There are medical schools distributed in a range of capital cities and regional centres throughout Australia. Most medical schools will accept undergraduate students either directly into their medical degree or with provisional entry via a Bachelor/Masters degree program. Some medical schools require the completion of an undergraduate (Bachelor) degree for entry into their medical degree.

Undergraduate entry into medicine

Apart from your ATAR, entry requirements for undergraduate medicine may also include:

• a UCAT ANZ score
• an interview
• a portfolio
• a personal qualities assessment
• a written application, assessment or registration form
• pre-requisite subjects
• a psychometric test
• inherent or professional requirements
• a police check
• a working with children check
• health checks
• immunisations
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course

Some universities also have different entry requirements for Indigenous students, and students from a rural, or refugee (Humanitarian Visa) background.

Some universities have entry pathways to their postgraduate medical course for Grade 12 graduates provided you complete a relevant undergraduate degree at their institution. These places are highly competitive and generally require an ATAR of at least 90. The pathway may involve provisional entry into medicine following a 3-year undergraduate degree, which in some cases can be accelerated and completed in 2 years.

Some universities take a mixture of undergraduate and postgraduate students into their Bachelor of Medicine / Bachelor of Surgery 5 or 6-year degree, although a number of universities have changed to a Bachelor of Medical Science or Bachelor of Medical Studies followed by a Doctor of Medicine (MD). Many universities have links to PDF documents that contain detailed information about the admissions process to their medical program. Be sure to check with the admissions officers at the universities you are looking at applying to in order to ensure that you are aware of the full admissions process.

Following is a guide to the ATAR scores for every medical degree with undergraduate entry in Australia in 2022:

Postgraduate entry into medicine

Some universities offer a 4-year Doctor of Medicine program specifically for postgraduate entry.

Apart from your Grade Point Average, entry requirements for postgraduate medicine may also include:

• a GAMSAT score
• an interview
• a portfolio
• a personal statement
• a situational judgement test
• pre-requisite subjects
• inherent requirements
• a police check
• a working with children check
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course

Some universities have different cut-off requirements for students from a rural background, Indigenous background or for humanitarian visa holders. It is unusual to be able to transfer from one medical school to another, but a limited number of universities will consider admissions for students in this situation.

Universities that offer postgraduate Doctor of Medicine programs usually have an undergraduate pathway for school leavers. These are covered in the Undergraduate Entry into Medicine section of this article.

Following is a guide to the entry requirements for every postgraduate medical degree in Australia in 2022:

Pathways to becoming a doctor

Please note that following medical school, further training is required to become a fully qualified doctor. The length of training required depends on the specialty area you choose. Below we show the training pathway to become a general practitioner in Australia. For more pathway infographics, go to our become a doctor page.

Current list of approved programs of study to become an intern (doctor)

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to become an intern (doctor) with general registration in Australia.

If you would like to find approved medical courses in Australia:
1. Go to https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Accreditation/Approved-Programs-of-Study.aspx
2. In Profession select Medical Practitioner
3. In Country make the appropriate selection – for example, Australia
4. In Qualification Type select General
5. Click Search

More resources on My Health Career

• The best and worst of a career in medicine
• Deciding on an area of medical specialization can be difficult – by Dr Ashe Coxon (MBBS FRACGP)
• Self-care now an official Physician’s Pledge – by Kathryn Choules
• Doctors weigh in on what they love most about their careers

Disclaimer

This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances. My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a postgraduate medical course. This may include speaking with a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of the Australian Medical Association, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.

The post ATAR for medicine – Your guide to the ATAR for every medical degree in Australia in 2022 appeared first on My Health Career.

There are medical schools in every state and territory in Australia. Most medical schools will accept undergraduate students either directly into their medical degree or with provisional entry via a double degree program. Some medical schools require the completion of an undergraduate (Bachelor) degree for entry into their medical degree.

Prior to or during medical degrees, students may be required to undergo a police check, working with children check, health checks, immunisations and first aid training.

Undergraduate entry into medicine

Apart from your ATAR, entry requirements for undergraduate medicine may also include:

• a UCAT ANZ score
• an interview
• a portfolio
• a personal qualities assessment
• a written application, assessment or registration form
• pre-requisite subjects
• a psychometric test
• inherent or professional requirements
• a police check
• a working with children check
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course

Some universities also have different entry requirements for Indigenous students and students from a rural or refugee (Humanitarian Visa) background.

Some universities have entry pathways to their postgraduate medical course for Grade 12 graduates provided you complete a relevant undergraduate degree at their institution. These places are highly competitive and generally require an ATAR of at least 99. The pathway may involve provisional entry into medicine following a 3-year undergraduate degree, which in some cases can be accelerated and done in 2 years.

Some universities take a mixture of undergraduate and postgraduate students into their Bachelor of Medicine / Bachelor of Surgery 5 or 6-year degree, although a number of universities have changed to a Bachelor of Medical Science or Bachelor of Medical Studies followed by a Doctor of Medicine (MD). Many universities have links to PDF documents that contain detailed information about the admissions process to their medical program. Be sure to check with the admissions officers at the universities you are looking at applying to in order to ensure that you are aware of the full admissions process.

Following is a guide to the ATAR scores for every medical degree in Australia in 2020:

Postgraduate entry into medicine

Some universities offer a 4-year Doctor of Medicine program specifically for postgraduate entry.

Apart from your Grade Point Average, entry requirements for postgraduate medicine may also include:

• a GAMSAT score
• an interview
• a portfolio
• a personal statement
• a situational judgement test
• pre-requisite subjects
• inherent requirements
• a police check
• a working with children check
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course

Some universities have different cut-off requirements for students from a rural background, Indigenous background or for humanitarian visa holders. It is unusual to be able to transfer from one medical school to another, but a limited number of universities will consider admissions for students in this situation.

Universities that offer postgraduate Doctor of Medicine programs usually have an undergraduate pathway for school leavers. These are covered in the Undergraduate Entry into Medicine section of this article.

Following is a guide to the entry requirements for every postgraduate medical degree in Australia in 2020:

Pathways to becoming a doctor

Please note that following medical school, there is at least another 5 years of training to become a fully qualified doctor. The length of training required depends on the specialty area you choose. Below we show the training pathway to become a general practitioner in Australia. For more pathway infographics, go to our become a doctor page.

Current list of approved programs of study to become an intern (doctor)

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to become an intern (doctor) with general registration in Australia.

If you would like to find approved medical courses in Australia:

1. Go to https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Accreditation/Approved-Programs-of-Study.aspx
2. In Profession select Medical Practitioner
3. In Country make the appropriate selection – for example, Australia
4. In Qualification Type select General
5. Click Search

More resources on My Health Career

• The best and worst of a career in medicine
• Deciding on an area of medical specialization can be difficult – by Dr Ashe Coxon (MBBS FRACGP)
• Self-care now an official Physician’s Pledge – by Kathryn Choules
• Doctors weigh in on what they love most about their careers
• Doctor shortages or oversupply? Conflicting headlines
• AMA Summit on medical workforce: Too many doctors, few training opportunities in communities that need them most

Disclaimer

This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances. My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a postgraduate medical course. This may include speaking with a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of the Australian Medical Association, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.

The post ATAR for medicine – your guide to the ATAR for every medical degree in Australia in 2020 appeared first on My Health Career.

Unfortunately, sleep disorders in Australia are often mis-diagnosed and treated as mental health disorders. This is because sleep disorders can manifest as depression. As a result, a patient’s depression may be treated, but the underlying sleep disorder remains and continues to cause problems.

Fixing this problematic situation would most likely require psychologists to acquire education about various sleep disorders – particularly how to recognize and diagnose them.

If psychology interests you, that is one possible career path you could consider. You could first train as a psychologist. To successfully pursue a career in psychology, you would typically need to either obtain a postgraduate degree in psychology or work under the supervision of a registered psychologist for at least 2 years.

The next step in becoming a psychologist with a sleep specialty would be to seek out additional professional training to better understand various sleep disorders. There are multiple ways you could obtain such training; one possibility would be to join the Australian Sleep Association, and then to sign up for their recommended courses. However, this is a relatively uncommon career path for an Australian medical professional to take.

More commonly in Australia, sleep specialists are trained respiratory physicians. It is respiratory physicians who are tasked with treating life-threatening sleep disorders such as sleep apnoea and similar breathing-related sleep disorders.

In Australia, a respiratory physician is considered to be a specialist physician. To become a practicing specialist physician in Australia, you would need to earn a bachelor’s degree in medicine. You would then need to satisfy some requirements for on-the-job training. Postgraduate studies would also be helpful; for example, some sleep specialists hold a PhD in sleep medicine.

Physiotherapists sometimes have involvement in treating insomnia. This can happen because, in some cases, a bad mattress or pillow is the culprit in keeping the insomniac patient awake at night. A physiotherapist can sometimes recognize when bad bedding is causing improper alignment of the head and spine, and recommend a solution.

Ideally, a sleep specialist would have at least some knowledge about how specialists from each of these disciplines can help patients who suffer with sleep disorders. It would be likely for a sleep specialist to need to refer some patients to other practitioners for better coordinated treatment.

Whichever approach you decide to pursue, there is one additional area of clinical research you need to know about if your goal is to become a sleep specialist in Australia. You need to be aware of the body of research regarding the effects of thermal environment on sleep. This is a crucial field of understanding for the Australian sleep specialist, because excessively hot weather often causes or contributes to insomnia problems down under.

The research is clear: Excessively hot temperatures can and do adversely affect sleep. There are times when a simple recommendation to turn on the air conditioning at night can solve an insomnia problem.

When it isn’t possible or practical for the patient to use air conditioning, the sleep specialist can recommend removing all blankets from the bed and sleeping on bamboo sheets. This is because bamboo fiber stays cool in hot weather and warm in cold weather. Some textile experts believe bamboo retains even less heat than cotton does.

In any case, insomniacs should avoid sleeping on synthetic sheets or synthetic fiber blends during the hottest months of the year. Polyester blend sheets, in particular, should be avoided. This is because polyester is hydrophobic, which is the opposite of absorbent. Polyester will trap heat and moisture, and can make for uncomfortable bedding that contributes to insomnia during heat waves.

There are many facets of life that can interfere with proper sleep — so sleep medicine is, of necessity, an interdisciplinary field of medicine. If you’re interested in helping others to solve their problems sleeping, these are all important considerations to understand. If you want to become a sleep specialist, it’s beneficial to choose the specialisation that’s most relevant to your interests, but to understand as much as possible about all the others.

The post Becoming a sleep specialist appeared first on My Health Career.

There are medical schools in every state and territory in Australia. Most medical schools will accept undergraduate students either directly into their medical degree or via a double degree program. Some medical schools require the completion of an undergraduate (Bachelor) degree for entry into their medical degree.

Prior to or during medical degrees, students may be required to undergo a police check, working with children check, health checks, immunisations and first aid training.

Undergraduate entry into medicine

Apart from your ATAR / OP, entry requirements for undergraduate medicine may also include:

• a UCAT score
• an interview
• a portfolio
• a personal qualities assessment
• a written application, assessment or registration form
• pre-requisite subjects
• a psychometric test
• inherent or professional requirements

Some universities also have different entry requirements for Indigenous students and students from a rural background.

Some universities have entry pathways to their postgraduate medical course for Grade 12 graduates provided you complete a relevant undergraduate degree at their institution. These places are highly competitive and generally require an ATAR of at least 99. The pathway may involve provisional entry into medicine following a 3-year undergraduate degree, which in some cases can be accelerated and done in 2 years.

Some universities take a mixture of undergraduate and postgraduate students into their Bachelor of Medicine / Bachelor of Surgery 5 or 6-year degree, although a number of universities have changed to a Bachelor of Medical Science or Bachelor of Medical Studies followed by a Doctor of Medicine (MD).

Be sure to check with the admissions officers at the universities you are looking at applying to for their complete entry requirements and possible pathways into medicine, as it isn’t always listed on their website.

Following is a guide to the ATAR scores for every medical degree in Australia in 2019:

Postgraduate entry into medicine

Some universities offer a 4-year Doctor of Medicine program specifically for postgraduate entry, while others will accept both undergraduate and postgraduate students into their 5 or 6 year medical degree programs.

Apart from your Grade Point Average, entry requirements for postgraduate medicine may also include:

• a GAMSAT score
• an interview
• a portfolio
• a situational judgement test
• pre-requisite subjects
• inherent requirements

Some universities have different cut-off requirements for students from a rural background or humanitarian visa holders. It is unusual to be able to transfer from one medical school to another, but a limited number of universities will consider admissions for students in this situation.

Following is a guide to the entry requirements for every postgraduate medical degree in Australia in 2019:

Other tips for getting into medicine and information about the training pathway

Please note that many medical schools have complex entry requirements that are outlines in their admissions guides. Here is an example for Flinders University:
https://www.flinders.edu.au/content/dam/documents/study/domestic/study-area-brochures/medicine.pdf

Please note that following medical school, there is at least another 5 years of training to become a fully qualified doctor. The length of training required depends on the specialty area you choose. For more pathway infographics, go to our become a doctor page. Below we show the training pathway to become a general practitioner in Australia.

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to complete medical school in Australia: https://www.ahpra.gov.au/education/approved-programs-of-study.aspx?ref=medical%20practitioner&type=general. The courses which lead to the completion of medical school have division “Medical Practitioner” and qualification type “General” according to the listing on AHPRA.

More resources on My Health Career:

• The best and worst of a career in medicine
• Deciding on an area of medical specialization can be difficult – by Dr Ashe Coxon (MBBS FRACGP)
• Self-care now an official Physician’s Pledge – by Kathryn Choules
• Doctors weigh in on what they love most about their careers
• Doctor shortages or oversupply? Conflicting headlines
• AMA Summit on medical workforce: Too many doctors, few training opportunities in communities that need them most

Disclaimer: This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances. My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a postgraduate medical course. This may include speaking with a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of the Australian Medical Association, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.

The post ATAR for medicine – your guide to the ATAR for every medical degree in Australia in 2019 appeared first on My Health Career.

Undergraduate medical school acceptance depends on high school class choices and grades

University classes, grades, UCAT exam scores, and/or GAMSAT exam scores are not all that matters when applying to medical school. Due to the competitive nature of acceptance into various programs, the subjects that students study in high school, as well as the grades that are earned in specific subjects now matter when it comes to whether or not students get into the best Australian medical schools. Prior to starting high school, parents are now beginning to have conversations with their children about future career goals. If a teen shows any indication that he or she may want to become a doctor one day, course emphasis is placed on science and mathematics from the start of high school.

Careers in medicine are some of the best in the country

In addition to selecting the most relevant subjects at high school striving for the best grades possible, careers in health care have recently been named some of the best in the country. CNBC reported in 2018 that careers as a nurse, wellbeing manager (for corporate clients), and other health care positions are in high demand in Australia. Not only is there high demand for these careers, but average base pay is also high for a range of health professions. To progress their education outside of the classroom and into the realm of global health, students are learning about economic issues, such as how private health insurance influences costs for various treatments.

Schooling can be extremely expensive

One of the most practical reasons that students are having to start preparing for their medical school education as early as high school is due to the expense of education. For those who are eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place, the yearly student contribution is currently set at $10,958. However, for local students who do are not eligible, costs can soar into the mid tens of thousands of dollars for each year of tuition. To help pay for this future educational expense, high school students may need to start saving as early as possible. As competition for spots in the country’s best medical schools becomes more intense, and as tuition prices continue to rise, it is no surprise that parents are preparing their high school students early for a future education in health care.

The post Why Australian Students Are Starting to Prepare for Medical Careers in High School appeared first on My Health Career.

Qualifying as a Cosmetic Nurse

If you are already a registered nurse, to further your career in cosmetic medicine, you can complete a Graduate Certificate in Cosmetic Nursing. Covering all aspects of cosmetic nursing, the course offers nurses advanced training in practical cosmetic procedures and also in dealing sensitively with the psychological needs of patients and clients. Cosmetic nurses perform a range of non-surgical procedures, including laser treatments, chemical peels and cosmetic injectables. Strict legislation means that only registered nurses and medical doctors are able to administer cosmetic injectables. In addition, professional clinics will ensure that their staff receive ongoing training in the latest techniques for cosmetic injecting and other procedures. This is vital in such a rapidly growing and evolving profession.

Training as a Dermatologist

From saving lives by removing melanomas to giving someone back their self-esteem by treating a chronic skin condition, the profession of a dermatologist can be extremely fulfilling. A dermatologist is a doctor who specialises in treating diseases that affect the skin, hair and nails. Their job may also include cosmetic dermatology and training in the use of botox, fillers and laser surgery. In order to become a dermatologist, after completing a medical degree and working in hospitals for at least 2 years, you will need to be accepted into and undertake a four-year Fellowship.

Specialising In Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

The field of plastic and cosmetic surgery is very competitive, and having completed a medicine degree, internship and residency, involves being accepted on the five year Surgical Education and Training program as outlined by the Royal College of Australasian Surgeons. This follows the completion of a medical degree. Cosmetic procedures performed in Australia last year included 30,000 liposuction procedures and 20,000 breast surgeries. In addition to elective surgery, plastic surgeons also alleviate physical conditions, repairing damage to skin and tissue. Plastic surgery is very challenging, and artfully improving the appearance and function of abnormalities, deformities or other flaws can make a dramatic difference to someone’s health and self-esteem.

The post Investing in a Career in Cosmetic Medicine appeared first on My Health Career.

According to event organiser Dr Paddy Dewan, since the inception of the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), there have been a number of investigations that have failed to bring to light the poor standards of the agency.

Dr Dewan says that workers in the agency who take the initial complaint often have not had legal or medical training, and that those who pass judgement have no accountability mechanisms to allow their work to influence a subsequent case.

Dr Paddy Dewan said:
“While healthcare professionals are unhappy with being treated badly, unsafe practitioners often slip under the radar, and patients often don’t both seeking redress via AHPRA because they don’t trust them. With poor processes and no accountability, why would they. There are many stories that we hope are raised at the 5th July meeting.”

Enough is Enough will be held at Radisson on Flagstaff in the Melbourne CBD from 1pm on Friday 5th July.

Click here to watch Dr Dewan’s presentation at the Healthcare Excellence Institute Australia conference “First Seek to Understand” from 13th April 2019.

The post Enough is enough to go ahead in Melbourne on Friday 5th July appeared first on My Health Career.

Diet affects every aspect of a person’s health, which is why it is so important to make sure that patients have the information and ability to feed themselves properly. Apart from being a healthier weight, it is also important to make sure that a chosen diet focuses on the right nutrients to keep the body running smoothly – and this can impact everything from energy levels and muscle recovery to mental health.

Getting started on a healthier diet

If you are a health professional and have a patient who eats takeaway food every night, you can’t just tell them to eat more healthily and expect it to happen. They will not suddenly be able to break the habit of eating unhealthy food with zero effort involved and suddenly spend an hour cooking every night.

What you need to do is give them some strategies to eat healthier. This can be achieved through some easy and fast recipes, like these healthy Mexican nachos. Cooking at home can be a hassle, so subscribing to a meal kit service is a great option for those wanting to cut down on cooking time.

It’s important to remember that perfection isn’t the immediate goal – or even a long-term goal, given how difficult it is for any person to sustain a perfect diet forever. If you can get your client to cut down from 7 takeaways a week to 3, that’s a big win. If they are still eating burgers most nights but are making them at home with fresh ingredients rather than buying fast food, that’s still an improvement.

Diet is something that needs to be sustained for a lifetime, and you have plenty of time to get your patient to gradually improve. If it gets too hard to keep a diet up, then a slide back into bad habits will occur. The overall goal of diet improvements should be to get your patient into the healthiest dietary habits that they will be able to sustain for the rest of their life – and you need to know them well in order to work out where that point is, because every person will be different.

Dietary advice from exercise professionals

A an exercise professional, the benefits of a health diet for people who come to you should be obvious. However, you may not realise the degree to with you can influence your clients – and, in some cases, you might overestimate it.

Psychological benefits of eating healthily

The psychological benefits of eating nutritious meals are well known. Helping a patient to improve their diet can be of huge benefit in improving their lifestyle and mental health generally, as adequate nutrition helps to improve mood, energy levels and general wellness.

Diet is also something that a mental health patient is likely to feel that they can control, while giving the person a concrete goal to work towards and achieve. This alone can help some people improve their general health.

A psychological professional is also very likely to be trusted by their patients, so they are in a good position to give dietary advice – and be listened to. Because there is often an ongoing clinical relationship, they can also check how the patient is going with their healthy eating and assist them to gradually improve.

All kinds of health professionals need to be able to offer dietary advice to their patients, because different people will be more likely to listen to different professionals. If any patient is asking a health professional how to improve their diet, it is because they trust that person and want to live a healthier life – and they deserve to hear the right advice.

The post Why health professionals need to help patients with their diets appeared first on My Health Career.

1. Understanding what you already bring to the table

Considering the 4 key blueprint principles are the perfect approach to getting underway, as they will encourage you to look at your starting point.

Firstly, the principle of value. In what ways do you add value to the organisation you are currently working in? If you really look, could you tease out a greater appreciation for what competencies you already have at your disposal? Is your greatest value in being efficient, do you have excellent communication skills, or are there additional proficiencies you have picked up along the way?

Secondly, the principle of building. What opportunities can you identify that will assist you in building on the skills you have to set the bar even higher?

Thirdly, the principle of progress. In the time that you have been in your profession, what has changed? How has progress taken place? How do you see yourself as part of the future progress in health care, potentially even at the cutting edge?

Fourthly, the principle of impact. How have you leveraged your skills in your current role, and where have you had the greatest impact? Have you improved the delivery of services, increased profits, been the catalyst for building a more cohesive team within your organisation, or had a significant impact outside your organisation?

2. Identifying your stream

The blueprint has identified 5 core work streams that health professionals may engage in when they are looking at the overall direction in which they would like to take in terms of career development. These are practice, education, research, management and strategy.

Practice involves being a clinician delivering patient care directly.

Education could take a number of forms ranging from providing instruction and education to patients and communities to health practitioners and students in clinical or academic environments.

Research could be at the level of systematic investigation to increase knowledge and establish an evidence base, or could be via translating research into practice.

Management could be in diverse ways such as leading and managing departments, service delivery, human resources or project funding.

Strategy might include leading change, developing and leading policy, implementing innovations, or transforming processes for an industry, sector or organisation.

3. Defining your future growth

The 4 levels of growth defined in the blueprint are gaining experience, further skills and knowledge, becoming an expert and being an acknowledged leader.
Gaining experience is the initial phase of acquiring your qualification and consolidating your skills.

Further skills and knowledge is the next phase where as a practitioner you develop a deeper breadth of experience and understanding within your profession.
Becoming an expert is where you deepen your knowledge and skill in a particular area.

Being an acknowledged leader is where you are recognised by your peers as someone able to guide and influence others.

4. Transitioning from where you are to a leadership role

Now that you understand what you bring to the table, have identified your stream and have defined the level of growth you wish to attain in the future, it’s important to consider how you are going to make this transition. Now is the time to step out of the model of the blueprint and use the principles to transform your career in a tangible way.

If you are currently a clinician and know that the predominantly academic areas of education or research aren’t the best fit for you, management or strategy would be excellent areas to look at. If you were to go down that path, you would need to develop further skills and knowledge on the way to becoming an expert or acknowledged leader.

The knowledge you would need to gain in order to make this transition might include health economics, health law, systems and policy, management, developing health systems and the application of strategies which advance managing patient care processes.

A postgraduate qualification could be an excellent investment in your career development and aspirations. The Monash Online Master of Health Administration has been developed with aspiring health care managers in mind with the course focusing on leadership, marketing, economics and management of the patient care process. This master’s qualification will also boost your health-specific knowledge with areas such as epidemiology and biostatistics being included.

The Master of Health Administration has been purposely designed to build upon your ability to lead and manage effectively in a health care environment. The fusion of the course units from The Faculty of Business and Economics with those from The School of Public Health and Preventative Medicine means that you will gain knowledge of both business and health care practices.

On completion of the course, opportunities that would be open to you as an expert or acknowledged leader would be in health care organisations including government and non-government organisations. You might find yourself in high-level roles in private or health and welfare service management, practice management or in the management of teams of health professionals.

Now you have access to the ultimate blueprint and means to develop your career in health. Now is the time to put your aspirations into action.

The post The ultimate guide to career development for health professionals in just 4 simple steps appeared first on My Health Career.

The following article has been published by UCAT NIE – The National Institute of Education nie.edu.au and republished here with permission.

BEWARE PARENTS, TEACHERS and STUDENTS!

The shift from UMAT to UCAT took place without much warning and with only the university admission offices having been made aware ahead of the change. For everyone else it did come as a surprise and truth be told, it has created a lot of work for people like us who had spent a lot of time researching and developing courses for the UMAT. But at the end of the day, this change is nothing new in the education and training industry and something that every professional educator has to anticipate and be prepared for all the time.

While most students are completely oblivious to this fact, the school syllabus and curriculum gets updated on regular basis just about every year and sometimes these changes can be quite pronounced. But you do not see teachers walking off the job or panicking about the changes. This is because it is a part of our job and when changes happen, you just need to adapt, create new lesson plans, resources and get on with teaching. Change and ongoing learning is a part of a teacher’s job description!

On the other hand, there are opportunistic individuals and businesses, that absolutely love big changes. The fact is, that there is always some anxiety associated with change and if you can turn the anxiety into fear and panic, then you can easily make some money out of it. This business model is not new and has been used for centuries by everyone form backyard salesmen to very large cooperation who capitalise on fear. In-fact in today’s world, we are completely surrounded by it, from organic labels on water bottles, to outrageous insurance policies and unrealistic security threat prevention technology, the list goes on and on. While addressing many of the above fear campaigns is well outside of our scope, the fear campaign about UCAT is definitely something that we can address.

Since the introduction of the UCAT in late September 2018, we have been seeing more and more opportunistic businesses coming out of the woodworks, targeting parents, career teachers and students directly and capitalising on their fear. Their strategy is simple:

Create doubt and disappointment in your current level of preparation.
Create doubt and distrust in your current resources, teachers and tutors.
Enforce the belief that the only chance of surviving the UCAT is with them and they are the only specialists!

Common lines and misleading information that is used by these companies and individuals include:

UCAT is a completely different test than UMAT!
Situation judgement is a completely new construct and no one in Australia knows anything about it!
UCAT is based on UKCAT so you should stick with a company from UK.
And, have you seen the completely new Abstract Reasoning questions?

While some of the above statements have some element of truth, they are mostly misused only for one purpose. To scare and make a sale…. so do not fall for these cheap tricks. Most of the companies that are now targeting Australia are from the United Kingdom, but on the same token, Australia is not short of its own, home-grown con artists who are joining the panic band.

The truth about UCAT does require a much better explanation, but in short

“YOU SHOULD NOT PANIC!”

Everything about the UCAT is good news for anyone who will be sitting this new style of admission test to get into medicine or dentistry. It is understandable that you maybe worried about having been preparing for the UMAT until now, but it is OK. Your preparation has not been in vain and you have not wasted your time. While the UCAT is structured and administered differently than the UMAT, most of the skills that you learned while preparing for the UMAT are still very relevant and directly transferable.

For instance, Sections 1, 2 and 3 of the UCAT tests the exact same skills that Construct 1 of the UMAT was testing. Except, now the skills of UMAT’s Logical Reasoning and Problem Solving have been broken down into specific sub-construct such as Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making and Quantitative Reasoning. Hence, anything you learned while preparing for Construct 1 of the UMAT would have prepared you for the first three sections of the UCAT.

As for the Construct 2 of the UMAT, yes, it is true that this section is no longer relevant directly. But then again, skills learned in Understanding People, do provide a very solid foundation for conflict resolution and situational awareness. The only main different is that now, with the new section of the UCAT (section 5: Situational Judgement), you do need to change your perspective as you need to internalise the scenarios and put more emphasis on putting yourself in other people’s shoes while thinking of your answer choice from the medical ethics standpoint. The fear campaign by overseas organisations that Australian company’s do not have the knowledge to teach for this section is completely bogus. Situational judgement is not a new testing concept in Australia by any means. This particular testing construct has been used by many universities, collages and various industries long before the UCAT. Some universities like University of Newcastle, and Bond University already had Situational Judgement questions in their additional admission criteria into undergraduate medical courses. While we cannot speak for other Australian companies, we can assure you that NIE has been training students for this construct long before its introduction in the UCAT.

And finally, there is the scare tactic about the Abstract Reasoning section (S4). OK, with this section there are some substantial changes. But 1/3rd of the skills that students learned for the Construct 3 of the UMAT is still directly relevant. Section 4 of the UCAT still has the “Continue the Sequence” questions, exactly as they were presented in the UMAT. As for the other question types, while they are different, they are really not as difficult as the Construct 3 questions of the UMAT. Hence, preparing for them is really not rocket-science and can be achieved with some consistency and perseverance.

At this point, you may be asking yourself…so if NIE thinks that they know how to prepare students for the UCAT then why did they partner with a KAPLAN? The answer is simple! NIE does not provide a half-baked service. We know that preparing new and relevant resources will take some time, yet we have a professional obligation to many of our clients to provide them with up-to- date advice and service. The UCAT being adopted from the UK, meant that there had to be a good quality service provider in the UK. We researched a number of service providers and realised that KAPLAN preparation resources were miles ahead of other companies in the UK. And so, the logical choice was to join hands with them and offer their products to our Australian clients with some added personalised services.

Meanwhile, we are still working on other resources. We are reviewing other publisher’s books and will have some of them on offer once we have narrowed our choice down to a good few.

In conclusion, whether you are a UCAT candidate, a parent or a teacher, please do not be worried about the UCAT. The positives of the UCAT outweighs any negatives by a long shot and we truly believe it is a change for the better. And if you are still worried or have any questions, just pick up your phone and call us direct on ph: 1300 974 187 / mob. 0412 439 115 OR write to us to enquiries@nie.edu.au

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