in sociology, social policy making, Indigenous issues, and professional communications.
Students will learn about contemporary Australian issues and nuances and how this relates to human services work, especially social work in the Australian community.
Students will be guided on how to develop verbal and written communication, critical thinking and reasoning with an Australian context.
This course also has a unit focused on the diversity of social, cultural and political situation in which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people live.
At the end of this course graduates will be able to apply knowledge and skills across a wide range of human services issues, enough to transition into and practice within the Human Services or Social Work industry. Note that this course is not available as a stand-alone qualification for international students.
Full time enrolment in this course will involve a total of 36 hours of face to face workshops per unit.
This course has been accredited by the Navitas Professional Institute (NPI) under its self-accrediting authority.

What you'll learn
Expertise in human behaviour forms the foundation of all our courses including our Graduate Certificate of Human Services.
EXPLORE WITH AN APPLIED FOCUS:
Social Work Theories
Professional Communication
Indigenous Social Work
Evidence Based Approaches
Professional Issues and Applications
Australian Society and Culture
Course structure
This course is comprised of 4 units, which are level 500 units.
The course duration is 26 weeks full time or up to 2 years part time.
Level: AQF 8 core
Credit Points: 6
Unit Description:
This unit introduces students to the institutional and demographic context in which community development is taking place in Australia. The unit give you an opportunity to become familiar with social institutions, key social demographics and core cultural values that constitute Australian society. These particularly inform how the human services sector and social workers roles within it are organised and framed.
Learning Outcomes:
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Learning and Teaching Process:
This unit is taught over 13 weeks and totals 3 student contact hours per week.
Students will participate in teaching and learning activities including:
a) Lectures and critical discussion
b) Tutorials and skill development activities
c) Online pre-learning activities
d) Online post-learning
Depending on the delivery mode, this unit’s content is delivered to students via
- A weekly 3-hour learning session [via Zoom]. One hour will be didactive material delivered in lecture format. Two hours will be interactive class time, for discussion of the lecture, readings, assessments and class activities.
In addition to timetabled contact hours, students are expected to do at least 9.5 hours of personal study each week to review lectures and read prescribed and recommended materials for this unit. The total workload of this unit will be around 150 hours (including individual self-study and reading).
Level: AQF 8 core
Credit Points: 6
Unit Description:
This unit provides students with an orientation to professional human service literacies and academic study at a post-graduate level. Students will be orientated to the class space and the teaching and learning philosophy of the Discipline of Social Work. Students will receive readings related to their discipline and will be taught the skills that are relevant to their success in post-graduate education. In this unit students will develop and produce a range of written texts in professional genres including case notes and client referral. Students will also develop advanced skills to plan, structure and write essays in an academic style and presentation skills for a range of audiences. The use of Turn-It-In as a self-assessment tool in academic writing in combination with the use of reference managers and library search tools will be introduced. Students will also be introduced to the information and technology communication (ICT) skills required for study success.
Learning Outcomes:
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1. Develop and apply advanced professional communication skills appropriate to social work or other human services professions.
2. Demonstrate an advanced ability to think critically, analyse, interpret, process and communicate information effectively.
3. Demonstrate an advanced ability to develop and support inclusive community engagement strategies.
Learning and Teaching Process:
This unit is taught over 13 weeks and totals 3 student contact hours per week.
Students will participate in teaching and learning activities including:
- Lectures and critical discussion
- Tutorials and skill development activities
- Online pre-learning activities
- Online post-learning
Depending on the delivery mode, this unit’s content is to be delivered to students via
- a weekly 3 hour lecture [via Zoom]. These three hours will be interactive class time, and will include didactive materials, discussion, readings, assessment and class activities.
In addition to timetabled contact hours, students are expected to undertake at least 9.5 hours of personal study each week to review seminar materials and read prescribed and recommended materials for this unit. The total individual workload of this unit will be around 150 hours (including teamwork, individual self-study and reading).
Level: AQF 8 core
Credit Points: 6
Unit Description:
The unit provides an introduction to the social and human sciences, their historical foundations and their role in understanding and working in contemporary society. Concepts studied are particularly focussed on understanding social inequalities and how these may relate to contemporary social movements. These theories include structural theories about gender, class, diversity, politico-economic systems, social institutions, culture, colonisation, globalisation, neoliberalism and (post)modernity. Students will also explore postmodern concepts of human agency, lived experience, identity, knowledge, self and subjectivity. This analysis aims to provide students with an appreciation of the role of the social sciences in understanding contemporary society, but even more importantly it establishes a foundational framework through which the analysis of contemporary social issues and contemporary social action takes place.
Learning Outcomes:
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Learning and Teaching Process
This unit is taught over 13weeks and totals 3student contact hours per week.
Students will participate in teaching and learning activities including:
a. Lectures and critical discussion
b. Tutorials and skill development activities
c. Online pre-learning activities
d. Online post-learning
Depending on the delivery mode, this unit’s content is delivered to students via
- A weekly 3 hour learning session [via Zoom]. These three hours will be interactive class time, and will include didactive materials, discussion, readings, assessments and class activities.
In addition to timetabled contact hours, students are expected to do at least 9.5 hours of personal study each week to review lectures and read prescribed and recommended materials for this unit. The total workload of this unit will be around 150 hours (including teamwork, individual self-study and reading).
Level: AQF 8 core
Credit Points: 6
Unit Description:
This unit will introduce students to the diversity of social, cultural and political situation in which First People in Australia live. Indigenous theories and practices as a new framework for influencing knowledge and practice in the community and human services sector will also be explored.
Learning Outcomes:
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Learning and Teaching Process:
This unit is taught over 13 weeks and totals 3 student contact hours per week.
Students will participate in teaching and learning activities including:
a) Lectures and critical discussion
b) Tutorials and skill development activities
c) Online pre-learning activities
d) Online post-learning
Depending on the delivery mode, this unit’s content is delivered to students via
- A weekly 3 hour learning session [via Zoom]. This is in a seminar format and includes didactive material and interactive class time with discussion, readings, assessments and class activities.
In addition to timetabled contact hours, students are expected to do at least 9.5 hours of personal study each week to review lectures and read prescribed and recommended materials for this unit. The total workload of this unit will be around 150 hours (including individual self-study and reading).
Download Course Guide
Pathways for future study
The Graduate Certificate in Human Services will provide students with the knowledge and skills to seamlessly transition into a higher qualification in Social Work, such as the Master of Social Work (Qualifying).
Note that this course is not available as a stand-alone course for international students.

