[miinii]

I am wanting to begin studying to be a midwife. Two of my 3 children are in school this year and my youngest is in Kinder next year and School 2015

I have heard that there are a few places you can study online or "Distance" but have also heard that it can be very hard to get placement in your local area as you can only go to approved hospitals (Please correct me if i am wrong)

I am in Victoria. I could study on campus as of 2015 but would really love to start before then which is why i am thinking Distance would suit me best. But i also dont want to waste my time studying and then not get a placement.

Also i would like to do JUST Midwifery. I have no desire to become a nurse at all so hoping to just study midwifery.

Please help! Any information you can give would be greatly appreciated! This is something i have thought long and hard about for many years and just want to get all the info i can.

[Corella]

UniSA used to do it externally but changed a few years ago as most cities have a local uni doing it - a friend of mine got caught up in changes to it and had to go back to SA for stuff.

[miinii]

A friend did mention that to me and also said that is one of the places people were finding it hard to get placement.

Im hoping your right in saying that most cities have a local Uni doing it. Fingers crossed!

[miinii]

anyone?

[againagain]

I was accepted in mid a couple of years back but passed on the spot when I had #3.

IMO there is a lot of work involved (on campus stuff, plus lots of placements) and you would be best to wait til all 3 are at school unless you have a very good support network who can help you with pick ups and drop offs etc.

As far as I know there are no online or distance ed courses in midwifery that you could do in vic. I think you can do the nursing course through Uni SA (Open Uni) and I think CHarles Sturt or someone did it as well but you have to actually GO there for some of the time too, for pracs and things.

Monash, La Trobe, Deakin, RMIT, Vic Uni and ACU all do mid in Victoria. You need to look into if you want to do just Mid or nursing/mid double degree (some only offer the double, some offer straight Mid and some only offer mid as a post grad after you do nursing), also look into what you can do in the meantime to increase your chances of being accepted into any of those courses. For myself, I did some health units through Open Uni and got good marks, which made me a more desirable choice, apparently. You will probably also need to sit the STAT test too, if you have no recent studies or haven't recently done VCE.

[Daisy violet]

I think Uni SA is the only distance mid.
As far as wanting to do a b'mid course that is the ideal but have you noticed that approx 70% of graduating midwives did not get a grad spot this year? Last year was bad but not as bad as this year. Victoria is terrible for jobs at the moment. Double degree and post grad midwives faired soooooo much better than B'mids. So if you really want to be a midwife I would consider doing your time in the course that is going to give you the best chance at doing that. Other states are much better. Lots of VIC grads have grabbed spots interstate. Good luck, it is an awesome job

[lucky 2]

Yes, it's not a great time to be a mid grad in Vic with the loss of funds the Hosps are experiencing because of the state govt being in conflict with the fed govt.
When I was a grad it was also a difficult time to find jobs but it is like a roller-coaster sometimes, a glut of opportunities and then a scarcity.
All the best with your decision.

[Mianta]

I agree that I wouldn't want to be a direct entry Mid grad right now.

QLD and NSW Health have been cutting back on all their grad positions and most of the midwives being hired are RN/RMs as they can utilised on more places than direct entry midwives. The only work that direct entry midwives can get in my area is casual contracts, which means the opportunity to rotate in all areas will not be guarenteed and work can be cancelled with little notice.

My boss is looking to train a post grad student midwife at the moment, so she has another RN/RM on her books. She barely hires direct entry midwives. My unit is at a rural hospital though, but the city hospitals are following the trends.

[RHJ]

I have just finished an on campus BMID (at monash).
Personally I think on campus learning is so much easier than online. It helps to keep you on top of your study, and you really need to be with BMID as it is a very full on course. I had 1 kid at school and 2 in childcare when I started, and a supportive husband and mum who helped me through.
I don't think there is really any off campus BMID where you wouldn't have to travel a lot. And if the uni was willing for you to do prac down here, you would probably struggle with finding a hospital to take you as there is such high demand for placements from the local universities.
There is heaps of info ladies doing BMID or double degrees down in the studying and parenting section so check it out there.