About

Work-integrated learning, also known as WIL, combines theoretical knowledge with authentic and meaningful work practice. It involves partnerships with community or industry and is embedded within the curriculum. WIL supports students' academic studies, employability skills, and contributions to society as active citizens.

There are five main categories of work-integrated learning, use the accordions below to find out more about each WIL type.

  • Internships: Provides discipline-specific, supervised, paid or unpaid work experience for academic credit. Internships can take place during or after academic coursework, with varying durations.
  • Service Learning: Community Service Learning combines purposeful community service, classroom teaching, and reflective analysis to enhance learning and empower local communities. In action, students collaborate with community organisations, applying their academic expertise to address community-identified issues.
  • Mandatory Professional Practicum / Clinical Placement: Entails professional practice under the supervision of an experienced registered or licensed professional (e.g. preceptor) in any discipline requiring practice-based work experience.

  • Community and Industry Projects: Students are actively involved in research predominately conducted in professional settings, encompassing consulting projects, design initiatives, and community-based research endeavours.

  • Fieldwork: Provides students with immersive, part-time, or short-term practical experience closely aligned with their field of study.

  • Simulation: Students work activities are directly contributed by an industry partner.
  • Virtual: Students engage in authentic work practice with an industry partner online or virtually (i.e. Telehealth) with real clients or industry input.

  • Entrepreneurship: Provides students with access to resources, mentorship, workspace, and potential funding to develop new business ventures or external projects addressing real-world challenges, all while earning academic credit.

Vision, Principles and Framework

Work-integrated learning at Charles Sturt University is guided by a shared set of guiding documents that set out what quality WIL looks like, how it is designed and delivered, and how it is evaluated.

There are three documents that together underpin consistent, inclusive and high-quality work-integrated learning across all Charles Sturt courses.

WIL Vision and Guiding Principles

Quality WIL Framework

WIL for Students with Disability Guidelines