Unit Synopsis
This unit introduces you to fundamental aspects of podiatry practice. You will learn about the standards and codes of practice of a podiatrist. You will also set up your clinical workspace, apply infection control principles and occupational health and safety standards. You will learn to take a patient medical history and conduct general assessments of the foot and lower limb in a simulated multi-disciplinary clinical setting.
Details
| Level | Undergraduate |
|---|---|
| Unit Level | 1 |
| Credit Points | 6 |
| Student Contribution Band | SCA Band 2 |
| Fraction of Full-Time Student Load | 0.125 |
| Pre-requisites or Co-requisites |
There are no pre-requisites for the unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework). |
| Class Timetable | View Unit Timetable |
| Residential School |
Optional Residential School View Unit Residential School |
Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2026
Term 2 - 2026 Profile
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Assessment Tasks
| Assessment Task | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. In-class Test(s) | 20% |
| 2. Presentation | 40% |
| 3. Written Assessment | 30% |
| 4. On-campus Activity | 10% |
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).
Past Exams
All University policies are available on the Policy web site, however you may wish to directly view the following policies below.
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of policies are available on the Policy web site .
Term 2 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 100.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 25% response rate.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Source: Informal feedback from students.
Students enjoyed the practical intensive sessions and the breadth of hands-on learning covered during these sessions.
It is recommended that a practical intensive session continues to be included in subsequent deliveries of this unit.
The practical intensive continued this term and continued to be received well across the cohort.
Source: Unit Coordinator Reflection.
Students continue to find the In-Class Test challenging.
It is recommended that practical strategies to promote success in the in-class test be implemented in subsequent deliveries of this unit. For example, via the introduction of online practice quiz(zes).
Students were provided weekly quizzes (non-assessed) to consolidate learning in the same format as the in-class test.
Source: Informal student feedback
Weekly lecture and tutorial content should be uploaded in a more timely manner to assist students preparing for the teaching time.
It is recommended the UC will ensure content is uploaded at least one week prior to the lecture/tutorial time in subsequent years of delivery.
In Progress
Source: Informal student feedback
Content delivered in the early weeks of term could be more engaging.
It is recommended that the methods and timing of delivering content related to policies, codes, and guidelines be reviewed such that this content does not occupy the full first two-weeks of content.
In Progress
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Identify standard policies, codes and guidelines that inform the scope of practice for podiatrists including collaborative practice and team-based care.
- Discuss the basic aetiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentation and treatment of common neurovascular, nail and skin disorders in podiatry practice.
- Demonstrate knowledge of safety legislation during application of manual skills using general podiatry equipment.
- Conduct a basic podiatric assessment in a professional manner demonstrating ethical and inclusive behaviour.
- Discuss culturally safe healthcare in Australia, particularly as it relates to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
The Learning Outcomes are linked to the professional standards set by the Podiatry Board of Australia.
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - In-class Test(s) | • | • | |||
| 2 - Presentation | • | • | • | ||
| 3 - Written Assessment | • | • | • | ||
| 4 - On-campus Activity | • | • | |||
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | • | • | • | • | • |
| 2 - Problem Solving | • | • | • | • | • |
| 3 - Critical Thinking | • | • | • | • | |
| 4 - Information Literacy | • | • | • | • | • |
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | • | • | • | • | • |
| 8 - Ethical practice | • | • | • | • | • |
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | |