This is the transcript for the video Medical Science – Course Info
Welcome to this information session, what I would like to do in this video is to tell you a little bit about the medical science courses offered by UTS Science and Maths. By way of introduction my name is Bronwyn and I’m the program director of medical science. So certainly if you have any further questions, please feel free to drop me an email and I’ll get back to you with the answers to your questions. What I’d like to cover in this video is firstly an introduction to medical science courses, why you might consider doing your medical science course at UTS, where the course might take you. What are the options for combining your medical science degree with other degrees and what career opportunities might await you after completing a medical science degree at UTS, and finally, how do you apply for medical science courses. So firstly, let’s consider why you might actually consider doing medical science and medical science at UTS. UTS is a fairly young university and I think that its youthfulness is very much reflected in the way that it constructs its courses. There is a big emphasis on real world skills. There is a lot of emphasis on gaining technical expertise and also experience with industry and quite a few internship opportunities. Most of the teachers that you’ll be exposed to in your degree are also performing cutting edge research, so we don’t see a clear definition between research and teaching. We’ll find that our researchers can bring their passion for research into the classroom.
And if you have happened to take a walk around the campus, you will see that the facilities really are world class. Science now has quite a large footprint on the UTS campus running along Thomas Street and Jones Street with two major buildings, housing both the research and teaching activities of the faculty. The industry connections with UTS a very, very strong. These are through our research and these collaborations also infuse our classrooms. So specifically, why might you consider medical science? Most people consider medical science because they like the people side of science. They like working with people. So what does the course look like? Let’s consider first the Bachelor of Medical Science and what your study plan would look like. Typically, the degree is completed in three years. If you study full time, if you study part time, you can have six years to complete the degree. Most students will enrol in the autumn semester, which commences at the beginning of the year. But there is also a spring intake midway through the year. So your typical program of study will look like this. Now, in first year, you’ll gain a foundation in the life sciences. And importantly, this foundation year is similar between some of our other courses. And this was deliberately done so that students have some flexibility. If after the first year they decide, well, maybe medical science is not for me, I think I would rather major in biomedical science or do a name degree in biomedical science or perhaps biotechnology, this enables students to transfer between courses and still get credit for their first year of study.
Now, from the second year, you’ll notice that the subjects have very much a medical science flavour. There’s an emphasis on pharmacology. There’s an emphasis on pathophysiology. We also take a look at human genetics and precision medicine. How can we actually tailor treatments to individual people based on their genetic background? We take a look at what’s involved in the design of clinical trials and analysing data from clinical trials. And we also take a look at important aspects of neuroscience and how are medical devices designed and how are they actually used for diagnostic purposes. Now, in third year, the autumn semester gives you some freedom of choice. Some students may elect to increase their disciplinary knowledge by taking four elective subjects. Other students may elect to do internships or opportunities for professional experience. If we turn now to the Bachelor of Science, majoring in medical science. Once again, you’ll notice that the first year, first year is identical. Now, some students who may not have the ATAR for the named degree in medical science may undertake their first year of study in the Bachelor of Science. And then if they perform well, they can apply for transfer into the named Bachelor of Medical Science degree. You’ll notice in second and third year there’s some deviation in subjects from the named degree. But once again, you also have an elective semester where you can either undertake four subjects of your choice or you can choose to do an internship and get some industry professional experience.
So the Bachelor of Medical Science really focuses on specialists skills. These are for the students who ultimately see that they’ll have a career in medical and health related sciences. There’s a high emphasis on practical scientific skills, and our course has recently been redeveloped in response to industry so that we can best prepare students for a future as medical scientists. The career outcomes. Most of our students undertake this degree because they’re really interested in the people side of science. They have a fascination with the parts of the body, how they work together, what happens when everything is going right and what happens in disease states. At the completion of the degree, a lot of our students will get jobs in clinics, medical device companies, be involved in designing, executing and analysing data from clinical trials, enter laboratories, industry and hospitals as research assistants. A high proportion of students will elect to undertake further study by way of Honours, Masters and PhD studies. Some students will go into associated roles where they’re looking at a management position, policy and guideline design and execution or the communication side of science.
Thank you very much for your attention. If you have, if you want to get some more information, email science@uts.edu.au or visit us on the web or feel free to drop me an email and I can answer any of your questions.