Graduate Diploma in Human Resources

The Graduate Diploma in Human Resources at Curtin University is a one-year qualification for people who want to work in HR or move into it from another field. You study the core of people management: how to recruit and select staff, how to interpret the Fair Work Act and the rest of Australia's employment framework, how to design pay and reward systems, and how to handle performance, grievances and workplace change. There is also the organisational side of the job, understanding how businesses are structured, how to read a balance sheet, and how to use workforce data to make decisions rather than rely on instinct.

How the course is structured

As a graduate diploma, this sits at AQF level 8, above a bachelor degree, below a master's. At Curtin, coursework postgraduate degrees are built from units of study, each worth a set number of credit points, usually delivered across two semesters or three trimesters a year. You complete a defined set of units to reach the credit points required for the award. A graduate diploma typically does not include a full research thesis; instead, the final part of the course often takes the form of a capstone unit where you work through a real HR problem for an organisation, drawing together what you have learned across employment law, strategy and analytics.

Skills you build

You learn to write employment contracts and policies that hold up, run a fair disciplinary process, advise managers on restructuring, and build a case for a workforce initiative using evidence. You also practise the everyday parts of the role that rarely make it into a textbook: how to have a difficult conversation, how to run a recruitment panel, how to brief a leadership team on turnover. Curtin has long-standing links with employers across Perth and Western Australia, and many units include industry projects or guest practitioners, so you are working on problems that resemble the ones you will meet on the job rather than abstract case studies.

Who it suits

This course suits three groups. First, people already working in HR without a formal qualification who want the credential and the theory behind what they do. Second, graduates from other disciplines, law, psychology, commerce, arts, who want to specialise in people management. Third, people returning to study or changing careers who want a postgraduate qualification without committing to a two-year master's. If you are an international student, you can work up to 48 hours per fortnight while your course is in session, and you may be eligible for the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream after you finish, depending on your circumstances. English proficiency must be evidenced; IELTS Academic 6.0–6.5 overall is the common coursework-postgraduate standard, with TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic, Cambridge C1 Advanced and Curtin's own English programmes accepted as equivalents. The Department of Home Affairs sets a separate English threshold for the Student visa itself. Tuition is published on the CRICOS register under course code 051619J. Check the official Curtin page for current unit lists, entry requirements and intake dates before you apply.

• HR Officer or HR Advisor, generalist roles in mining, construction, health, government and professional services, handling recruitment, onboarding, policy advice and employee relations.
• Recruitment Consultant or Talent Acquisition Specialist, internal teams and agencies across Perth and Australia, sourcing and screening candidates and managing hiring processes.
• Learning and Development Coordinator, designing and delivering training programmes in large organisations, from compliance training to leadership development.
• Payroll and Remuneration Officer, administering pay, interpreting awards and enterprise agreements, and supporting annual salary reviews.
• Workplace Relations Advisor, advising on Fair Work obligations, enterprise bargaining, disputes and disciplinary matters, often in industry associations, law firms or large employers.
• HR Analyst, using workforce data on turnover, engagement and diversity to inform decisions, a growing area in government and large corporates.
• People and Culture Coordinator, a common title in not-for-profits, startups and the public sector, covering the full employee lifecycle.