Science is one of the most versatile areas of study, opening opportunities across a wide range of disciplines. The School of Medical and Applied Sciences is responsible for teaching and research in the fields of applied science, medical science, environmental science, exercise and sport science, paramedic science, medical imaging, medical sonography, oral health and chiropractics. Our programs are taught using both distance education and internal modes, and across a number of CQUniversity Campuses including Bundaberg, Mackay and Rockhampton.

All of programs were designed based on student interest and employer feedback to provide a learning experience that is exciting and provides graduates with marketable professional skills. Our programs have a strong emphasis on practical skills in the laboratory or field. Program quality and relevance are informed through a range of consultative committees and by internal and external accreditation teams. Furthermore, our highly qualified and experienced staff are great educators and researchers which means that your education experience will be second to none.

Bachelor of Environmental Science

The Bachelor of Environmental Science is a multidisciplinary program that aims to develop a broad foundation in the skills in demand by both the private and government sectors. Students develop the theoretical and practical knowledge and skills required for employment in fields related to environmental monitoring, management and ecologically sustainable development. By combining the insights of the chemical and biological sciences with those of the humanities and social sciences, students achieve a holistic understanding of the science of environmental processes and challenges and develop an ability to think systemically and systematically about natural resource management and social and economic development.

Bachelor of Science

The Bachelor of Science degree has recently been reviewed and a number of changes have been implemented to prepare students to take advantage of the employment opportunities both in the central Queensland region and throughout Australia. Students are able to specialise in Ecology and Conservation Biology, Analytical and Molecular Science, and Agricultural and Food Science. All three specialisations combine a core of basic science courses with a range of specialised options giving theoretical knowledge and practical skills required to work or undertake research in the specialisation.

Postgraduate Programs in Water Resource Management

Programs in Water Resource Management (Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma and Masters) enable students to begin or expand their careers in the fields of water resource management and planning, water resource modelling, and environmental consultancy. The program is run in partnership with a number of other Australian universities which gives students the option to design a program to suit individual interests and career outcomes. Links to overseas universities give students the option to gain overseas experience.

Postgraduate Programs in Environmental Management

The suite of programs in Environmental Management (Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma and Masters) aims to provide professional scientists and engineers with an in-depth understanding of environmental issues, problems and solutions. The programs are run in close consultation with industry to provide the theoretical knowledge and practical skills required to solve pressing environmental issues in a wide range of industrial contexts.

Bachelor of Science (Honours)

The purpose of the honours program is primarily to train students for research. Some honours graduates may move on to research higher degrees (MSc or PhD) while others may use their research skills in government or private organisations. This program provides a valuable learning experience and the opportunity to specialise and excel in a chosen science discipline. It also gives students skills in problem solving, analysis, project management and professional level communication.

The honours program at CQUni offers considerable flexibility and close contact with academic staff who will act as research mentors. Enrolment is flexible and students may enrol full time or part-time with a start time in either Term 1 or Term 2 (mid-year entry). There is provision for on-campus or flexible enrolment.

Medical and Exercise Science

The Medical and Exercise Sciences programs are delivered by friendly and dynamic staff engaged in the priority growing areas of medicine, exercise and health. The programs offered in the Medical and Exercise Sciences include:

Bachelor of Exercise and Sport Sciences
Bachelor of Medical Sciences (specialisation: Pathology, Clinical Investigation, Biotechnology, Nutrition)
Bachelor of Paramedic Science
Bachelor of Oral Health
Bachelor of Science (Honours - Specialisation)
Masters of Health Science
Doctor of Philosophy

The facilities in the Medical and Exercise Sciences are first rate matching the location of CQUniversity. The Medical and Exercise Sciences program is housed in a brand new dedicated building that boasts state of the art teaching and research facilities. The new Exercise and Sport Sciences building hosts new Biomechanics and Exercise Physiology Research Laboratories and is located in close proximity to university sporting facilities that include a pool, gymnasium, basketball stadium, tennis courts, track and field, and sporting ovals. The Medical Sciences boast state of the art research and teaching equipment and facilities in its Biomedical, Microbiology, and Anatomy Laboratories. The Paramedic Sciences also boast a brand new facility that houses state of the art technology in its Paramedic Simulation laboratory. The Oral Health program will be housed in the new CQUniversity Health Clinic boasting the latest technology and equipment.

To compliment the academic programs within Medical and Exercise Sciences the University has a dynamic research environment that features excellent facilities, which are staffed by internationally renowned researchers, with research ranging from human intervention trials to animal studies. The Medical and Exercise Science staff are closely aligned with the Institute of Health and Social Science Research that houses eight unique Centres supporting health research. The Medical and Exercise Sciences programs have a strong association with the Centre for Physical Activities Studies, Population Research Laboratoryand the 10,000 Steps Community Health Promotion Physical Activity Project. Other research laboratories within the Medical and Exercise Sciences include the Biomechanics Research Laboratory, the Exercise Physiology Research Laboratory, and the Medical Science Research Laboratories.

The staff from Medical and Exercise Science actively engage in collaborative research and encourage students to become involved in research opportunities throughout the School and University, and encourage the pursuit of postgraduate research opportunities. Research areas of strength include physical activity and health with a focus on chronic disease prevention, population health, cardiac pharmacology, diabetes management, osteoporosis, whole-body vibration, aging athlete, and sports performance.

The Medical and Exercise Sciences programs also pride itself on its community linkages within Central Queensland and the broader community. These linkages are twofold, providing the Central Queensland Community with the opportunity to gain access to the facilities, programs and services that our Programs have to offer and to provide our students with opportunities to gain real world experience through the duration of their studies.

Applied Biology

Biology spans the life sciences from molecular biology to the environmental sciences. At all levels, exciting developments are occurring in the biological sciences and these are having a profound effect on our lives. You can be part of this intellectually stimulating activity by undertaking a science degree in the biological sciences.

Traditional biology includes the study of particular groups of organisms: animals (zoology, entomology), microbes (virology, bacteriology,) and plants-like organisms (botany and mycology). While these are still important, modern developments in the biological sciences focus on understanding the functioning of organisms at various levels (cytology, physiology and ecology). Overarching all these are the areas of genomics, development and evolution. All these approaches are firmly based on the scientific method of problem solving and all have application in the modern world.

In your science degree you can chose to be a generalist by selecting from the wide range of biology courses at CQUniversity or else you can specialise to a greater or lesser extent depending on your interests and career aspirations. Further specialisation includes: Aquatic Resource Management, Marine Ecology and Biotechnology.

Medical Imaging

A Bachelor of Medical Imaging from CQUniversity provides you with skills and knowledge needed to work as an accredited radiographer. Diagnostic radiographers are responsible for providing safe and accurate imaging examinations in a wide range of clinical environments using a variety of imaging modalities and techniques so that appropriate management and treatment of patients and clients can proceed.

You will be trained in a new state-of-the-art, purpose-built environment based in Mackay, Queensland, using the latest technology, developing key competencies in a digital technology platform, remote and rural innovation, community engagement, internationalisation and lifelong learning. One of the advantages of our program is the 58 weeks of work placements which incorporate reflective learning at each progressive stage of clinical experience so the learned skills and knowledge can be applied in a real-world setting. Graduates from CQUniversity's Bachelor of Medical Imaging will be recognised as practitioners of the highest calibre.

Unlike other medical imaging programs where students are required to attain a year of practical experience after completion of a three-year bachelor, we offer a four-year program that incorporates work placement throughout the degree. Our program has a distinct focus on the regional and rural community with clinical placement carried out at suitable health providers throughout the degree.

Medical Sonography

CQUniversity's Bachelor of Medical Sonography and Graduate Diploma of Medical Sonography is a three-year undergraduate degree program, linked with a one-year Graduate Diploma of Sonography which must be undertaken to qualify and practice as a medical sonographer. The combined programs are the first of the kind in Australia, providing students the opportunity to enter the profession with no prior health science knowledge.

Together the degrees provide a comprehensive four-year program in medical sonography that incorporates 62 weeks of clinical time designed with reflective learning practices so that at each progressive stage of clinical experience, skills and knowledge already learned can be applied. In fact, CQUniversity graduates will be recognised as practitioners of the highest calibre with accreditation as a sonographer competent to perform all the major types of ultrasound examinations (excluding echocardiography).

Our program has a distinct focus on the regional and rural community with clinical placement carried out at suitable health providers throughout Queensland. Students will be educated and trained in a state-of-the-art, purpose-built environment based in Mackay, Queensland, using the latest digital technology and simulated learning clinics.

Biomedical Science

A biomedical science degree is your pathway to a wide variety of interesting career and future study options. Quite a few of our graduates elect to enter further postgraduate study programs in medicine, pharmacy and allied health disciplines such as medical imaging, dietetics and audiology. Students seeking entry into a postgraduate medicine program normally sit their GAMSAT entrance exam in the third year of study.

A career in clinical pathology is another common career choice of our graduates since they have opportunities for further on the job specialist training, as well as job opportunities interstate and overseas once experienced.

With the boom in the biotechnology and pharmaceutics industries occurring worldwide, CQUniversity biomedical science graduates have a broad skills range in microbiology, biochemistry, analytical science, pharmacology, immunology and molecular and cell biology useful in these industries.

For those high flying students with a passion for research and creating new knowledge in biomedical research, then a fourth year Biomedical Science Honours year is recommended. We have an excellent track record at CQUniversity in placing our first class honours graduates in leading research teams within Australia for their postgraduate PhD studies.

Industrial Chemistry

Chemistry is an experimental science concerned with the way nature works at the atomic and molecular level. It is often referred to as the Central Science, and results of its application are to be found in almost every aspect of our lives. A few areas crucially dependent on the input of chemical sciences include space technology research, solving environmental problems, developing new drugs and technologies for medicine, and designing new materials for molecular electronics and computing.

As far as careers prospects are concerned, a chemistry degree is considered one of the most useful degrees that an individual can obtain as, in addition to the core scientific skills, you are also equipped with literary and numeracy skills. This means that a chemistry degree opens the door to a wide variety of careers, such as industrial chemists, laboratory and process scientists, environmental chemists, forensic chemists, and teachers at secondary school and universities.

Current graduates enjoy high employability and good salaries. At present there is a world wide shortage of scientists, in particular chemists. The situation will become more acute in the next five years. Now is a great time to embark on a career as a chemist!

Exercise & Sport Science

Exercise and Sports Sciences are a multidisciplinary field that will enable you to understand and appreciate human movement as it applies to human fitness, elite performance enhancement, family and community health, lifestyle management, occupational health and safety, and personal health. Core studies include the sub-disciplines of exercise physiology, biomechanics, motor control, exercise and sport psychology, and anatomy to provide a comprehensive understanding of health and the factors that influence it.

Students gain knowledge, explore the applications, and understand the methods, concepts and interactions of the sub-disciplines of exercise and sport sciences in the discovery of human movement as it applies to health, fitness, and human behaviour.

Environmental Sciences

This Program provides students with a grounding in ecological sustainability and is based upon a holistic understanding of the science of environmental problems and processes; development of practical skills to solve environmental problems; and appreciation of the roles of environmental planning, environmental law and advocacy. It incorporates both the natural and social sciences as ways of learning about environmental issues and problem-solving strategies.

The program offers student flexibility in tailoring courses to suit career aspirations. Considerable scope is allowed in the choice of Plans such that students can develop a particular emphasis in land management, water management, environmental geography, environmental sociology, or occupational health and safety. The program includes highly relevant and skill-based courses such as GIS & Remote Sensing, Applied Demography and Environmental Management Systems.

Students have an enhanced learning experience as smaller class sizes facilitate greater interaction opportunities. CQUniversity is adjacent to the southern Great Barrier Reef and Fitzroy catchment, and these ecosystems are used in teaching. The lecturers of all the courses are highly experienced and dedicated. Our graduates have a track record in attaining employment in the following areas: local catchment authorities, CSIRO, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Natural Resources Mines and Water, GBRMPA, environmental consulting firms, local councils, mining companies, Landcare, and Occupational Health.

For more information, please contact one of our offices

Last Updated: 29 September 2012

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