This course is delivered two days per week on campus. Work placement is completed in the second trimester.
You will learn how to:
- engage and communicate with people, family and/or whānau accessing social and community services in a manner which respects their socio-cultural identity, experiences and self-knowledge.
- relate the history of Māori as tangata whenua and knowledge of person-whānau interconnectedness to own role in a health and wellbeing setting.
- display self-awareness, reflective practice and personal leadership in a health and wellbeing setting.
- actively contribute to a culture of professionalism, safety and quality in a health and wellbeing organisation.
- relate the purpose and impact of own role to the aims of the wider health and wellbeing sector.
- work alongside people, family and/or whānau in a mental health addiction setting to support autonomy by using tools and strategies to foster hope, support recovery and build resilience.
Programme Specific Information
Computer Access
Students must have access to a computer with an internet connection, internet browser (MS Internet Explorer 7.0 or above, Adobe Acrobat Reader 8, or Firefox 3.6) and email. Students must also be able to use Microsoft Word (2003 or above) and be familiar with accessing websites
Police clearance
The relationship between mental health support worker and client is one involving a significant level of trust with the support worker. All employers in this industry therefore require support workers to provide a police clearance. Consequently, applicants are required to provide a Record of Personal Information from the Ministry of Justice.
If an applicant has any objections to supplying a police clearance, they will need to discuss this with the Head of Faculty. Students must also advise the Director of Nursing, Health and Wellness of any conviction(s) that they incur within the duration of the programme, in order to assess the possible impact such conviction(s) may have on a student’s eligibility to continue the programme.
Entry Requirements
- Open entry
You will also be required to undergo an interview, provide written references and complete a police check.
Any applicants whose first language is not English may be required to provide evidence of an overall IELTS (Academic) band score of 5.5 (with no score below 5 in speaking, reading, writing and listening) or equivalent.
Required forms
Note that the following forms will be required when applying to study Health and Wellbeing at WITT. Please make sure to complete an application before submitting these forms.
Additional Information Required
Health and Immunisation Declaration
Referee Reports (You must provide two referees. Examples include: teacher, doctor, employer, club leader, etc)
Police Vetting Form (External link. Note that this form will have to be emailed, or printed out and handed into reception staff)
Work Placement
There is a work placement component incorporated in this programme. Students must either undertake work placement in their place of employment or appropriate work placements will be arranged by WITT.
COVID-19 vaccination requirements
Government COVID-19 vaccine mandates finished on Monday 26 September 2022, however, many placement providers will require that ākonga (students) are vaccinated against COVID-19 (up to two vaccinations and one booster), before they allow any placements to proceed. Placements are an integral part of our health programmes and ākonga must complete these practical elements to successfully achieve their qualification. We cannot, therefore, guarantee a placement without this evidence, as per our clinical placement agreements with placement providers. If there are any questions or concerns relating to this, please email HealthWellnessEnrolments@witt.ac.nz in the first instance and one of our team will be in contact.
On acceptance into the programme, ākonga are required to complete a health screening to provide current evidence of their immunisation status, as required by Te Puna Whai Ora | Ministry of Health and our placement providers. At this stage ākonga will also need to provide a copy of their Covid vaccination record.
Career Options
Graduates of the Mental Health and Addiction Support strand will be employed in roles supporting people foster hope and support recovery including mental health and addiction support work.
Further Study Options
New Zealand Certificate in Public Health and Health Promotion (Level 5), New Zealand Diploma in Addiction Studies (Applied) (Level 6) or bachelor’s degrees in related health and wellbeing subject areas.
This programme has helped me understand my own life and why people are the way they are. I've learnt to build positive strategies when working with people who struggle with mental health and addiction. As well as fostering an understanding of why these people are in this situation, unpacking trauma, stigma and human anatomy to understand how to advocate and build resilience in people who cannot do that for themselves.
Paya Fitzsimons
Mental Health and Addiction Support
Changes for new learners
WITT and this programme are part of Te Pūkenga – New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology .
