Graduate Diploma of Play Therapy

This course is designed to enhance the knowledge and practice skills of education, nursing, allied health and social work professional to work with children and adolescents, through the therapeutic use of play.

Students will gain in depth knowledge about the many influences upon children's wellbeing and the range of ways that children respond to major life events and transitions.

Throughout the course the focus will be on the role of play in children's lives, how it is affected by developmental events and how play can be used to access the child's understanding, emotions and healing.

Students will acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to work effectively with children, and how to access their understanding to the extent consistent with the child's age, maturity and circumstances.

In addition, students will gain insights into how to help parents work therapeutically with their children, through play.

Core Units(5 units) - 50cp

Compulsory Core units totalling 50 credit points as detailed below.

FUN501 Foundations of Play Therapy (not avail from 2019) FUN502 Child Centred Play Therapy (not avail from 2019) FUN503 Assessment and Directive Approaches in Play Therapy (not avail from 2019) FUN504 Fundamentals of Childhood Trauma (not avail from 2019) FUN505 Therapeutic Parenting and Filial Therapy

Specialist Elective(3 units) - 30cp

Select unit totalling 30 credit points selected from the list of available units detailed below.

ATI504 Indigenous Knowledges and Epistemologies HEA551 Child and Family Health Knowledge and Practice 1 HEA552 Child and Family Health Knowledge and Practice 2 PHM593 Tropical Child and Adolescent Health (new title 2020)

- 80cp

Total Credit Points

Successful completion of a recognised Bachelor degree or equivalent in the fields of education, medicine, nursing, allied health, psychology or social work. All applicants must be registered with the relevant professional body in the field of their completed degree.