Graduate Certificate in Health (Peri-Operative Nursing)
Perioperative nursing is a fast-paced nursing specialty, requiring a broad level of skill and ability to meet the care needs of patients and their families in the high acuity, technical environment of the Operating Suite.
Course essentials
Entry requirements
Credit
Study mode
Duration
Start dates
05 October 2026
25 January 2027
19 April 2027
12 July 2027
04 October 2027
Locations
Course overview
Perioperative nurses are an integral part of the multidisciplinary surgical and anaesthetic team.
The Graduate Certificate in Health (Perioperative Nursing) is a technical skill-building course designed to strengthen critical thinking skills, guide the development of hands-on abilities and reinforce the importance of communication within the wider team in providing safe, quality care for pre, intra and post-operative patients.
Core subjects introduce students to the foundations of perioperative nursing and collaborative care, providing critical skills needed to monitor and identify risks in a range of patient states, and to safely navigate any ethical factors related to patients presenting for surgical intervention.
Students will also be supported to evaluate and apply the Australian College of Perioperative Nurses (ACORN) Standards for Perioperative Nursing and ACORN Competencies, the National Safety & Quality in Health Care Standards and NMBA professional standards.
This six-month full time (or equivalent part-time) course will be delivered online, with all study support and learning resources also be available from academic staff and learning skills advisors.
In addition to the online coursework, an inquiry-based learning framework has been developed – in cooperation with our industry partners – whereby all theories and class content are contextualised through clinical experience.
Therefore, all students enrolled in this course must be currently registered nurses practicing in an associated clinical area (i.e., Hospital Theatre, Day Procedure Unit). This enables our students to critically analyse and apply evidence based clinical reasoning within a real-life perioperative setting.
For registered nurses currently practicing in another area of healthcare will be provided with an opportunity to enter the Intensive Care nursing domain and to undertake this course in parallel.
IT requirements
To do this course you’ll need a fast and reliable computer and access to high-speed internet. Expect to use about 5GB of data per month for every unit you’re doing. Find out more about the minimum IT requirements for studying with us.
Got questions?
Call us on 1800 333 864, start a live chat or submit an enquiry.
Student support
The support we offer is second to none. Need academic help? No problem. Extra access or financial assistance? Let’s see what we can do. View our student services.
The fine print
The commencement of all courses is subject to available funding and enrolment quotas.
Everything in this course overview is correct at the time of being published. However, the University reserves the right to alter any course, procedure or fee. Please check for changes before you apply or enrol.
Federation University uses Victorian and Commonwealth Government funding (for eligible students) to deliver training.
School department
Nursing
Course co-ordinator
Michael Barbagallo
Career paths
A wide range of career opportunities are available upon graduation in operating rooms and post-anaesthesia care units.
Fees and scholarships
Tuition fee information
Commonwealth Supported Places are subsidised by the Australian Government. The tuition fee is called the student contribution amount. The indicative fee above is based on a typical first-year enrolment for this course and should be used as a guide only. For 0.5 EFTSL (60 credit point) courses the certificate fee is displayed. Your fee will depend on the units you chose, your study load, the time it takes to complete your course and any approved credit you receive.
How it's calculated
The government sets the fee each year. The amount depends on the discipline area and band of each unit. 2026 annual student contribution amounts for 1 EFTSL (equivalent full-time student load) range from $4,738 (Band 1) to $17,399 (Band 4). The sample course structure below link to the EFTSL, Band and fee for each unit or you can use our unit search to find these details.
Other fees
You will also need to pay the Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF).
Fee assistance
If you're eligible for a HECS-HELP loan, you can defer the payment of all or part of your student contribution fee. If you’re also eligible for a SA-HELP loan, you can defer your SSAF payment too. You won’t have to start paying either loan back until your income reaches the compulsory repayment threshold.
Scholarships
There’s a range of scholarships and grants available. Find out what you can apply for.
Course details
Start dates
Teaching Period 3, 2026
13 July 2026
Locations
Federation University Online
Teaching Period 4, 2026
5 October 2026
Locations
Federation University Online
Teaching Period 1, 2027
25 January 2027
Locations
Federation University Online
Teaching Period 2, 2027
19 April 2027
Locations
Federation University Online
Teaching Period 3, 2027
12 July 2027
Locations
Federation University Online
Teaching Period 4, 2027
4 October 2027
Locations
Federation University Online
Information
- Online learning is only an option if you’re not studying on an international student visa.
Contact hours
12-15 contact hours are estimated for one 15 credit point unit, while 24-30 are expected for those studying two 15 credit point units or one 30 credit point unit.
Work integrated learning
N/A
Sample course structure
Here’s what the course structure could look like. It’s just an example (so don’t use it for enrolment). Interested in the details? You can find current course structure or select a single unit name below to find out what it’s about and how much it costs.
- Advanced Pathophysiology for Acute Care Nursing15 credit pointsHEAAN6602
- Advanced Health Assessment for Acute Care Nursing15 credit pointsHEAAN6603
- Principles of Care for the Perioperative Patient15 credit pointsHEALO6401
- Perioperative Nursing Practice15 credit pointsHEALO6402
Entry requirements
Entry requirements (non year 12)
An applicant must have successfully completed a three year (minimum) Bachelor level qualification in a related health cognate discipline area.
Extra requirements
Admission to the Graduate Certificate in Health (Peri-Operative Nursing) is contingent upon the candidates ability to demonstrate current and satisfactory registration with AHPRA as a Registered Nurse and a minimum of 0.6 EFT current and ongoing employment in an appropriate peri-operative setting.
Applicants must supply a current resume with their application.
If you’re only applying for this course, do it via direct application.
Ready to fill out your application?
You'll need this code:
Direct application
Federation University code
- Direct application
- Yes
- Federation University code
- HN4
This course offers a pathway into further studies at Graduate Diploma level courses. Graduates are eligible to continue further studies in a Graduate Diploma of Health.
Hear from our students
So as I love serving people and helping them, I take Bachelor of Nursing and I'm pursuing nursing as my career. That only provides us with so many opportunities. They have contact with such good hospitals and agencies if you want to work for your placements and stuff. And they provide us with so much material and support to improve our skills through our nursing. Even in the uni, in the building, we have rooms are like literally hospital rooms where we have beds and all the equipments with dolls which do make sounds and they have pulse and everything. So it is so creative and so alive that we get to improve our skills so much. Ballarat is like the most happy, friendly little town in all of the Victoria I've been in Melbourne. But people over here are genuinely really sweet and nice to you. They're really friendly and they're just walking in the morning and someone is passing by and they'll just say, they'll smile and they say good morning to you, which is so sweet. Like it never feels that you're somewhere different. You're just you feel homely. I've heard a lot about Federation University. So back when I was applying for multiple universities, I was suggested Fed Uni by my agent and they suggested Fed Uni because it has so many campus. They support, support us so much and it is so multicultural. They're like so many people coming from so many different countries. So last year they hosted the Bollywood night for the Indian students. Being an Indian, I was so happy that they're hosting such an event. They keep on hosting events which are like for every culture and everyone gets to enjoy and feel at home, which is the best part. So the Bollywood night was the one for me. I'll be pursuing nursing as my career and I want to become a registered nurse, work here for the people and serve them and just enjoy life for some time.