“That ICPA (Aust) lobbies the Minister for Education and the Federal Department of Education, for the reduction of HECS fees when an education, allied health or medical/nursing student chooses to do their compulsory placements hours in remote and geographically isolated areas.”
Attracting new Teachers, Speech therapist, Occupational therapists, nurses and early childhood educators to our remote and isolated areas is becoming exceptionally difficult. The government needs to find new ways of enticing Tafe and University Students to these areas, allowing them to see these options for their future employment. Allowing higher education students to decrease their HECS debt with the compulsory hours of UNPAID work they must undertake to complete their course will give them a glimpse into a rural and remote lifestyle.
