9. Bioethics
Graduate Certificate in Bioethics
(GradCertBEth) LG019
Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Biotechnology)
(GradCertBEthBTech) LG020
Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Clinical Ethics)
(GradCertBEthClinEth) LG023
Graduate Diploma in Bioethics
(GradDipBEth) LF037
Master of Bioethics
(MBEth) LC047
Overview
The University of Sydney offers several postgraduate degree courses in bioethics. Increasing levels of expertise are provided through completion of the Graduate Certificate in Bioethics, Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Biotechnology), Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Clinical Ethics), Graduate Diploma in Bioethics, and Master of Bioethics, which can be completed with an honours compenent.
These courses are designed to meet the widely recognised growing need for ethics education for scientists, researchers, and professionals working in medicine, nursing, public health, health law, health policy/administration, public policy, and science communication. They will also be attractive to students with general interests in relationships between science and society or relevant social science disciplines.
Particular individual units of study – such as Core Concepts in Bioethics (BETH5000), Human and Animal Research Ethics (BETH5202), Ethics and Biotechnology (BETH5201), Ethics and Public Health (BETH5203) and Ethics and Mental Health (BETH5205) – offered through the Postgraduate Program in Bioethics will be popular with postgraduate students pursuing degrees in other fields, such as medical humanities, law, biology, health sciences, biomedical sciences, public health, psychology and/or any disciplines involving human or animal experimentation.
The discipline of bioethics is concerned with ethical questions arising in contexts of biological and medical science. Social concern about such issues has grown with advances in biomedical technology, as illustrated by contemporary debate over reproductive technologies, genetic engineering, cloning, and stem cell research. Traditional topics in bioethics include abortion, euthanasia, relationships between health care providers and patients, research involving humans and animals, and justice in the distribution of medical resources. Emerging topics include ethical issues related to global public health.
Falling at the intersections of ethics, policy, and biomedical science, bioethics is an inherently interdisciplinary field. The University of Sydney's postgraduate program in bioethics uniquely addresses this interdisciplinarity head-on.
In addition to the core unit of study (BETH5000), which provides a broad survey of the field of bioethics, our foundational units provide interdisciplinary grounding in ethical philosophy (BETH5101), philosophy of science/medicine (BETH5102), interdisciplinary approaches to the study of medicine and society (BETH5103), and health law (BETH5104).
Specialisation in areas of particular interest is provided via elective units with focus on biotechnology (BETH5201), research ethics (BETH5202), public health (BETH5203), mental health (BETH5205) and clinical ethics (BETH5204). All of these units of study include historical components.
Qualified students admitted to the honours component of the Master of Bioethics will obtain further expertise in an area of special interest, and experience necessary for further postgraduate study (ie PhD), through completion of a research project (BETH5301 and 5302).
Admission
Admission requires a bachelor's degree or any equivalent award in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology, anthropology, history, law, or other relevant field.
Structure
The graduate certificates and graduate diploma are embedded in the master’s degree (see embedded degree explanation in chapter 8).
The Graduate Certificate (Biotechnology) is designed to provide ethical training for those working in the fields of, or those concerned with recent developments in, genetics and stem cell research.
The Graduate Certificate (Clinical Ethics) is designed to provide training in ethics and associated issues for those engaged in clinical practice in a range of health professions.
The Master of Bioethics (Honours) degree provides opportunity for in-depth learning in an area of special interest and research experience necessary for further postgraduate study.
| Course | Credit points for award | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| GradCertBEth | 24 | 0.5 to 2.5 years |
| GradCertBEth(BTech) | 24 | 1 to 2.5 years |
| GradCertBEth(ClinEth) | 24 | 1 to 2.5 years |
| GradDipBEth | 36 | 2 to 4 years |
| MBEth | 48 | 2 to 5 years |
| MBEth(Hons) | 60 | 1.5 to 6 years |
The Graduate Certificate in Bioethics comprises one core unit of study and three electives chosen from the list of foundational units of study (see table below and chapter 31 for unit of study details).
The Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Biotechnology) comprises three core units of study and one elective chosen from the list of foundational units (see table below and chapter 31 for unit of study details).
The Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Clinical Ethics) comprises two core units of study and two electives chosen from the list of foundational and elective units of study (see table below and chapter 31 for unit of study details).
The Graduate Diploma in Bioethics comprises one core unit of study, three foundational units of study and two further units of study chosen from the foundational and elective units of study (see table below and chapter 31 for unit of study details).
The Master of Bioethics comprises five core units of study and three electives (see table below and chapter 31 for unit of study details).
To qualify for the master’s degree with honours, students must successfully complete an additional 12 credit point research project (ie 60 credit points of units of study in total), in which students undertake a supervised individual project in an area of interest and report the outcomes in a dissertation.
Students are only able to enrol in the research project if they have achieved a distinction average in their first 24 credit points of coursework and have the permission of the course coordinator.
Graduate Certificate in Bioethics units of study
Can't read table data file
Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Biotechnology) units of study
Can't read table data file
Graduate Certificate in Bioethics (Clinical Ethics) units of study
Can't read table data file
Graduate Diploma and Master in Bioethics units of study
Can't read table data file
Bioethics research units of study
| Unit of study | Credit points | A: Assumed knowledge P: Prerequisites C: Corequisites N: Prohibition | Session |
|---|---|---|---|
| BETH5301 Research Project A |
6 | P Distinction average (or higher) in 24 credit points of BETH units of study. Only available to students admitted to the Master of Bioethics (Honours) degree. BETH5301 must be taken in conjunction with BETH5302. It is recommended, but not required, that BETH5301 and BETH5302 are taken in separate semesters. |
Semester 1 Semester 2 |
| BETH5302 Research Project B |
6 |
Only available to students admitted to the Masters of Bioethics (Honours) degree. Must be taken in conjunction with BETH5301. It is recommended, but not required that BETH5301 and BETH5302 are taken in separate semesters. |
Semester 1 Semester 2 |
| Reseach units of study are only taken if undertaking honours, which is not available to all students. See the course coordinator for further information. Students must enrol in 12 credit points of dissertation in addition to the 48 credit points required for the standard master’s degree. These should be done either in one semester or split over two semesters. A student must be enrolled in order to submit the dissertation. If a student is not able to submit his/her thesis after enrolling in 12 credit points of dissertation units of study, he/she must re-enrol in a minimum of six credit points of dissertation units of study, with the concomitant financial liability, every semester until he/she submits. | |||
Further enquiries
Dr Catherine Mills
Phone: +61 2 9036 3410
Fax: +61 2 9114 0559
Email: or
Website: www.usyd.edu.au/bioethics