325-330 Business Practicum
Applications for Semester 1, 2010 now open.
Apply online now.
Teams spend a regular half day at the participating organisation each week, with additional appointments as necessary. Teams also attend weekly lectures and work with an academic supervisor to undertake a structured business planning or business development exercise, supported by a professional-standard report analysing the business challenge and proposing courses of action for the organisation's consideration.
You will learn to work with unstructured and incomplete information, to develop research and networks to support your inquiry, to work successfully in teams, and to present your findings and seek and receive constructive feedback in a range of settings.
Student have worked with major Australian companies in a range of industries, state government departments and organisations, as well as smaller manufacturers and financial services companies.
- Application process, eligibility and selection criteria
- Downloads and further information - flier and frequently asked questions
Business Practicum offers our highest achieving students the opportunity to apply their university learning in a real business environment, engaging with a business challenge of genuine strategic importance with a host organisation. In each instance a student team works on a host-specified project to produce a professional-standard report analyzing the business challenge and proposing courses of action for the organisation's consideration The subject provides a unique opportunity for you to further understand, enhance and demonstrate your capabilities in the workplace context and by so doing, get a valuable head start in your career.
Business Practicum provides you a solid platform within a business environment for you to enhance and showcase your capabilities and in particular to:
- Integrate and apply theoretical material to a real business challenge
- Extend your knowledge through research and other forms of enquiry
- Synthesise and utilise incomplete and uncertain information
- Develop team working skills
- Learn how to operate effectively within a commercial working environment.
These are important and sought after capabilities that you will be expected to demonstrate during your working career.
Working in a small team of equally highly motivated students, you will spend a minimum half day each week with a Business Practicum Host Organisation where you will explore and evaluate an open ended business challenge. A facilitator at your Host Organisation will assist, by providing workspace and limited guidance.
The University contact hours for Business Practicum consists of seminars, consultations, workshops, mentoring, research and assessment tasks. All of these activities are designed to facilitate development of the practical capabilities required to successfully complete the business challenge posed by your client.
Admission to Business Practicum is competitive and places are strictly limited.
Video
Current student Raymond Ho completed Management Practicum in 2007. He describes his experience, including the benefits of doing this subject.
Business Practicum (Audio only version)
QuickTime Player must be installed to play the above.
Application Process
Applications Open: Monday, 2 November 2009
Applications Close: Friday, 29 January 2010 (5pm Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT), GMT +11 hours)
Offers will only be made via email. To secure your place you must confirm your acceptance within five business days of the offer email. Failure to respond within the designated time will result in forfeiting your place. Please check your email regularly from 25 January 2010 until offers are made.
Eligibility criteria
- 175 points of first and second year studies (commerce or non-commerce)
- 50 points of level 2 Faculty of Economics and Commerce subjects
Selection criteria
Your application will first be checked against the eligibility criteria (above). Final selection is based on academic merit. Your average is calculated from your Faculty of Economics and Commerce subjects, excluding your results from the immediate past semester.
The grades from subjects taken at another institution (for example, on exchange), will not be considered.
Offers will only be made via email. To secure your place you must confirm your acceptance within five business days of the offer email. Failure to respond within the designated time will result in forfeiting your place. Please check your email regularly from 25 January 2010 until offers are made.
Downloads and further information
- Course and Subject Handbook desciption for 325-330 Business Practicum
- Slides from the information session [PDF, 70KB]
- Frequently Asked Questions about Business Practicum [PDF, 40KB]
- Business Practicum flyer [PDF, 241KB]
- Email an inquiry to ecom-capstonestudies@unimelb.edu.au.