Government Policies affecting all Undergraduate Medicine Students
Special Note
Students, including New Zealand citizens, who will not be Australian citizens or permanent residents at the time of enrolment, may not be automatically entitled to registration, internship, and access to a provider number in Australia. If they wish to stay in Australia after graduation, they should make their own enquiries regarding their situation related to these matters as they lie beyond the control of the University. For further information, please see:
For further information on Internship, please see our website at
"Can I complete my internship in Australia".
Criminal Record Checks
The New South Wales Department of Health has a policy that all students undertaking clinical placements (which includes all Teaching Hospitals used by UNSW in its Medicine Program) must undergo an Australian National Criminal Record Check prior to placement in the NSW Health System.
Students must note that clinical placement in the NSW Health System is a substantial and essential element in the UNSW Medicine Program. Students who fail to satisfy the requirements of this criminal record check at any point during their enrolment will be excluded from the Program. Depending upon the circumstances at the time, students may be eligible to transfer to another Program of the University.
Students currently living overseas are also required to undergo a criminal record check from their country of residence.
Students need to apply for a National Criminal Record Check and finalise the process prior to the commencement of clinical placements in Week 8 of Year 1. Students are not permitted to commence clinical placements until a National Police Certificate showing no criminal offences or a clearance document from the NSW Department of Health has been received.
Information on obtaining a National Police Certificate and other NSW Health requirements can be found on the
NSW Health website.
Working with Children
Under the
Commission for Children and Young People Act 1998 and the
Child Protection (Prohibited Employment) Act 1998 medical students must declare whether or not they are a "prohibited person". This is a requirement for all medical students as it is a part of their enrolment that they are required to work with children. It is an offence for a "prohibited person" to work with children.
A "prohibited person" is one who has been convicted of a serious sex offence which is defined as an offence involving sexual activity or acts of indecency which is or was punishable by penal servitude or imprisonment for 12 months or more in New South Wales, or, an offence committed elsewhere, that would have been punishable by penal servitude or imprisonment for 12 months or more if it had been committed in New South Wales.
Before each clinical placement, students are required to sign a Commission for Children and Young People Student Declaration and have read the NSW Health Code of Conduct. Any student who is a "prohibited person" at any point during their enrolment in the Medicine Program will be excluded from the Program. Depending upon the circumstances at the time, students may be eligible to transfer to another Program of the University.
Students with Blood-borne Viruses and Immunisation for Students
In order to be enrolled in the UNSW Medicine Program, students must agree to comply with the Faculty’s Immunisation and Blood-borne Viruses Policy, which aims to minimise the risk of medical students contracting or spreading an infectious disease or blood-borne virus, such as HIV, and Hepatitis B or C. Students must also be registered with the NSW Medical Board. Registrants with the Board (including student registrants) who undertake or could reasonably be expected to undertake exposure-prone procedures have a professional responsibility to take appropriate steps to know their infective status in relation to blood-borne viruses. All students in the Medicine Program could ordinarily be expected to undertake exposure-prone procedures and all students in the Program must know their infective status. A registrant (student) who is aware he or she has a blood-borne virus infection must not undertake exposure-prone procedures.
Any infective student who knowingly undertakes an exposure-prone procedure or any student who in any other way endangers the health of patients will be reported to the Medical Board’s Impaired Practitioner Program. This may result in registration being withdrawn, which will result in expulsion from the Medicine Program. Such a student would also be subject to the University’s Student Misconduct procedures and may further be liable to criminal prosecution if a blood-borne virus is knowingly transmitted.
The Immunisation and Blood-borne Viruses policy of the Faculty of Medicine is found on the website at "
Policies". Students are required to sign a statement at the time of enrolment indicating that they have read and agree to comply with this Policy.
Student Registration with the National Medical Board
All medical students in Australia are required to be registered with the Medical Board of the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA). The registration is undertaken by the University annually. The register of students is not publicly available.
As well as student registration, the National Medical Board also deals with notifications about students. Notifications can include students whose health is impaired, have been charged with an offence, or have contravened a condition of student registration. For further details see the
AHPRA website.