Hello and welcome to the first issue of Prospects for 2007. This year we will be introducing new content and expanding the range of articles from issue to issue. There will be two recurring articles appearing this year: Myth Busting will look at the many misconceptions about both university life and UWA and point out why these often heard myths are untrue. My Uni will be a showcase of different students at UWA and their take on life at university.
Whether you are a student, parent or teacher we would like your input. Please send any comments or suggestions to prospects@uwa.edu.au
Course cut-offs for 2007
Here is the link to the course cut off information for 2007. If you are a current year 12 student feel free to print out this information and stick it to the wall of your study area as a quick reference. Just click on the Printer Version of the page.
Campus challenge 2007
The very best way to experience university without being a student is to come to Campus Challenge. So what is Campus Challenge, exactly? Simply put, it's a week long camp for year 10 to 12 students during the school holidays where you live in student accommodation and spend the days taking part in various hands-on academic activities at UWA. In the evenings there are all sorts of recreational and fun activities including roller hockey, movie nights and quiz nights.
School visits season begins
Beginning in February, UWA representatives will be visiting almost every Senior High School in Western Australia to talk about courses and admissions at UWA and try to describe a little of what university life is like. UWA travels all across Western Australia as far as Kalgoorlie, Esperance, Albany, Geraldton and Kununurra to speak to school students and answer questions.
UWA graduate employment rates are among the highest in Australia!
The recently released UWA Graduate Destinations 2006 report is a good indicator of what opportunities are available for UWA students after uni. Overall, graduates from UWA enjoyed increased employment and average starting salaries in 2006. 87.4 per cent of UWA graduates gained full time employment within five months of graduation from university.
My uni
In 2007 Prospects will have a number of regular features to give a better idea of what university life is like. My Uni will be a series of interviews with current UWA students about their backgrounds, what they are studying now and what they are planning to do in the future. We are eager for feedback, so if you have a question for a UWA student or want to see an interview with a student from a particular course let us know at prospects@uwa.edu.au For now read on to hear from our featured student, Ryan Archer.
Myth busting - "UWA studies are not practical"
There are many myths about coming to university and even more so about UWA. You may have heard these myths from friends at school, your parents or even a teacher. Well in this and upcoming issues of Prospects we have decided to shoot down some of the more prevalent myths about UWA. In this issue we tackle one of the common ones, that UWA is 'theory based and not practical'.
Urban and regional planning
Introduced for the first time at UWA in 2007 is the degree Bachelor of Science (Urban and Regional Planning). The degree takes four years to complete and the only prerequisite subjects are passes in English and any TEE Mathematics. So what is it all about? Urban and Regional Planning is all about anticipating and guiding the development of cities and regions. Its main concern is the creation of liveable and sustainable communities. In other words, it's the perfect degree for the person who spends all their time growing up building little villages with their Lego bricks!
From students to aid workers overnight
Rebecca Kelly was coming to the end of a semester's 'in country' study in Indonesia in May, when Yogyakarta was devastated by a massive earthquake. Forty Australian university students had been staying in the city and were just a few days out from exams, looking forward to a month's holiday before coming home to Australia for second semester. Three of the group were from UWA. "The earthquake woke us about 6am. Like everybody else, we were in shock for a while. But when lots of people started shouting 'tsunami' and heading away from the coast, towards the volcano, we knew that was the wrong way to go!" Rebecca said.
UWA law students paving the way at Oxford
High achievement runs in the family of the new Rhodes Scholar, Travers McLeod. The second of five siblings, he is one of many of his family who are pursuing higher education. His older sister is a medical doctor and his two younger brothers and aunt are at UWA. His mother has also just started her PhD project at UWA.
UWA research student's studies used in NASA Mars mission
Risk and perceived risk can be very different, but people's perceptions are just as important as the real thing in planning for contingencies. Sarah Joyce, a PhD candidate in the School of Population Health, studied risk perception in her Honours year and, as a sideline to her PhD in environmental health in WA, she is conducting a survey on the risks ordinary people perceive will be part of NASA's Mars Sample Return mission.
