The following six compulsory subjects are offered in semester 1:

  Introductory Unit
Consists of special lectures, excursions and demonstrations. Topics covered include statistics, communication skills, introductory computing and basic hydraulics.

  Computing and Hydraulics
Introduces the basics of hydraulics: fluid properties, basic equations of fluid mechanics, pipe flow, open channel flow, culvert hydraulics and dimensional analysis. Computing topics include personal computers, work stations, UNIX, spreadsheets, Fortran programming, examples of solving hydraulic problems using computers and commercial software packages.

  Water Resources Management
Examines issues in the management of water resources. The basic problem of water allocation is viewed in terms of the interaction of demand and supply. Conventional and non-conventional sources of supply are considered, as are the demands placed on water use for various purposes. The use of computer models to assist in water management is emphasised.

  Surface Hydrology
Outlines the fundamental elements of the hydrological cycle. Aspects of collection and analysis of rainfall and streamflow are discussed. The main emphasis is on the processes that make up the rainfall run-off process and how these are modelled for use in flood estimation and in low flow hydrology.

	Water Quality Fundamentals and
	Processes
Presents aquatic chemistry, microbiology and biology with particular emphasis on their significance in relation to water quality and treatment. Physico-chemical and microbiological fundamentals and processes are examined. The subject concludes with sections on improving and monitoring water quality.

  Hydrogeology
Examines the nature of groundwater, its flow and distribution under varied geological conditions, types and properties of aquifers, hydraulic parameters, evaluation of resources, topical issues and case histories. Fundamental hydrogeological tools and skills are discussed including hydrogeological mapping, aquifer testing, flownet analysis, simple models, hydrochemistry and geophysical