Bachelor of Podiatry

Feet are fascinating and complex – they carry our weight for thousands of kilometers in a lifetime, they contain a quarter of the bones in the human body, and there are over 200 different identified foot conditions.

This degree will enable you to work in a specialty industry where there is growing demand for your services, and you can have a hugely positive impact on people with debilitating health conditions.

Students of the Bachelor of Podiatry will learn to diagnose and treat problems with feet and the lower leg in state-of-the-art facilities at Southern Cross University’s Gold Coast campus. During your degree, you will have professional placement opportunities to work with children and adults, athletes and elderly people to examine sporting injuries, gait, biomechanics and acute foot conditions.

Graduates of this program will have the opportunity to pursue a career with a high degree of autonomy, working in hospital settings, group practice or for themselves.

Career Opportunities

As a podiatrist, working individually or as part of a team, in varied settings and with clients of all ages. The majority of podiatry employment is in private practice, but podiatrists also have the opportunity to work in community health settings; in hospitals and with specialized health teams such as in diabetic care; in health promotion and education; with children, athletes and older people; or to undertake research.

Professional Recognition

The Bachelor of Podiatry is accredited with the Australian New Zealand Podiatry Accreditation Council (ANZPAC). Graduates can seek national registration as podiatry practitioners with the Podiatry Board of Australia.

In order to register to practice, the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency [AHPRA]; standards for the English language must be met. See the AHPRA website for further information.

Professional Placement

Students will complete approximately 1,000 hours of professional placement in various settings throughout the four years of study. These settings include but are not limited to public hospital rotations (high-risk foot clinics), private practice placements (general, sports and surgical) and rural health locations.

Professional experience placements require students to fulfill certain pre-requisites prior to attending any placements. Before applying for this course, it is important that you understand what these requirements are.

Major Areas of Study

The Bachelor of Podiatry enables students to develop an understanding of the theoretical and practical components of podiatry, with a focus on both general and specialist knowledge and skills. This includes broad subject areas including anatomy, pathophysiology, pharmacology, psychology, and communication. As students move through the course, they study more specialized content including biomechanics, rehabilitation, dermatology, rheumatology, and pediatrics.

Clinical skills are gained through a gradual process of preclinical stimulation, internal University clinics, and external clinical practice placements.

Honors: The course includes an embedded allied health Honours program for eligible students, which can be studied concurrently during the Bachelor degree course.

Assessment methods

Assessment methods vary for each unit and may include multiple choice and essay-style examinations, scenario-based case studies, tutorial workshop presentations, written assignments and practical skills testing.

Teaching methods

On-campus students experience a variety of teaching approaches including lectures, tutorials, laboratory sessions, simulations, clinical practice, online activities and video-linked or podcast virtual classes. The method of teaching may vary from unit to unit. Students will be expected to undertake clinical placements external to the University campuses.