Victoria Police student placements

Victoria Police aims to provide meaningful work experience for students interested in a career with us.

Student placement programs will help you learn and gain confidence in a workplace. You will be able to transition from school into the workforce by building your skills through practical experience.

About Victoria Police student placements

You will have the opportunity to learn from our:

police officers
protective services officers (PSOs)
protective custody officers (PCOs) and
Victorian Public Service (VPS) employees.

You can expect to:

network with members of an organisation that has over 22,000 staff
learn about day-to-day operations at a police station or in one of our head offices.

Speak with your careers teacher to see if a placement with Victoria Police is right for you.

There are four types of placement programs designed to help students experience working at Victoria Police:

Victoria Police Work Experience Program

Our Work Experience Program is aimed at secondary school students considering a career with Victoria Police.

The students will receive placement at participating police stations.

You must:
- be at least 15 years of age at the time of placement
- be enrolled at a Victorian secondary school
- be completing year 10 or above
- undergo a security check and application paperwork check by Victoria Police. This will help decide if work experience with us is right for you.
Only careers teachers can submit registrations. If you are a student interested in applying, speak to your careers teacher.
How to apply
A careers teacher registered with us for this program will receive information about each intake. This will include an online registration form with a list of available locations.
Schools with multiple campuses may register each campus.
You cannot apply for this program directly at a police station or department.
Location options
Career teachers will be able to select three preferred locations on the submission form. We will match your application with the most suitable station and department.
Please note that not all locations are available to offer placements throughout the state. Location availability will change each year.
You will not be able to nominate a student at this stage.
Selection process
We will make a placement offer to a randomly selected school at each intake.
We run a ballot process for each intake on the schools registered online. The ballot will make a random selection of registered schools who will receive a placement offer.
The location of the placements will match your preferences from the online form.
If you are successful
If your application is successful, you will be asked to nominate a student who has a genuine interest with Victoria Police as a career path. Nominated students will be required to complete security checks, including declarable associations.
If you are successful in the first intake (Term 1 – 2), you will not be able to register for the second intake of the year (Term 3 - 4). This gives a fair chance to all Victorian schools to take part in this popular program.
Careers teachers will receive further detailed instructions in due course.
Schools and careers teachers can contact us for further information about this program. You can ask us about:
- communications about upcoming intakes
- to check if your school is on our distribution list
- to update your school’s contact information.
Email us at work-experience-program-mngr@police.vic.gov.au.

Structured Workplace Learning Program

Structured Workplace Learning (SWL) is a Victoria Police program for secondary school students.

The program places eligible students at participating police stations, departments or command units.

The program provides students with the opportunity to:

combine practical, on-the-job experience with:
- the Vocational Education and Training (VET) undertaken as part of the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE)
- the VCE Vocational Major or
- the Victorian Pathways Certificate
undertake placement that complements an applied learning program as part of:
- the VCE Vocational Major or
- the Victorian Pathways Certificate
- show the practical application of work-related skills as part of VCE Industry and Enterprise.

You must be:
- enrolled at a Victorian secondary school
- at least 15 years old at the time of placement
- completing year 10 or above.
All students will be required to complete a National Police and Fingerprint Record Check.
They will also undergo other security checks, including declarable associations. Confirmation of placement may be subject to these checks.
You must complete your work placement during terms 1-4, or school holidays (excluding Christmas holidays).
You may only participate in the program for:
- 20 days in a school year
- 10 days during each school term.
To apply for this program, you will need to:
- speak with your careers teacher, and
- ask a local police station to host you.
We try our best to place you at your preferred police station, however this may not always be possible.

This program is managed by the Department of Education and Victoria Police.

Find out more about the policy, guidelines and resources at the Structured Workplace Learning website.

School-Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships (SBAT)

The SBAT program allows secondary students to experience paid part-time training while completing high school. You will receive credits towards your VET qualification.

This program is managed by the Department of Education via their Head Start Program.

Students will work at a police station, department or command. You will be under the supervision of an administration officer or a property officer, as well as the officer-in-charge of the location.

You must be:
- enrolled at a Victorian secondary school
- completing year 10 or 11.
- The program runs for 12 – 24 months (depending on your age)
- You will be working part-time, one day per week.

Tertiary Placement Program

The Tertiary Placement Program (TPP) offers personal and professional development for tertiary students.

You will get a placement tutor to support you throughout the program.

To meet the eligibility requirements, you must:
- be a current tertiary student
- have a compulsory placement requirement as part of your studies
- have appropriate insurance cover (provided by the tertiary provider)
- be an Australian citizen, permanent resident or hold a valid work permit or visa.
You can arrange the placement directly with a local police station or Victoria Police division.
You can also contact the employment program manager to help you find a location that may be able to support you. If you do this, please ensure you include the following:
- your degree
- hours required
- location preference such as a specific police station, or a specific department
- field of study (i.e. legal exposure)
- your resume.
We try to accommodate all requests, however this is not always possible.
The individual police station or division will decide on the student placement offer. The request may be declined due to the nature of work.
This is an unpaid placement.
All students must complete a National Police and Fingerprint Record check.
They will also need to clear other security checks, including declarable associations. Confirmation of placement may be subject to these checks.
Are you interested in a placement with our forensics department? To find out more and to apply visit our Forensics Services page.
You can contact us:
- for more information on the program
- if you have had your placement approved to proceed
- if you need help to contact a particular work area.
Email us at employment-programs-mgr@police.vic.gov.au.

Contact us

If you have any questions about any of the employment programs, contact the Talent, Attraction and Programs team at Victoria Police at to work-experience-program-mgr@police.vic.gov.au.