Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Practice in Health (Specialty)

Occupational therapists and other health professionals often utilise the same base knowledge and are increasingly working in teams together to achieve common goals.

In addition, postgraduate qualifications are being required more often by employers.

This high-level programme has been developed specifically to enable both occupational therapists and non-occupational therapists to complete a postgraduate certificate within the School of Occupational Therapy. 

Deepen your theoretical knowledge to support your clinical reasoning, within the constraints of your practice environment, to ensure effective outcomes for clients of your services. Strengthen your academic skills of analysis, synthesis and critique in your research area. All of this will contribute to you being recognised as an expert clinical practitioner. 

The mix of occupational therapists and non-occupational therapists provides a healthy environment for you to hear and learn about the topic with input from people from a wide range of professional backgrounds. Your study and assignments will focus on your specialty area of practice and you will graduate with this specialty reflected in your qualification title. 

Entry requirements

• You must hold a bachelor's degree OR qualifications accepted by the appropriate professional registration board.
• International students will be individually assessed to ensure you meet the entry requirements. 
• If English is not your first language, you must provide:
  • New Zealand University Entrance OR
  • Overall Academic IELTS 6.5 with no individual band score lower than 6.5 (achieved in one test completed in the last two years), OR
  • Acceptable alternative evidence of the required IELTS (see here for NZQA proficiency table and here for list of recognised proficiency tests).

If you need to improve your English Language skills, we offer a wide range of English programmes.

Additional documentation

You must supply certified copies of proof of identity, academic records, proof of residency (where appropriate) and curriculum vitae.

COVID-19 vaccination information

If you want to apply for this programme, we’ll need to see evidence of your Covid-19 vaccinations (including types and dates). You need to have had three doses. We’re legally obliged to collect this additional information from you as this programme is covered by the Covid-19 Public Health Response (Vaccination) Order 2021. 

Please just complete our online application process as normal. As part of the application process, you’ll be asked to provide your vaccination record. 

The Government have advised that the only proof of vaccination that we can accept is a vaccination record PDF from your My Covid Record. 

Find out how to get your vaccination record here >

Programme structure

You will work with the Postgraduate Coordinator to tailor an individual study pathway that is right for you. You will undertake existing courses from the School of Occupational Therapy postgraduate programme to complement your current knowledge and experience.

To gain the Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Practice in Health (Specialty), you must achieve 60 credits at Level 8. You will therefore complete two 30 credit courses from the following postgraduate courses: 

Your workload

For the full-time programme, it is advisable to allow 18 - 19 hours per week, per course. As the full-time qualification involves two courses, you would be expected to spend approximately 30-36 hours per week studying.  

Postgraduate academic staff

Jackie Herkt - Academic Leader/Acting Postgraduate Programme Lead ([email protected])

Helen Jeffery- Senior Lecturer ([email protected])

Debbie Davie - Administrator, Postgraduate Programmes ([email protected])

Sian Griffiths - Principal Lecturer/Honours Coordinator ([email protected])

Dr Rita Robinson - Principal Lecturer ([email protected])

Dr Ema Tokolahi - Lecturer ([email protected])

For more details, please visit our staff page. 

Student loans/allowances

Student loans and allowances are for domestic students only. For information about student loans and allowances please visit the Studylink website. It is important to apply for your student loan/allowance at the same time as you apply for this programme, due to the length of time Studylink take to process. Loan/allowance applications can be cancelled at any time if you decide to withdraw your programme application or if it is unsuccessful. 

Recognition of prior learning

If you have extensive knowledge and skills due to practical experience in this area, enquire about our recognition of prior learning process at Capable NZ. You may have already gained credits towards this qualification.

Links to useful websites

Looking for a job as an occupational therapist? Check out New Zealand Careers or Health Careers.