The NSW Department of Education and initial teacher education providers (ITEPs) collaborate to ensure consistent, high-quality professional experience placements for pre-service teachers in NSW public schools.
The department’s partnership with each ITEP is governed by the Professional Experience Agreement (PEA), which outlines the roles and responsibilities of both the department and the ITEP. The PEA includes guidelines for the effective and efficient coordination of placement allocations, and where applicable, participation in the Professional Experience Hub Program.
Establishing a PEA is a requirement set by the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) as part of the Accreditation of Initial Teacher Education Programs in Australia: Standards and Procedures, and is a condition for professional experience placements in NSW public schools.
The term of the current PEA covers the period from 2025 - 2027, and will conclude on 31 December 2027.
This document serves as a sample Professional Experience Agreement.
As of July 2025, the department has signed Professional Experience Agreements with the following ITEPs:
Note: only pre-service teachers enrolled in initeal teacher education programs accredited by the NSW Educational Standards Authority (NESA) or AITSL are eligible to undertake placements in NSW public schools.
| Initial Teacher Education Provider |
|---|
| Alphacrucis University College |
| Australian Catholic University |
| Australian College of Christian Studies |
| Australian College of Physical Education |
| Avondale University |
| Central Queensland University |
| Charles Darwin University |
| Charles Sturt University |
| Christian Heritage College |
| Curtin University |
| Deakin University |
| Edith Cowan University |
| Excelsia College |
| Federation University Australia |
| Flinders University |
| Griffith University |
| James Cook University |
| La Trobe University |
| Macquarie University |
| Monash University |
| Murdoch University |
| Queensland University of Technology |
| Southern Cross University |
| Swinburne University of Technology |
| The University of Sydney |
| The University of Western Australia |
| University of Canberra |
| University of Melbourne |
| University of New England |
| University of New South Wales |
| University of Newcastle |
| University of Notre Dame Australia |
| University of South Australia |
| University of Southern Queensland |
| University of Tasmania |
| University of Technology Sydney |
| University of the Sunshine Coast |
| University of Wollongong |
| Victoria University |
| Western Sydney University |
The NSW Department of Education and initial teacher education providers (ITEPs) across Australia have agreed on protocols for how ITEPs should contact schools to arrange professional experience placements for pre-service teachers. These protocols are set out in Schedule 1 of the Professional Experience Agreement (PEA).
Why use these protocols?
- Clarity: ITEPs will have clear guidelines on how to communicate with schools when requesting placements.
- Consistency: a standardised process across all ITEPs reduces the workload for schools and ensures a smoother experience.
What are the protocols?
- Partnership approach: ITEPs should build and maintain relationships with schools. This partnership streamlines the placement process and reduces unnecessary tasks for both parties.
- No direct contact from pre-service teachers: only ITEP staff should contact schools to arrange placements. Pre-service teachers should not reach out to schools themselves.
- Principal's decision: the school principal has the authority to decide whether the school can host a pre-service teacher at any time, including the number of pre-service teachers to be hosted.
- No mass emails: ITEPs should contact schools in a targeted manner based on alignment with placement needs, school location, and the preferences of pre-service teachers. ITEPs should not send out mass emails to all schools.
- Contact the professional experience (PEX) coordinator: the department has designated PEX coordinators across its schools and shared their contact details with ITEPs that are signatories to the PEA. ITEPs should contact the relevant PEX coordinator regarding placements, via email on the first instance.
- Two contact dates in a year: ITEPs should contact schools on the following dates:
- 1 November: for placements in Terms 1 and 2 of the following year.
- 1 April: for placements in Terms 3 and 4 of the same year.
- Data management: ITEPs must keep records of the schools they contact and the placements they arrange. This information must be available to the department upon request.
- Monitoring contacts: ITEPs should keep track of schools that decline to host placements and avoid contacting them repeatedly if they have no availability.
- Payments for supervising staff: supervising teachers and PEX coordinators receive a set payment for their roles, which is paid directly by ITEPs. ITEPs are responsible for informing the supervising teachers about the payment process and provide any necessary paperwork.