Media Release
February 15 2008
Students get a head start to understanding medical science
Incoming
UniSA students who have not studied science subjects at school or are
mature age students anxious about getting back to study, can gain a head
start to their degrees by attending a “Preparing
for Health Science workshop” before their university studies begin.
The workshop is designed to help all incoming UniSA students from the
Division of Health Sciences,
particularly those who have little or no background in biology,
chemistry or physics, according to senior lecturer
Dr Jyothi Thalluri from the
School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences.
“There are no science prerequisites for students undertaking most health
science programs in Australian universities, including some degrees in
medicine,” Dr Thalluri said.
“The aim of the workshop is to provide necessary foundation knowledge,
develop a positive attitude towards sciences, enhance interest and
eliminate the fear of science. This course gives students confidence,
provides them with a head start in learning and understanding the
fundamentals of course material, and enables them to benefit in
subsequent years of study,” Dr Thalluri said.
“While students who have not done science subjects stand to benefit
most, others may find it beneficial as the course material relates and
integrates human anatomy, human physiology and the disease process,” Dr
Thalluri said.
The workshop consists of a series of lectures and interesting and
relevant practical activities that introduce basic scientific ideas to
be featured in the degree programs. Topics include medical terminology,
an overview of the human body including equilibrium involving the
balance of functions and chemical composition, basic chemistry and
physics relating to the human body, as well as study skills.
“Workshop participants will be grouped with fellow students undertaking
the same degrees, giving them the opportunity to make friends and meet
some of the teaching staff in their study areas,” Dr Thalluri said.
“At the end of the workshop, students will undertake an informal
self-assessment test, which will identify areas of weakness and reveal
how much knowledge has been gained during the four-day workshop.”
For Bachelor of Nursing graduate, Fiona Gilbert, who started as a mature
aged student and had not studied for more than 20 years, the workshop
provided her with the information that she needed to understand
scientific terms and helped her to approach sciences more confidently.
“I met teaching staff and was introduced to ‘university’ language and
the terminology used in sciences. Having that staff connection was
invaluable as it gave me the confidence to go to them if I had a problem
with my studies. We were given work books, which I still look back on
now, and I made friends there who are still friends today,” Gilbert
said.
“Without the workshop, I believe I would have had a much more difficult
road through the sciences because I had no knowledge of science at all,”
she said.
“I would recommend the workshop to all incoming health science students
because I think it makes them feel more confident when attending
university. Whether straight from school or mature-aged, going to
university is quite different to high school and students are treated
quite differently,” Gilbert said.
More than 110 incoming students from overseas, interstate, rural, remote
and local areas have enrolled in the workshop, which runs from 18 – 21
February at UniSA’s City East campus. The Division of Health Sciences
and the David Unaipon College
of Indigenous Education and Research have jointly sponsored all of
the Indigenous commencing students attending the workshop.
Contact for interview
- Dr Jyothi Thalluri office (08) 8302 2368 mobile 0402 237 420 email jyothi.thalluri@unisa.edu.au
Media contact
- Geraldine Hinter office (08) 8302 0963 mobile 0417 861832 email geraldine.hinter@unisa.edu.au