Medical School
Rural Clinical School of Western Australia
The Rural Clinical School of Western Australia (RCSWA) was established in 2002 to help deliver better health outcomes for people living in country WA.
Medical students from The University of Western Australia, The University of Notre Dame Australia and Curtin University can apply to undertake a 12-month program at one of the RCSWA sites around the state. If accepted, you will be taught and assessed to the same rigorous standards as metro-based students, but you will receive valuable practical experience, medical mentorship and community engagement. After spending a penultimate year at RCSWA, medical students from The University of Western Australia and The University of Notre Dame Australia can apply to complete their final year of medical school with RCSWA.
Please visit the RCSWA website for more information (opens in a new window).
Rural General Practice Placements
Metropolitan final year students from The University of Western Australia, The University of Notre Dame Australia and Curtin University and RCSWA Final Year students are granted the opportunity to 'go rural' during the last year of their medical degree.
Please visit the RCSWA website for more information (opens in a new window).
Rural Clinical Elective Placements
The RCSWA oversees the placement of medical students in rural WA towns for rural clinical elective placements. These placements occur during set timeframes throughout the year.
Please visit the RCSWA website for more information (opens in a new window).
Other Rural Placements
The three medical schools in Western Australia collaborate with a range of organisations to place medical students in rural areas during their studies.
Please visit The University of Western Australia, The University of Notre Dame Australia and Curtin University websites for more information (opens in a new window).
Rural Health Clubs
The National Rural Health Student Network (NRHSN) represents the future of rural health in Australia. It is Australia’s only multidisciplinary student health network, bringing together people studying medicine, nursing and allied health, encouraging them to pursue rural health careers. The NRHSN and its Rural Health Clubs offer rural experience weekends, career information sessions and professional development activities as well as providing a social base for students at university and when on rural placement. The student network leaders also advocate on behalf of health students of all disciplines, including opportunities for more rural placements and training support. The NRHSN is an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care administered as a consortium by the Rural Workforce Agencies. The Rural Health Clubs in Western Australia are Curtin Rural Outreach Health Club (CROHC), Students and Practitioners Interested in Rural Practice Health Education (SPINRPHEX) and Western Australian Allied Health Interested in Bush Experience (WAALHIIBE).
Please visit the NRHSN website for more information (opens in a new window).
