Topic outline
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Welcome to the UniSA STEM Professional Practice Program page!
These resources are for all students undertaking the Bachelor of Construction Management (Honours) (IHCN) program and for any Bachelor of Construction Management (IBBE) students who intend transferring into the 4 year – IHCN program. As of study period 2, 2020, UniSA STEM requires all IHCN students to participate in the STEM Professional Practice Program, completing a minimum of 450 hours of professional practice (equivalent to 60 days FTE) over the duration of the 4-year degree.
Students will not be eligible to graduate until all program requirements, including the STEM Professional Practice Program and the zero-unit course Industry Experience (BUIL 4037), have been met.
All In-Industry Experiences (Band 3), such as self-sourced in-industry placements, internships or similar MUST be approved by the UniSA STEM Industry Experience Team BEFORE the In-Industry experience may commence. Any in-industry experiences undertaken without prior formal approval will NOT be counted towards your 450 professional practice hours, no exceptions!
Once you have successfully completed the minimum of 450 hours of professional practice (60 days FTE), you will then be invited to enrol in Industry Experience (BUIL 4037) in the next available offering, write a reflective report, and submit it via Gradebook to be assessed. Upon successful completion of the assessment you will receive a Non-Graded Pass (NGP) for the course. This course does not attract any course fees.
All of the required resources, links and forms are provided below.
UniSA STEM Professional Practice Program Model
The STEM Professional Practice Program (PPP) is designed to provide students with significant exposure to the professional construction environment throughout their university studies.
All students will be required to accrue a minimum of 450 hours of professional practice (equivalent to 60 days FTE) through pre-approved self-sourced in-industry placements or internships, site visits, industry lectures, workshops and/or industry related seminars and activities. The PPP for Construction Management students can be satisfied through an accumulation of hours from Band 2 and Band 3 below:
Model for Construction Management
Example 1; A student may undertake 375 hours (50 days FTE) of pre-approved in-industry experience (Band 3) and participate in 75 hours (10 days FTE) f extra-curricular (Band 2) activities.
Example 2; A student may undertake 450 hours (60 days FTE) of pre-approved in-industry experience (Band 3).
Do I have to gain professional practice hours? - YES. ALL domestic and international students within the Bachelor of Construction Management (Honours) (IHCN) program must complete a minimum of 450 hours of professional practice (60 days FTE) prior to enrolling into BUIL4037. Students will not be eligible to graduate until the PPP requirement has been met and an Non-Graded Pass (NGP) has been recorded for BUIL4037.
When should I start accumulating my Professional Practice hours? - You can start accumulating your professional practice hours from the commencement of your program (e.g. year 1).
Can I get an exemption/recognised prior learning (RPL) for the PPP? - If you have recent work experience in a construction related role for a significant time period (e.g. you have worked as a Contract Administrator and are now completing your degree) you may be granted an exemption from completing the PPP. If you would like to apply for an exemption, complete the Request for Exemption from PPP form and attach relevant evidence, then return it to the UniSA STEM Industry Experience team via email STEM.Placements@unisa.edu.au.
In-Industry Experience
Band 3
To complete the STEM Professional Practice Program (PPP) students must accumulate a minimum of 450 hours of professional practice, with at least half of this spent in-industry on a placement.
In-Industry experience includes pre-approved:
- Placements
- Internships
- Work Experience
- Discipline relevant employment
Please click here to view the Band 3 - In-Industry Experience process Flow Chart. This document outlines the process to ensure that your in-industry experience counts towards your Professional Practice Program hours.You are required to source, apply for and negotiate your own in-industry experience. This process will provide you with confidence, strategies and skills that will be useful when you apply for graduate jobs in the future. Below are links to job search engines you may like to view:
- CareerOne
- Job Search
- Seek
- AIQS register of firms
- Local Councils
- Private Certifiers
- DPTI Building Project Information Management System / Prequalified Contractors
You should apply in writing directly to the Director of Human Resources (or relevant contact person that you may have met at an Industry event, etc.). We have provided a 'sample' letter below to provide with you some guidance. Provide reasons why you want industry experience and how working in their company will benefit you. Refer to resources available via the UniSA Career Services website for more information.
You must not commence your In-Industry experience until you have received written approval from the UniSA STEM Industry Experience team.
Please see below 'Requesting approval to commence' for instructions on how to prepare for your placement and gain approval BEFORE commencing.
Prerequisites
There are some prerequisites that you need to complete before you can submit your request for approval to commence your In-Industry experience:
- Complete an In-Industry Experience Proposal form and have it signed by your host organisation. You will need to upload this into the University's Student Placement system, InPlace, so it can be approved. Note: You cannot start your placement until you have received approval to do so.
- Complete the UniSA WHS module 'Undertaking a Safe Student Placement', including the quiz and declaration. This is an online module which will take up to 20 minutes to complete. Save a copy of your completion certificate.
- If your In-Industry experience is unpaid, UniSA will cover you with insurance for up to a maximum of 20 weeks. To organise this you must complete a UniSA FS23 Student Placement Insurance form and have it signed by your host organisation. You will need to upload this form into InPlace, for it to be signed by a university representative.
- Upload a copy of your White Card into InPlace, if applicable to your host organisation.
- Some host organisations might have additional prerequisite requirement that you need to complete such as police checks, security clearances, working with children checks etc. Please check this with the host organisation when negotiating your placement.
- If your placement is outside of Adelaide, please see the 'Undertaking an In-industry Experience outside of Adelaide' section below for more information.
If you undertake more than one In-Industry experience you must repeat all steps for each different host organisation and in-industry experience.
You must not commence your in-industry experience until your prerequisites have been met and your in-industry experience placement has been approved.
Requesting approval to commence
All In-Industry experiences need to be submitted and approved in the University's Placement Management System, InPlace, before you can commence.
Before you can upload your in-industry experience submission you will need the following documentation:
- Completed In-Industry Experience Proposal form, signed by the host organisation.
- Completed UniSA FS23 Student Placement Insurance form (for unpaid placement only), signed by the host organisation.
- Evidence of White Card.
- UniSA WHS Module 'Undertaking a Safe Student Placement' certificate.
- Business Travel Request (BTR) reference number (if your placement is outside of Adelaide).
- Host Organisation Evaluation (formally known as Employer Evaluation), this will be finalised at the end of your placement.
Uploading your documents into the University's Placement Management System, InPlace.- Follow the information provided in the Student InPlace User Guide – Construction Management to upload your information into InPlace.
You may not commence your in-industry experience until it has been approved by the UniSA STEM Industry Experience team. You will get an email from the Industry Experience Team once all the prerequisites have been verified, and the placement is approved.
If you undertake more than one in-industry experience you must repeat all steps for each different host organisation and in-industry experience
Supporting evidence of your In-Industry Experience
You are required to complete a Timesheet & Certificate of Attendance for each in-industry experience placement you undertake, recording your completed in-industry experience hours. This will need to be approved by your host organisation supervisor regularly.
Once you have completed your in-industry experience you need to upload your completed timesheet into InPlace. The UniSA STEM Industry Experience team will verify the completed hours spent in-industry and these hours will be added to your Band 3 PPP total.
At the end of your in-industry experience you will also need to get your host organisation supervisor to complete a Host Organisation Evaluation form, providing you with feedback. Please save a copy of this as you will need to submit it as part of your assessment for the zero-unit course, Industry Experience (BUIL 4037).
If you undertake more than one In-Industry experience you must repeat all steps for each different hos
