Melbourne Medical Electives
The Melbourne Medical School administers elective programs for non-University of Melbourne Medical students on behalf of our partner hospitals. A range of elective options are available, in a number of disciplines across eight clinical sites.
Melbourne Medical Electives are observational and available only to students in their final year (or penultimate year) of an approved university professional-entry medical course. We don’t provide structured curriculum, access to lectures, or formal teaching placements at any of our sites.
Specialty medical areas available
We offer observational placements in a number of specialty medical areas, including:
Aged care; anaesthesia & pain management; cardiology; dermatology; emergency medicine; endocrinology; gastroenterology; general medicine; general surgery; haematology; infectious diseases; intensive care; oncology; nephrology; neurology; obstetrics & gynaecology; ophthalmology; orthopaedics; paediatrics; palliative care; pathology; psychiatry; respiratory medicine; rheumatology; specialist surgeries including EN&T, plastics, cardiac, cardiothoracic, urology, hepatobiliary, vascular, neurosurgery, colorectal and spinal; trauma medicine; and women’s health.
Enrolment status
The elective program is designed to give medical students an opportunity to experience a range of health services and medical specialties, and encourages a broader understanding of the medical profession. Participants remain enrolled at their home University for the elective period and will not be enrolled as students of the University of Melbourne. As electives are not structured teaching programs, they cannot be counted as credit towards a degree.
Applying for an elective
Typically, applications will need to be submitted at least 12 months ahead of the elective period and capacity is extremely limited. Each site charges an elective fee, and some also require payment of an application and/or accommodation fee.
Our partner hospitals have their own specific requirements, which may differ slightly, but all will expect applicants to provide:
- immunity to or evidence of vaccination against a defined list of vaccine preventable diseases
- a recently completed Police check
- medical indemnity insurance equivalent to 10 million Australian dollars
- personal travel insurance (or equivalent health cover for Australian residents)
- evidence of enrolment in the clinical component of an approved medical course
- proof of English Language competency
- A CV/resume
If you are interested in applying to do a Melbourne Medical Elective, please read through the site-specific information available at the links below and contact our elective placement coordinator at the hospital of your choice.
Hospital / Health Service | Information | Contact |
Austin Health *Available only to University of Melbourne students until February 2022*
| Austin Clinical School | |
Northern Health
| Northern Clinical School nhcs-info@unimelb.edu.au (Please include ‘New elective Placement Enquiry’ in subject line.) | |
The Royal Children’s Hospital (Paediatrics) *Available only to University of Melbourne Year 3 students between December 2021 - January 2022. All other electives for 2022 are currently on hold*
| Pam Morison | |
The Royal Melbourne Hospital
| RMH Clinical School | |
The Royal Women’s Hospital (Obstetrics and Gynaecology) *Available only between mid-November until the end of December 2021* | Meredith Poyner | |
Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre | St Vincent’s Clinical School | |
St Vincent’s Hospital | St Vincent’s Clinical School | |
Western Health (Sunshine and Footscray Hospitals) *Not currently accepting elective students* | Western Clinical School - Elective Coordinator |
Elective placements in our rural hospital network are offered by Goulburn Valley Health (Shepparton), Ballarat Health Services, and North-East Health (Wangaratta). Applicants should contact these rural health services directly.
Indicative costs (AUD)
Please see specific health service elective websites for further info.
- Austin Health: $110 per week plus $150 per week for on- site accommodation
- St Vincent's Hospital & Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre: $100 application fee + $600 administrative fee for 4 weeks
- The Royal Melbourne Hospital: $100 per week
- Northern Health: $200 application fee plus $150 per week