Reform tracker · Australia
Updated 5+1 internship guidelines
The first major update to the psychology internship guidelines in over a decade took effect in December 2025, removing the case study requirement.
Status note: In force from 1 December 2025. The final guidelines keep the 1,500 practice hours and 500 client-contact hours, add a minimum of 60 hours of education and training, and leave the six-monthly progress review as advice rather than a requirement.
The stated rationale
To modernise the internship and align it with new professional competencies.
What changed
The guidelines for the “+1” internship year were rewritten around new competencies, and the case study requirement was removed. The APS asked for stronger quality-assurance measures and a delay; the Board went ahead on schedule, adding a 60-hour education and training minimum.
Context
The 4+2 pathway closed to new interns on 30 June 2022 and is being phased out: existing interns must apply for general registration by 30 June 2027, and no applications are accepted after 1 January 2029. The proposed five-year degree would remove the internship year altogether for domestic graduates.
Who supports it
- Psychology Board of Australia
Who has raised concerns
- Australian Psychological Society asked for quality-assurance measures to be reinstated and for a delay to December 2026. The delay was not adopted; a 60-hour education and training minimum was added, but the case study and a mandatory progress review were not.
Sources
- Psychology Board of Australia: Guidelines for the 5+1 internship program (in force 1 December 2025)
- Psychology Board of Australia: 4+2 internship program
- Psychology Board of Australia: Guidelines for the internship program released (Sept 2025)
- APS response to the 5+1 guidelines consultation (June 2025)