9. Indigenous Health Studies

Courses of study

The discipline of Indigenous Health Studies provides education in Indigenous health and community development for a range of health professionals at undergraduate and postgraduate levels and conducts and supervises research in Indigenous community health. Students enrolled in the undergraduate program are able to take electives in Indigenous health (see the table below).

An enabling program, the Aboriginal Health Science Support Program, is specifically offered for Indigenous students.

The postgraduate Indigenous community health coursework programs are offered by off-campus mode. The Graduate Certificate/Master of Health Sciences (Indigenous Community Health major) equip graduates for work in the areas of Indigenous health promotion, education and training, management and research. See Chapter 15 for further information on the graduate program.

Multiple research opportunities are available in the discipline of Indigenous Health Studies. Key research areas include community development, Indigenous environmental health and housing, Indigenous health and education, Indigenous men’s health and leisure, Indigenous men’s health and primary health care and health promotion. See Chapter 25 for information on the research degrees offered by the Faculty of Health Sciences.

Professional information

The discipline focuses on the health and community development needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. All the courses adopt a multidisciplinary approach to teaching and learning in the health sciences in order to prepare students for the very broad range of future employment opportunities available to graduates, including primary health care, health promotion, health education, community development, drug and alcohol, women’s and men’s health services, health policy and program planning and evaluation. A number of important principles underlie the courses offered in the discipline including promoting social justice, building community capacity, enhancing cultural understanding, developing Indigenous health professionals as agents of change, learning from the Indigenous community, adopting ethical approaches to professional practice in Indigenous health, and developing skills in ethical research in Indigenous health.

Further information

Phone: +61 2 9351 9161
Website: www.fhs.usyd.edu.au/

Bachelor of Health Science (Aboriginal Health and Community Development)

No first year intake in 2010

Aboriginal Health and Community Development is a specialised field of community and health work. It involves the identification of health and health-related problems and the solutions to these problems within the context of the broader socio-economic development of Aboriginal communities. Community participation and initiative are strongly emphasised. Graduates from this course will be equipped to develop programs which meet the health and community development needs of Aboriginal people. They may work with specific client groups (such as in drug and alcohol or women’s health services) or in broader health and community fields. Employment opportunities also exist in Aboriginal identified positions in health and community centres, in health promotion and education, and in a range of community development roles. The Bachelor of Health Science (Aboriginal Health and Community Development) course is a four year full-time block attendance program.

Table 9.1: Aboriginal Health and Community Development electives

Aboriginal Health Science Support Program

This supplementary program is studied concurrently with a degree program. Students undertake a selection of the following units, based on an individual needs assessment conducted by Yooroang Garang, and depending on the students' course and course load. The average number of hours in the Support Program is six to eight hours per week for the first two years of enrolment and one to four hours in their third year.

Admission requirements

Admission to the Aboriginal Health Science Support Program is dependent upon satisfying the eligibility criteria under the Cadigal Policy (see below). Selection of students under this Policy may be based on an interview. All students who are offered a place in an award course under the Cadigal Policy may participate in the Aboriginal Health Science Support Program during the first three years of enrolment.

Course outline

The course outline for the Aboriginal Health Science Support Program is presented in Table 9.2. Units of study are described in Chapter 14.

Table 9.2: Aboriginal Health Science Support Program

Cadigal program

The Cadigal program is an access and support program for Indigenous people who wish to study at the University of Sydney.

Students entering through the Cadigal program are offered a comprehensive program of academic support which includes:

• the option to enrol in a reduced load for the first two years of the degree, and
• concurrent enrolment in the Aboriginal Health Science Support Program which supplements and supports the work being done in the degree program.

HSC applicants are considered for entry on the basis of their Australian Tertiary Admission Ranking (ATAR) and under the Cadigal program, the ATAR for entry is lower than that required for mainstream entry.

Mature age applicants are interviewed to assess their suitability for study.

Consideration is given to educational background, life and employment experience and motivations, goals and interests.