Graduate Certificate in Mental Health
PostgraduateUND-MHA-GCE2025
Course information for 2025 intake View information for 2024 course intake
Developed after extensive consultation with the mental health profession
Designed to meet the needs of mental health nurses, this course is a rigorous introduction to psychiatric theories and contemporary treatment. Study contemporary mental health, then graduate and grow your career, or continue your psychiatry studies.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Applications close
- 2 Feb 2025,
- 6 July 2025
- Credit available
- Yes
- Duration
- 6 months full time or part time equivalent
- Total subjects
- 4
- Available loans
- Australian Higher Education Loan Program (HELP)
Graduate Certificate in Mental Health
About this degree
On completion of this program students should be able to achieve the following learning outcomes:
- Utilise evidence based knowledge and skills in the planning of respectful, safe, effective and holistic care for the patient with a mental health illness;
- Integrate evidence based models of decision making with the health professional standards of practice and legislation in the planning of patient centred care within the mental health context;
- Use evidence based models of clinical reasoning to facilitate clear effective communication and confident negotiation skills;
- Harness interprofessional collaboration to provide excellent patient care and achieve common goals;
- Model responsible and professional behaviours to colleagues and students in order to provide safe, culturally appropriate and socially just care within a medico-legal framework for mentally ill patients;
- Deconstruct one’s own biases as a means of applying and building professional expertise in the care of mentally ill patients;
- Reflect on practice to facilitate awareness and knowledge of one’s own cognition in order to establish a mechanism for lifelong learning;
- Conduct research retrieval and enquiry to debate contemporary mental health challenges on the global stage, incorporating philosophical, technical and social justice perspectives.
The Graduate Certificate in Mental Health has been devised and developed following extensive consultation with the professions to address a shortage of practitioners in acute mental health areas. The interdisciplinary program was designed both to upskill the existing workforce and to attract and train appropriate registered nurses and allied health staff for existing and newly created positions in this expanding area of practice. This program encompasses the skills required for triage, assessment, intervention, liaison and emergency care through a blended learning approach structured to provide students with the practical knowledge, theory and ethics essential for the challenging acute-response environment.
Recommended study pattern
One (1) Core Subject:
- NURS4025 Interpersonal Communication
PLUS three (3) from the following list:
- NURS5006 Professional Role Development
- NURS6007 Introduction to Perinatal and Infant Mental Health
- NURS4024 Contemporary Mental Health Practice
- NURS4027 Role of the Mental Health Practitioner in an Acute Setting
- NURS5004 Advanced Contemporary Mental Health Practice 1
- NURS5005 Advanced Contemporary Mental Health Practice 2
Award requirements
To be eligible for the award of Graduate Certificate in Mental Health students must complete 3 mandatory subjects and 1 elective subject.
Degrees are usually made up of core subjects and electives. Some degrees include a choice of majors, so you can focus your studies on a specialisation.
This list is a general overview. Download the full Degree Guide for more information.
Open Universities Australia is a not-for-profit organisation. You will not pay any fees for using our services.
Indicative total fee $11,955
The amount shown here is indicative for an Australian citizen studying full-time, which is typically 8 subjects per year.
Fees may vary depending on:
- the subjects you choose
- credit from previous work experience
- your eligibility for government funding loans or subsidies such as HECS-HELP or a Commonwealth supported place.
To learn more, go to Fees or contact a student advisor.
The University of Notre Dame Australia is committed to delivering an excellent student experience, alongside a high standard of teaching, research, and training. As a leader in ethical education, Notre Dame aims to develop students’ critical reasoning and their ability to make ethical decisions—crucial skills to progressing their careers and leading purposeful lives. At Notre Dame, students navigate their future with an ethical education online.
Learn more about UNDA.
Explore UNDA courses.
- QS Ranking 2024:
- 37
Entry requirements
To be eligible for admission to the Graduate Certificate in Mental Health applicants must hold a recognised Bachelor Degree in Nursing, and must have a current licence to practise as a registered nurse, or practitioner with an Australian regulatory authority or full membership of an appropriate Australian or Professional organisation.
Defined as the successful completion of secondary education or a Bachelor’s degree in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada or the Republic of Ireland.
Students who have English as an Additional language and are admitted on the basis of an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) assessment, or an equivalent English language proficiency assessment, are only admitted if they have attained n overall IELTS (or equivalent) score of 7.0, with no individual band score below 7.0.
All English language tests are valid for two years from the date of completion
Applications for Advanced Standing and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) will be considered and reviewed on a case by case basis by UNDA's Student Administration.
Career opportunities
- Clinical Nurse Ward based nursing (Adult, CAMHS, Older Adult, Drug and Alcohol)
- Community Health nurses
- Nurse educators L2
- Drug & Alcohol Services
- Pris
- Defence
- Private Hospitals
- Perinatal Mental Health
- Counsellor
- GP practice
- Volunteer work Worldwide NGOs
Australian job snapshots
Data sourced from Australian Jobs 2023.
Role | Earnings | Employment change |
|---|---|---|
Health and Welfare Services Managers | Over $120K | Up 56.6% |
Nurse Managers | Over $120K | Up 19.9% |
Registered Nurses | $93K to $120K | Up 16.3% |
Registered Nurses (Mental Health) | $93K to $120K | N/A^ |
^ There is no data available
Degree FAQs
How long does it take to finish an online degree?
That's up to you! Because we let you choose when to study online, you can actually pick up and pause study when it suits you. Many universities have a set time you need to complete your degree within. For some this is up to 10 years, and for others there is no limit.
There are some degrees that are stricter about when you can take breaks, and about how many years you can take to complete your degree. Please always check with your uni what the limits are.
As a general guide, Commonwealth supported place students have 10 years to finish their undergraduate degree through OUA, However, if you're studying with Griffith University, there's a limit of 8 years to complete your studies. If you want to take a break that lasts more than two study terms, you'll need to apply for a leave of absence. You can apply for a leave of absence for up to 12 months, as long as you complete your studies within the maximum time allowed for your degree.
If you're studying with Macquarie University, with the exception of certain degrees, there's no limit to how long you can take. But, please check with Macquarie Student Administration to be sure.
If you're studying with the University of Adelaide, you have up to 9 years to complete your undergraduate degree and graduate.
If you're studying with La Trobe University and want to take a break of minimum 1 study term, you must apply for leave of absence to avoid being inadvertently withdrawn from your degree.
Through OUA, you can study all year round, so it's possible to fast-track and finish up sooner than studying at a traditional uni would allow. That said, you need to spend around 12 hours a week on each undergraduate subject you do, so taking on extra work to finish ahead of time can be challenging.
How can I pay for my studies?
You may be eligible for a HELP loan from the Australian government, depending on your citizenship status and where you'll be living during your studies. You can also pay upfront with your credit card.
Payment options are explained in Fees, and you can contact a student advisor for more information.
How does studying through Open Universities Australia work?
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You have total control over how you study
Upskill without committing to a whole degree upfront. Or enrol in a full degree, but take it a subject at a time. We'll introduce you to flexible study options you didn't even know about, so you can fit uni around what matters to you.You'll graduate with the same qualification as an on-campus student
Once you enrol through us, you'll study online with the university that provides your degree. This means that when you complete your qualification, you'll graduate with the same degree as on-campus students.We'll help you navigate the university world
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When you've made your choice, click 'Apply now' on the relevant course page and follow the prompts to begin your enrolment. We'll ask you to supply some supporting documentation, including proof of your identity, your tax file number, and a unique student identifier (USI) during this process.
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