Calvin Philip and Asmin Johns arrived in New Zealand from India in February 2025, both already qualified physiotherapists. They enrolled in postgraduate Applied Health Science study at SIT in Invercargill, undertaking a Postgraduate Diploma and Master of Applied Health Science respectively.
Calvin says studying at SIT played a key role in building his confidence, professional skills, and ability to work in a New Zealand clinical environment. “Studying at SIT helped me improve my English, my confidence, and my public speaking,” he says.
“It really changed how confident I am, not just professionally, but as a person.”
He says the programme’s focus on rehabilitation and elderly care has had direct relevance to his current role as a practising physiotherapist. “What we learned about rehabilitation and working with older people is something I use every day now in my job,” he says.
Like many international students, adjusting to academic writing and referencing in a new education system was initially challenging, but Calvin says strong tutor support made a significant difference. “Citation and referencing were completely new to us, but the tutors were very supportive,” he says. “They ran extra classes and met with us before submissions, which really helped.”
Asmin, who will complete her master’s in June, says applied learning and community-based experiences were among the most valuable parts of her time at SIT. “Working with elderly people through outreach programmes was a turning point for me,” she says. “Seeing how engaged and happy they were, was very meaningful.”
Asmin’s master’s research focuses on respiratory physiotherapy, reinforcing the programme’s applied and career-focused approach. “My research on breathing exercises helped me gain deeper knowledge in an area directly related to physiotherapy,” she says. “The assignments and projects really helped me grow professionally.”
Both graduates say the supportive learning environment at SIT helped them adjust to studying in a new country. “The way of studying here was very different from India,” Asmin says. “It was challenging at first, but the support from staff made everything much easier.”
The couple have recently relocated to Hamilton, where Calvin has secured a position in a physiotherapy practice. They speak warmly of their time living and studying in Southland, saying Invercargill played a key role in helping them feel settled in New Zealand. “We really miss Invercargill,” Asmin says. “The people, the staff, the learning, and the memories we made there will always stay with us.”
Karina Davis-Marsden - Māori Public Health Manager at Nga Kete Matauranga Pounamu Charitable Trust (NKMP), says her organisation has benefitted from employing SIT alumni. “… the relationship that we have with SIT is a natural fit for the mahi that we carry out in the public health sector and broadly as a Hauora/ health organisation that seeks to keep our hapori (community) well,” she says.
Mrs Davis-Marsden, herself a SIT alumna who graduated with a Bachelor of Sport and Exercise (2017), lists other SIT alumni who have successfully found roles within their organisation: Nadine Young, a Master in Applied Health Sciences (Rehabilitation and Wellness) graduate, and Sean Morgan, who completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Health Sciences (Rehabilitation and Wellness) in 2022. “We also currently have Kaana Wilson, a Level 7 Bachelor of Sport and Exercise student completing her industry hours with us for 2026.”
Although Mr Morgan has since moved back to Wanganui to be with whānau, Mrs Davis-Marsden says he was enriched from his southern experience. “Sean took with him the knowledge he gained both academically and the matauranga (Māori knowledge) from his tohu of postgraduate studies back to his own hapori.”
“The beauty of having employed graduates from SIT in our industry is the local knowledge, insights and matauranga that they bring; we are able to really connect with our tangata whaiora (patients/clients etc.) at a local level that makes our engagements even more meaningful.”
Dr Will Payne, SIT’s Programme Manager for Postgraduate Applied Health Sciences programmes, says the School of Sport and Exercise has recently added a fourth intake (per year) to the Postgraduate Applied Health Sciences programmes, which includes the Postgraduate Certificate / Diploma in Applied Health Sciences (Wellness and Rehabilitation) and the Master of Applied Health Sciences (Wellness and Rehabilitation). “Students can staircase their qualification by completing the postgrad certificate and diploma, and then their master’s,” he explains.
The versatile master’s qualification is 18 months of full-time study and is one of the largest programmes of international students at SIT. “It’s in specific demand for internationals who come to New Zealand,” Dr Payne says, and the intakes increase provides more students opportunities to study while ensuring the quality of the programme remains high. “We can maintain our small classes… The advantage of having smaller groups of students gives each one the best possible chance of success… and it is success on their terms.”
Catering to a highly diverse cross-section of the health sector - doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses, physiotherapists and social workers - who want to progress in their desired sector, Dr Payne says “Our students do some cool things. They are in aged care and rest homes, rehab clinics, social work, hospitals and more.”
The programme has also seen a significant increase in domestic students enrolling since 2018. Students can study part-time, from one paper per year, up to four papers per year, and the online course delivery is in the evenings, normally starting at 7.00pm. “Typical onsite learning for postgraduate study didn’t make much sense to me; daytime study is out for working people. This allows us to cater for students who work and those who have children..”
The intakes align with the four school terms - February, April, July and September - and two of the four intakes have HyFlex learning available. “HyFlex provides flexibility for students to study in this programme by the method they prefer. Most of our domestic students are from all around the country.”
Having Zero Fees is also “a huge thing” for domestic students, who can complete their master’s under the Zero Fees Scheme. “[It] is a wonderful model for the local and nationwide community. A master’s on Zero Fees is giving people who are working or have young families the chance to upskill and it’s not going to break the bank.”
The programme considers the variety of backgrounds and stages of the individual student with different levels of support available. “We add in extra support if it’s required. There are optional, supported or foundation classes on topics such as Nutrition for wellness, so students can brush up on gut health, or stress and nutrition.” The academic writing class is also popular.
“That’s where the flexibility of learning and making sure that students are well supported is important,” Dr Payne says; he recognises the value of showing understanding that “life does bring challenges”.
“Some students start full-time and go to part-time. We support them through this. For me, it’s making sure the students are doing well. Our fundamental principle is wellness, so it matters that our students are being looked after in all those dimensions of wellness.”
Dr Payne says the team is constantly developing the programme each year. “We look at what we can improve because we want long-term progression and growth. We keep our standards of education high and are always looking at how our students, staff and community can thrive.”