Final year podiatry students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) are preparing to enter the workforce as they near completion of their four year course on the Albury-Wodonga Campus, ready to become independent practitioners. By the time they finish their studies in three months, the students will have done over 1 000 hours of clinical practice in addition to theory work. The clinical education has taken place at the CSU Allied Health Clinic in Albury, and in professional placements in regional, rural and metropolitan areas. “This experience helps us manage the patients better,” said Honours student Ms Kate Carroll, who received a number of job offers from prestigious clinics before recently accepting a graduate position with Hunter New England Health in regional NSW. Ms Carroll said the course was certainly demanding but, “when you see yourself on placement, compared to students from other universities, you know you are competent. Our supervisors loved having students from CSU, because we have such a good name. They knew they could put us in a room with a patient and we could manage that patient’s entire treatment”. Kate has had experience in Caulfield (Vic), Newcastle and Canberra over the past four years, winning a CSU scholarship which helped with her placement costs.