Webinar insights: Graduate Certificate in Domestic Violence Responses

Introduction

Maggie Hill: Evening, everyone. Welcome to this evening’s webinar, which is focused on the Graduate Certificate in Domestic Violence Responses. My name is Maggie Hill and I’m going to be the host of the webinar this evening. 

Before we get going, I’ll let you know that tonight’s webinar is being recorded, and the recording will be made available at a later date if you’d like to have another look. 

I’d like to start with an acknowledgement of country. I acknowledge the land that we join the webinar from this evening, as well as the Turrbal and Yuggera peoples, the First Nations owners of the lands where QUT now stands. We pay respect to Elders, laws, customs and creation spirits, and recognise that these lands have always been places of teaching, research and learning. QUT acknowledges the important role Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people play within the QUT community. 

Course overview

Maggie Hill: Thank you for joining us for this webinar, which is focused on the Graduate Certificate in Domestic Violence Responses. Before we get into the discussion, the webinar is designed to give you a better understanding of whether this course is the right next step for you and your professional and career goals. 

The Graduate Certificate in Domestic Violence Responses prepares you to work across services and programs that intervene in, respond to, and prevent domestic and family violence. It strengthens practice for professionals who are already in the sector, as well as those who are looking to move into it. 

The course covers four core units: Children and Family Violence, The Dynamics of Domestic Violence, Working with Domestic Violence Survivors, and Reducing Lethal Risk. It can be completed over six months full-time or 12 months part-time. 

Introducing the speakers

Maggie Hill: For this evening’s webinar, we’re joined by two speakers. Professor Michael Flood will talk to us about the course, the domestic violence landscape in Australia, and the different roles and professional goals that the course supports. 

We’ll then have a chat with Sally Connell, who is an Online Learning Advisor and an experienced social worker. Sally will talk to us about her role and how her professional experience helps her support students completing the course.

The domestic violence landscape in Australia

Maggie Hill: We’ll begin by talking with Professor Flood. Welcome, Michael. It’s great to have you here this evening. 

Professor Michael Flood: Thank you, Maggie. 

Maggie Hill: You are a leading academic in the field of gender violence prevention and social change, and you also played a key role in the development of this course. I know there was a real focus on ensuring that it’s practical, evidence-based, and aligned with the needs of the sector. I was wondering if we could begin by talking about the broader landscape of domestic violence in Australia. Can you talk about what you’re seeing and why there is a need for specialist training, such as what students will get through this course? 

Professor Michael Flood: The first thing to say is that domestic, family and sexual violence are firmly on the agenda in Australia. They’re the subject of community interest, media coverage and policy attention. Over the last three decades, we’ve seen the rapid emergence of policies and programming focused on how to prevent and reduce domestic and family violence in Australia. 

There’s a considerable level of community advocacy. We’ve seen service responses develop for victim-survivors and for perpetrators, the people who use violence. State and federal governments are taking action. In some ways, Australia is leading the world in its national efforts. We’ve seen the development of strategies across the continuum, from recovery and healing for victim-survivors through to prevention, making it less likely that someone will use violence or suffer violence in the first place. 

Despite that, many university degrees in social work, psychology and policing still don’t necessarily prepare graduates well for working on domestic, family and sexual violence. The violence prevention field has increased in size and momentum, including over the last decade. One of the things we’ve seen in the sector is a growing professionalisation and a growing sense of the skills, standards and qualifications that people need when they work in the domestic and family violence sector or come into contact with victims or perpetrators. 

There’s growing recognition of the need for specialist training for a skilled workforce that is well equipped to meet the needs of those affected by violence. Domestic, family, and sexual violence training equips individuals with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to work effectively with those experiencing violence or using violence. 

Effective responses require more than good intentions or goodwill. They require an understanding of risk, trauma, coercive control, legal and policy frameworks, and what safe practice looks like. The Graduate Certificate in Domestic Violence Responses is designed to provide that. 

Who the course is suited to

Maggie Hill: Some people might assume this is a niche area of learning, but as you’ve explained, it is prevalent and widespread. Can you talk about the different professions that might work with people who have experienced domestic violence and might be suited to completing the course? 

Professor Michael Flood: The certificate is aimed at frontline workers, practitioners and professionals who come into contact with domestic violence victims or perpetrators. That’s a large and diverse group because people in many sectors of employment come into contact with victim-survivors, people who are living with or have suffered domestic or family violence, perpetrators, people using violence, and other people or systems affected by domestic violence. 

Whether you’re in health, housing, youth work, policing and justice, employment, counselling or other areas, many professions are likely to encounter women and children living with domestic violence, sometimes men, and people suffering the short- and long-term effects of domestic and family violence. They may also support people navigating health systems, counselling, family law or criminal justice systems in the context of domestic and family violence. 

The course is not aimed only at people who might work for a domestic violence service. It’s aimed at people across health, housing, community services, aged care, policing and other sectors who are likely to come into contact with a very common social issue.

Understanding patterns of abuse and coercive control

Maggie Hill: A key theme in your work is understanding patterns of abuse, coercive control and the risk of escalation. You touched on the point that good intentions aren’t enough in this space. Why is it so important for professionals to be able to identify these patterns and other elements when it comes to domestic violence? 

Professor Michael Flood: One area of research I’ve done is on community understandings of domestic violence and community attitudes towards domestic violence. They are certainly improving in Australia and are good in some ways, but there is still sometimes ignorance in the community. Domestic violence is often understood primarily as isolated acts of physical violence rather than a pattern. 

If you listen to victim-survivors and people with experience in this work, domestic violence is best understood as a pattern of power and control by one person against their partner or ex-partner. It typically involves a series of abusive, controlling and coercive strategies. These can be physical, including physical violence or threats of physical violence, but they are also often non-physical. They can include verbal and emotional abuse, surveillance, tracking a partner or ex-partner, financial control, social isolation and threats. 

It’s vital for professionals and anyone who comes into contact with domestic violence to be aware of those patterns. First, it helps them recognise the range of behaviours that cause harm. Victim-survivors sometimes talk about the ongoing, chronic dripping tap of put-downs, humiliations, threats and mind games.  

Second, it helps professionals recognise the seriousness of the situation and the cumulative harm, including the way these behaviours can add up to profound experiences of isolation, fear and anxiety. 

Third, we need to know about those patterns to guide risk assessment and safety planning. One of the key goals of this work is to improve people’s safety and wellbeing. It’s important to understand the impacts of those behaviours and the fact that, in some situations, domestic violence gets worse. It can escalate when someone tries to leave their abuser, becomes pregnant, or when the perpetrator’s circumstances change, such as losing their job or suffering financial crisis. 

Recognising the risks of escalation enables professionals to identify heightened risk, respond more effectively, and take steps to enhance safety. Learning what domestic violence actually looks like leads to more informed and more effective responses. 

Practical skills students develop

Maggie Hill: A lot of what you’re touching on is challenging and significant. I know the course has a real focus on practical application of skills. Can you talk to some of the practical skills that students will walk away with once they’ve completed the course? 

Professor Michael Flood: One set of skills is working with victim-survivors to assess the levels of risk they’re facing, develop safety plans and lower the risks they’re facing, including for adults and the children in their care. 

A second set of skills is knowledge and skills in working with particular populations. Australia is a diverse country, including culturally and linguistically diverse communities, Indigenous peoples, LGBTQ+ peoples and others. 

A third set of skills, which is particularly important, is caring for themselves and others in the course of this work because it can be challenging. It can connect with people’s personal histories in ways that can be powerful and positive, but also challenging. Skills in self-care are also important. 

Students also learn about the dynamics and impacts of domestic and family violence, the factors that make domestic and family violence more likely, and how domestic and family violence are shaped by communities, laws, social institutions and other systems. 

In summary, students develop four key sets of professional practices: working with and advocating for victim-survivors; risk assessment and safety planning; interacting with agencies and systems; and self-care, including taking care of ourselves and those around us. 

The value of formal training 

Maggie Hill: One final question for you before we jump to Sally. If someone on the call this evening is considering enrolling, what would you want them to know about the value of formal training such as this? 

Professor Michael Flood: Formal training is invaluable in going beyond common sense and good intentions. Domestic violence is a complex issue involving patterns of coercive control by one person against another, as well as patterns of trauma and risk. Responding effectively requires specialised understanding. 

State and national policy increasingly recognises that we need a specialised trained workforce to respond effectively. Training helps practitioners recognise less visible forms of abuse, conduct risk assessments, respond in a trauma-informed way, and avoid practices that can make things worse or cause harm. 

Formal training is also useful for helping people reflect on their own biases and assumptions, and for giving them knowledge of the systems they can use and the obstacles those systems may sometimes represent. 

Training enables people to become more effective at supporting victim-survivors’ efforts to build autonomy, dignity and safety, while also changing institutions and systems that are harmful or unfair. Part of the work that domestic violence workers and others do is trying to make the systems and institutions around victim-survivors and people using violence better. 

To summarise, high-quality training improves professionals’ capacity to promote safety, accountability, and wellbeing for individuals and families affected by domestic violence, and to build fairer systems and safer communities. 

Maggie Hill: Fantastic. Thanks so much, Michael. I really appreciate the insights you’ve shared and the comprehensive overview of the course and the value it can bring. If you’ve got questions for Michael, feel free to pop them in the chat now. We’ll get to them at the end of the webinar. 

Online Learning Advisor support

 

Maggie Hill: We’re now joined by Sally Connell, who is an Online Learning Advisor for the Graduate Certificate in Domestic Violence Responses. Sally works directly with victim-survivors in her role as a social worker and is also an Online Learning Advisor for the program. She brings deep practical experience to the course. Thanks so much for joining us this evening, Sally. 

Sally Connell: Thanks for having me, Maggie. 

Maggie Hill: Can you talk to us about what the role of an Online Learning Advisor is? 

Sally Connell: As an Online Learning Advisor, my role is being an online facilitator for students. I help guide students through the academic content and the real-world applications of that learning. I do that by answering questions, providing feedback, and facilitating interactions and conversations between students. 

Students will see me in these units on the discussion boards. I’ll be there almost every day, interacting with the group or with individual students. Students will also see me at the live Collaborate sessions. We usually have two or three of those each teaching period, and they are a chance to talk about the learning materials, upcoming assignments and student questions. 

Those live Collaborate sessions are always recorded. Students are balancing many things in their own lives, so some attend live and others watch the recordings, which is completely fine. I also interact with students individually when they reach out by email or set up a phone conversation to talk about their learning, assignments or progress through the modules. 

How professional experience supports students 

Maggie Hill: As I mentioned in the introduction, you are a social worker who works with survivors of domestic violence. Can you tell us how this professional experience comes into your role as an Online Learning Advisor? 

Sally Connell: I have been a social worker for more than 25 years, and half of that time I’ve been working in domestic violence and sexual violence. This experience has helped me in this Online Learning Advisor role in a number of ways. 

The first is content. Domestic violence is the day-to-day work I do in my other role. I know this space well and love working in domestic violence, so I love sharing that knowledge with students as we work through the modules. It’s also great to help students further develop their knowledge and practical skills in this area. 

My frontline experience can help students shift the theoretical concepts they gain from the unit into practical, hands-on, job-ready applications. We do that through discussion boards, where the learning materials are discussed, unpacked, scaffolded and grounded in theory, while also being considered from a real-world perspective through case studies and reflective practice. 

My frontline experience also helps because I understand working in this field. I spend a lot of time supporting students who are completing the course while also working in this space. I know that can be a juggling act and that some of the topics are tough. It’s important to make space for students to be well supported while they do this work and manage their usual lives. 

Student backgrounds

Maggie Hill: Can you tell us about some of the backgrounds that different students might have when they decide to do this course? 

Sally Connell: I have seen a range of diverse students at QUT since I’ve been an Online Learning Advisor. I’ve seen students from nursing, social work, psychology, policing, education, community services, and policy work. 

That diversity is another benefit of the discussion boards. Students get to hear about where other people are working and share their own experiences. We see students who are already working in the domestic violence space and are looking for a specialised qualification, as well as students who are not yet working in the space but are aspiring to get there. 

We also see students who have recently finished their first university degree, students who haven’t been to university in 20 years or a long time, and students with lots of experience in the domestic violence sector who have come to the course through a non-degree pathway. For some, it is their first time studying at university. They bring a lot of experience, but may need support with university concepts such as academic writing or referencing. They bring other skills to the course as well, so we see a range and diversity of students. 

Building confidence through study 

Maggie Hill: For students who might already be working in the field and are doing the course, how do you see their confidence developing through the study? 

Sally Connell: It’s great to see students’ confidence develop. All students, no matter where they’re starting, gain a lot from this course, and they often give me that feedback at the end. 

The course builds students’ confidence and professional judgment by teaching them how to evaluate evidence and navigate the ambiguity that domestic violence often involves. They learn how to justify decisions in complex real-world situations. Instead of memorising the learning, students learn how to synthesise information, reflect on outcomes and apply industry-specific standards to the work they’re doing. 

These units give students the industry recognition employers are often looking for, as well as transferable job skills and practical knowledge. I really love seeing students develop confidence in the work they do and the knowledge they have. 

Managing study with work and life commitments 

Maggie Hill: A lot of prospective students might be keen to do the course but concerned about their capacity if they’re working full-time or in a demanding job. Can you tell us how you support students in that situation and how you see students managing full-time work with study? 

Sally Connell: Almost all the students who take this course are working full-time, close to full-time, part-time, or juggling other life commitments. They do manage, and we support them through that. 

The units are designed to involve about 12 to 15 hours of study per week, so it’s helpful for students to know that from the beginning and think about how they will work that into their lives. There are lots of supports available. For example, students have access to extension options, including a 48-hour extension. We also have a Study Buddy program, where students can be linked with another student if they would like to study together. 

The Online Learning Advisor is there to help make sure the course is doable and to support students as best as possible along the journey. The course is designed to be completed in your own time. If you work during the day, you can study at night. If you work at night, you can study early in the morning or whenever suits your schedule. You can do the modules and readings at whatever time of day suits you. 

As I mentioned earlier, the live Collaborate sessions are optional, but they are always recorded and shared with students. There are lots of opportunities to make the course flexible and work around whatever else students have going on in their lives. 

Q&A: lived experience, safety and self-care

Maggie Hill: Thanks so much, Sally. We’re now going to jump to the Q&A portion of the webinar. The first question is around professional background. This person works in another industry and has had experience of domestic violence themselves. They’re keen to understand how people in this sector disconnect from their role, because they’re feeling nervous about some of the content and how they might separate their personal and professional life if they are working in this space. It would be great to hear from both Michael and Sally on this one. 

Professor Michael Flood: That’s a really great question, and it’s very common. Unfortunately, it is common for women in particular, and some men as well, to have lived with domestic violence. It’s particularly common among those who come to this course, often because of interest or personal experience. That can be a strength. People can draw on their own experience of the dynamics, impacts and drivers of domestic violence in doing the units in the graduate certificate. 

Having said that, the graduate certificate is not counselling or a healing process. It is built on the assumption that lived experience will be part of some students’ experience. Because of that, the graduate certificate tries hard to adopt a trauma-informed approach. 

One element is self-care. We work hard to provide resources on self-care, encourage student self-care, make students aware of support services and communicate regularly about self-care. A second element is managing potential retraumatisation. If you’ve lived with domestic violence, then reading accounts of domestic violence or being exposed to that material can be triggering or retraumatising. There are warnings about the kinds of content coming up and, in some circumstances, alternative assessment options. 

Students who want to do a different kind of assessment or avoid material that might be difficult can choose different kinds of assessment. The Online Learning Advisors also facilitate appropriate, sensitive discussion on the discussion boards, including where people are talking about their own experience or where others may not respond well to that. 

PFinally, the content itself is designed to support victim-survivors, minimise victim-blaming, and encourage appropriate and supportive responses to victim-survivors and perpetrators. The graduate certificate is designed in ways that are meant to minimise trauma while recognising that many people on the course will have lived experience. 

Sally Connell: The Online Learning Advisor’s role is also to remind students at the beginning of each teaching period to complete the unit in a safe manner. That means doing the work in a physically and emotionally safe place, and working with the materials in small doses if that’s what works best for them. 

Our role is to help students be aware of how much they can work with, how to do that safely and how to make it manageable. In one of the units, there is also a deep dive into vicarious trauma and ways professionals can support themselves, work safely in a supportive workplace and look after themselves. 

Professor Michael Flood: The person who asked that question also asked about disconnecting from the work when you get home. Sally, can you speak to that? 

Sally Connell: That’s something you don’t really learn at university, but it is something you have to work towards and practise as a practitioner. Working on professional boundaries is really important, and that can be with the work but also with the study. Just as you would work safely in a workplace, you have to find ways to leave the work at work so you can come home and be your home self. 

You’re not disconnecting from your whole self, but leaving the work where it needs to be left. It’s the same with study. If there are case studies that are triggering, you need to find ways to put that to the side when you’re finished studying for the night. 

Q&A: prior study, pathways and placement

Maggie Hill: The next question is more practical. What study might people have done before this course, and is there other study they can go on to once they’ve completed it? 

Sally Connell: There is a huge diverse range of courses students have done before this course. I was speaking with someone today who had completed a law degree before coming to this course, and she has found the course really helpful and has been enjoying it. Other students come from teaching, especially special needs education, policing, nursing, social work, health social work and psychology. 

Professor Michael Flood: They don’t need to be fresh out of university. Some students haven’t done university for 20 years, and that’s entirely fine. Lots of things have changed for those students, and they often need help with referencing, but they come from such diverse backgrounds. 

Maggie Hill: The next question is whether there is any placement involved in completing the course. 

Sally Connell: No, there are no placements as part of this certificate. That’s why there is such a focus on making the learning materials a mixture of theory and practical experience. We do that through reflective practice, case studies, assignments and readings. 

Professor Michael Flood: Much of the assessment is designed to reflect what QUT calls real-world learning. There is a formal requirement that every unit has at least one real-world assessment item. For example, it might be giving a 10-minute presentation to colleagues in a workplace about working with a particular group of people on domestic violence, or writing a risk assessment plan like the kind you would use with a victim-survivor in the field. 

In a whole range of ways, the assessment is designed to be as practical as possible. There is no formal placement, so students are not working in a community service as part of the graduate certificate, but the assessment is designed to closely reflect what they may do in the community. 

Next steps and closing

Maggie Hill: That brings us to the end of the questions we’ve received this evening. I’ll talk to next steps now for people who might be interested in completing the course. If you are keen to take part, the best thing to do is head to the QUT Online course page. There you can find out how to enrol and download a course brochure if you’d like more information. 

The course page also has the contact details for the QUT Online team, if you’d like to reach out with any other questions that weren’t answered this evening. 

Before we wrap up, I’d like to say a big thank you to both Michael and Sally for giving up their time this evening to talk to us about this course. It was a great mix of academic insight, practical application and what people can expect when they’re completing the course. 

I’d also like to thank everyone who came along this evening. We’re really glad to have you here, and we hope to see you online studying in the not-too-distant future. 

Professor Michael Flood: Please enrol, come along, learn and develop your skills. It’s a great course. 

Maggie Hill: Thanks so much, everyone. We’ll also email a link to the recording if you want to watch it again. Have a great evening. 

Professor Michael Flood: Thanks, everybody. See you later. 

 

This transcript is based on a recorded webinar and has been lightly edited for readability, clarity and conciseness. We’ve removed filler words, false starts, and repeated phrases (such as “um” and “ah”) without changing the meaning. All information remains accurate to the recording.