9396 Graduate Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety Management - SIT2LRN Distance Learning
| Qualification: | Graduate Certificate |
| Level: | 7 |
| Dates: | 2025 Intake 5: 25 August to 19 December - Applications Close 18 August 2025 2026 Intake 1: 09 February to 05 June - Applications Close 02 February 2026 2026 Intake 2: 16 March to 10 July - Applications Close 09 March 2026 2026 Intake 3: 22 June to 16 October - Applications Close 15 June 2026 2026 Intake 4: 27 July to 20 November - Applications Close 20 July 2026 |
| Duration: | 17 weeks full-time Up to three years part-time Intakes are 17 weeks long |
| Location: | |
| Credits: | 60 |
The Graduate Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety Management will teach you personal and professional skills that are necessary to be successful in demanding and evolving business environments.
This programme offers a blend of theoretical and practical learning, with an emphasis on applied knowledge and skill. High importance is placed on the development of occupational health and safety management skills (such as communication, presentation, interpersonal and problem solving skills) in addition to the development of specific business knowledge.
You will learn to:
- Critically analyse strategic occupational health and safety issues facing organisations,
- Develop and implement policies and procedures management,
- Undertake an influential leadership role.
Course Content
*As of 01 January 2022, SIT2LRN has updated the paper codes to be in line with other ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ Institute of Technology’s qualifications. The paper name and content are the same.
Please ensure that you are selecting the correct papers when you enrol online as the application will now show the new paper codes.
Please see the table below for the old and new codes:
| Paper Code | Paper Title | Level | Credits | |
| Old Paper Codes | New Paper Codes (with effect from 2022 Intakes) | |||
| MGT227 | MGT615 | Occupational Health and Safety Management Practice Leadership | 6 | 15 |
| MGT711 | MGT711 | Occupational Health and Safety Sustainability Practices | 7 | 15 |
| MGT712 | MGT712 | Workplace Health and Wellbeing Strategies | 7 | 15 |
| MGT314 | MGT714 | Occupational Safety Strategic Management | 7 | 15 |
Compulsory Papers
MGT615 Occupational Health and Safety Management Practice Leadership (15 credits)
This paper provides students with the knowledge and skills necessary to be champions for occupational health and occupational safety to enable development of leadership and building of an organistional health and safety culture. This paper will also enable students to develop an understanding of aspects of leadership, leadership style and methods for dealing with leadership problems.
On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:
- Assess occupational health and occupational safety best practice for a specific organisation.
- Outline the factors involved in performance management and critically examine strategies to review individual performance.
- Examine the importance of leadership style in managing people in a team environment.
- Critically analyse various contemporary leadership concepts and how they can be implemented to build an organisational health and safety culture.
- Evaluate the application of leadership concepts in the development of a health and safety culture within an organisation.
MGT711 Occupational Health and Safety Sustainability Practices (15 credits)
This paper will challenge traditional organisational sustainability practices, looking at how sustainable strategies need to consider and incorporate health and safety issues, needs and requirements, to enable organisations to be considered truly sustainable entities.
On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:
- Define Sustainability Management and how it impacts the environmental, social and economic activities of organisations.
- Examine how traditional sustainability models can impact health and safety within organisations.
- Assess methods to incorporate health and safety into the sustainability practices of organisations.
- Critically assess the health and safety needs of organisations and develop sustainable health and safety strategies.
MGT712 Workplace Health and Wellbeing Strategies (15 credits)
Student will learn about strategies for developing health and wellbeing programmes within the workplace, analysing the role of leadership and management in the implementation and continuation of health and wellbeing initiatives, and develop metrics to measure the success of health and wellbeing programmes.
On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:
- Compare and contrast the cause and effect of health and wellbeing in the workplace and analyse the impact on employees and organisations.
- Critically evaluate the role of leadership and management in the promotion of health and wellbeing strategies within the workplace.
- Establish a business case for creating or improving worker health and wellbeing within organisations.
- Develop health and wellbeing strategies for organisations including metrics to measure success.
MGT714 Occupational Safety Strategic Management (15 credits)
This paper aims to provide participants with an understanding of the issues and implications for an organisation regarding occupational safety and the ability to critically evaluate strategic management approaches in various contexts within an organization.
On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:
- Critically analyse an organisation’s internal environment with regard to occupational safety issues and implications.
- Critically evaluate the research that has influenced approaches to occupational safety management.
- Critically evaluate the strategic options in the context of occupational safety for a specific organization.
- Assess factors that influence the effectiveness of strategy implementation.
- Evaluate strategic performance.
Fees
SIT Zero Fees Scheme
- Tuition Fee: $0
- Direct material Cost: $7.00 per credit (incl GST)
International Fees
$12500
Unsure which one is for me? Check Fees Eligibility Check my options
Career Opportunities
Recent graduates of the Graduate Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety Management have gained employment in private and public sectors including training institutions and industrial businesses.
Application Criteria
Applicants must have obtained at least an undergraduate degree in any discipline.
Mature Applicants
Applicants must supply evidence of at least three years relevant work experience. Each mature applicant must provide their curriculum vitae detailing any relevant work experience and academic achievements. The Programme Manager will use this information to assess whether the applicant is likely to successfully complete the Graduate Certificate programme.
English Language Requirements
Applicants, whose first language is not English, or who come from a country where the language of instruction in schools is not English, are required to provide evidence of having achieved one of the following
NCEA Level 3 with University Entrance, or
an International Baccalaureate Diploma or Cambridge A- level qualification for which the teaching and assessment was conducted in English; or
Cambridge Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CELTA),or Trinity College London Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CertTESOL);or
Successful completion of all primary education (being the equivalent of New Zealand primary school years 1 to 8) and at least three years of secondary education (being the equivalent of three years from New Zealand secondary school years 9 to 13) at schools in either New Zealand,,Australia,Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States one of the countries listed in Rule 18.5 where the student was taught using English as the language of instruction; or
Successful completion of at least five years of secondary education (being the equivalent of New Zealand secondary school years 9 to 13) at schools in either New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States where the student was taught using English as the language of instruction; or
Successful completion of a Bachelor's Degree, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma, Bachelor Honours degree, Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma, Masters' Degree or Doctoral Degree, the language of instruction of which must be in English and which must be from a tertiary education provider from New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom or the United States or
Successful completion of one of the following internationally recognised proficiency tests listed below to the level required of the programme of study and with all scores achieved in a single test during the two years preceding the proposed date of enrolment
IELTS test - Academic score of 6 with no band score lower than 5.5
TOEFL Paper based test (pBT) - Score of 550 (with an essay score 5 TWE)
TOEFL Internet based test (iBT) - Score of 60 (with a writing score of 18)
Cambridge English Examination - B2 First or B2 First for schools or C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency with a score of 169. No less than 162 in each skill.
OET - Minimum of Grade C or 200 in all sub-tests
NZCEL - a) Expiring Level b) Current: a) Level 4 (Academic) b) Level 4 (Academic)
Pearson Test of English (Academic) - PTE (Academic) score of 50 with no band score lower than 42
Language Cert - C1 Expert International ESOL Written (LRW) PASS with no less than 25/50 in each skill and Spoken (S) PASS
Trinity ISE - ISE II with no less than distinction in any band
Enrolment Information
Level 6 papers must be completed before, or at the same time as, level 7 papers unless approved by the programme manager. Papers at the same level may be studied in any order
Full time study
Full time study is completing 60 credits per intake. ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ studying full time will complete the Graduate Certificate within one intake.
Full time acceptance into the programme is at the Programme Manager’s discretion.
Part time study
The number of credits selected per intake will depend on work, family, and other commitments. The recommended maximum number of credits per intake, compared to working hours, are:
- Working 37+ hours per week = enrol in a maximum of 30 credits per intake
- Working 20 – 37 hours per week = enrol in a maximum of 45 credits per intake
- Working fewer than 20 hours per week = enrol in a maximum of 60 credits per intake (full time study).
Additional information
- As a guideline, one credit equates to approximately 10 hours study within an intake period. Click HERE
to download a Study Load Calculator (spreadsheet). - All papers selected within a particular intake must be completed within that intake unless a transfer is requested (conditions apply; see ).
- Online enrolments are on a year by year basis and students are welcome to apply for multiple intakes in one enrolment. Further enrolment is the responsibility of individual students. There is no automatic enrolment rollover.
Additional Information
All SIT2LRN courses require you to have a computer and Internet access. ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ are required to use their SIT webmail only for all SIT2LRN communications. All course materials and information, including assessments and due dates, are located on the online Blackboard system. Once you have been accepted into a programme you will receive an Important Information Booklet that includes information that you can use to familiarise yourself with our online Blackboard learning environment. From the intake start date you will have access to the online course materials to work through.
Facilitator Assistance: During the enrolled intake period, students have email access to Facilitators, who endeavour to respond to emails within 48 hours (week days only). All students are required, within the first two weeks of an intake, to send an email to their Facilitator confirming their start on the programme of study. ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ who have not emailed their facilitator or embarked upon their course of study by the end of the 2nd week of an intake, will be Faculty Withdrawn from the programme. Such withdrawals may impact on future access to SIT Zero Fees Scheme and Student Direct Material Costs are still liable for payment.
All students will get an official academic transcript on successful completion of their programme of study which will be posted or given at Graduation. After each intake is finished, it is suggested that students check their results on .
We recommend students new to SIT2LRN read through the Frequently Asked Questions section of our website for further study and enrolment information.
Application Checklist
Please use the following checklist to ensure that all relevant information and documentation has been included. Remember, your application will be assessed based on the information that you provide us with. Processing of your application will be delayed if we need to come back to you for missing information.
- I have read all sections of the Programme Information on this page
- I have read the SIT2LRN Frequently Asked Questions section
- I have met all admission criteria for the programme (found under Application Criteria)
- I have met all the criteria for individual papers (found under Course Content).
- I have selected the paper(s) I wish to study
- I have selected intake(s) (I have selected alternate intakes rather than overlapping intakes)
- I know my intended payment method
- If my organisation/company is paying for my studies, I have a completed and approved purchase order to attach to my online application. I am aware that should my organisation or company not pay my fees, these will become my responsibility.
- New students – I have provided an active NSN in the name I am enrolling in or I have verified ID and will attach it to my online application.
- New students – I will attach academic documentation (NZQA record of achievement/academic transcripts/certificates). These do not need to be verified. (If you do not have any academic documentation to support your application, please attach a comprehensive CV outlining your education and work experience).
- I have computer access, an Internet connection and access to software to create electronic documents e.g. Microsoft Word or Open Office
What is the Zero Fees Scheme?
The Zero Fees Scheme means we do not charge tuition fees. However, there is a Student Direct Material Cost that you need to pay. The administration fee is for processing your application and the Student Direct Material Cost gives you secure access to Blackboard® our online learning environment and to student support services throughout your study with us.
Who qualifies for the Zero Fees Scheme?
- A New Zealand citizen completing the full qualification or
- An Australian citizen/New Zealand Resident or Permanent Resident who will be residing in New Zealand for the duration of your enrolment.
Instructions to help you with your application:
- Read the Programme Information on this page and the SIT2LRN Frequently Asked Questions and find out if you meet the application criteria for both the programme and the unit/s you wish to study.
- Check your eligibility for Zero Fees. If you are not eligible to study under this scheme, please call
0800 748 257 for further options. - Complete your online enrolment checking that:
If you are a new student …
- Provide an active NSN number in the name you are enrolling in (contact NZQA on 0800 697 296 to get your NSN number if you do not know it);
- If you do not have an active NSN, then attach a copy of your verified ID in the name you are enrolling in.
- If you are a Resident or Permanent resident of NZ, please provide a copy of proof of residency;
- Attach all academic documentation to support your application including copies of any certificates of courses you have undertaken / NZQA record of achievement / transcripts / CV;
Attach supporting documents as required and outlined on the previous page.
- Please check that you have included all the required information and supporting documents. Your application will be assessed based on the information that you provide. Missing information will delay the processing of your application.
- Please scan and email all additional documentation to sit2lrn@sit.ac.nz.
What happens next?
- You will receive an automatic email confirmation when we receive your online application. Processing may take up to three weeks. However, we will get in touch with you sooner if we require further documentation.
- Once your application has been accepted you will be sent a conditional offer of acceptance with an invoice and instructions on how to make payment.
- Once we have received your payment (or if you have opted to pay by Credit Card, Student Loan or Purchase Order) you will be sent an Enrolment Confirmation Letter and Important Information Booklet. Closer to the start of the intake you will receive a Time To Get Started Letter which will give you all the necessary information, tools and guidance to start your study with us.
Satisfactory Completion
To be awarded the Graduate Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety Management, students will have been credited with all required papers and electives as specified in the schedule of papers. The total credit value of the Graduate Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety Management is 60 credits.
Please note: ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ failing to engage in study as per programme requirements may forfeit Zero Fees entitlement.
Assessments
Assessment Information
MGT615 Occ. H&S Mgmt Practice Leadership | Due date | Weighting | Word count (approx.) | Style |
Assignment 1 | Week 8 | 25% | 2000 words | Report |
Assignment 2 | Week 12 | 25% | 2000 words | Report |
Assignment 3 | Week 17 | 38% | 3000 words | Report |
6 Discussion Activities | Week 4 -14 | 12% | Variable | Short answers |
MGT711 OH&S Sustainability Practices | Due date | Weighting | Word count (approx.) | Style |
Assignment 1 | Week 8 | 45% | 4000 words | Essay |
Assignment 2 | Week 17 | 45% | 4000 words | Essay & |
3 Discussion Activities | Week 1 - 11 | 10% | Variable | Short answers |
MGT712 Workplace Health & Wellbeing strategies | Due date | Weighting | Word count (approx.) | Style |
Assignment 1 | Week 6 | 20% | 2000 words | Report |
Assignment 2 | Week 13 | 50% | 4000 words | Report |
Assignment 3 | Week 17 | 30% | 3000 words | Report |
MGT714 Occ. Safety Strategic Mgmt | Due date | Weighting | Word count (approx.) | Style |
Assignment 1 | Week 7 | 30% | 3000 words | Report |
Assignment 2 | Week 10 | 30% | 3000 words | Report |
Assignment 3 | Week 16 | 30% | 3000 words | Report |
5 Discussion Activities | Week 3 - 12 | 10% | Variable | Short answers |
Textbooks
For more information on required and recommended textbooks for this course please refer to the textbook list here.