Additional student places, internships and supervision are being funded while the training pathway will be made more practical.
More university places for psychology students, more internships, more supervisor training places and a “streamlined” curriculum are part of a plan announced this week to loosen the mental health care bottleneck.
Another 500 university places for psychology students will be created over four years, starting with 146 this year at 22 universities around Australia, funded through the 2023-24 Postgraduate Psychology Incentive Program Grant Round.
The “Supporting Provisional Psychologists to Practice” grants program will fund 681 one-year internships over four years and up to 2860 Psychology Board of Australia-endorsed supervisor training places, health minister Mark Butler announced this week.
Half of these will be offered to people in First Nations communities, culturally and linguistically diverse communities and people living in regional, rural and remote areas, to prioritise areas of need.
Psychology higher education and registration will also be redesigned, Mr Butler said, to streamline psychology training, “embed a focus on practical learning, and address access and equity challenges”, with consultations due to commence early next year.
Mr Butler said demand for the subject far outstripped supply, with only 10% of starting students completing the required postgraduate course to become a registered psychologist.
“Many students want to become registered psychologists but are unable to due to a lack of internships, supervisors and university places,” he said.
“Given the significant community need for this workforce it is critical we expand training pathways.
“Our commitment will address the shortage of registered psychologists and help develop the next generation of registered psychologists.”
