About Medicine at UQ

The University of Queensland – an Overview

The University of Queensland (UQ) is one of the oldest in Australia, established in 1909 it was the first university in Queensland. UQ was a founding member of the Group of 8 (Go8), a class of Australia’s leading universities, and currently is ranked 4^th in Australia and ranks within the top 100 universities in the world at 48^th, by QS World University Rankings, or within the top 1%, by Times Higher Education Rankings. UQ’s strong investment for research is among the top features that brings UQ to the top 100 list of universities, with a research income of $320.5 million as of 2010.

Renowned as a university with international links, it has 4 campuses in Australia: St Lucia, Ipswich, Gatton and Herston; and many more opportunities to study abroad with affiliated universities in over 30 countries. The main campus, St Lucia, along with Herston is situated in Brisbane, a city with a rapidly expanding population of approximately 1,067,279. A city with a beautiful coastline, Brisbane has beaches close by (within 2 hrs drive) and is perhaps the primary area of living for UQ’s 44,000 students.


About the Medical School

Historically UQ’s medical school was located at Herston, a site of the Mayne building and statue of Hippocrates. Since then UQ’s medical students are distributed in two different campuses in years 1 and 2, the majority at St Lucia while a small cohort of 90 students are placed at Ipswich.

Established in 1936 the medical school has been running for over 75 years and boasts a global reputation for medical research and education. The school consistently attracts approximately $25 million annually in research funding which is distributed in areas such as perinatal medicine, cardiovascular imaging and multiple sclerosis. UQ’s medical school is ranked amongst the highest in Australia and in the 50-75^th range worldwide, a result that reflects the quality of clinical medicine taught at UQ. The School of Medicine (SoM) has an annual budget of $100 million, which supports the academic staff at the numerous clinical schools teaching the 450 graduates a year (including approximately 100 internationals).


Since the establishment of the St Lucia and Ipswich campuses of the medical school, the Herston campus is mainly reserved for administrative work. SoM currently has approximately 1,700 students enrolled in the Bachelor of Surgery/Bachelor of Medicine (MBBS) program across the 4 years.

The Medical Course

Provisional Entry

Provisional entry is reserved for high achieving high-school students, OP1 or equivalent (usually around ATAR of 99) and is ranked via UMAT. Once a student has achieved an OP of 1 they are then ranked according to UMAT. The UMAT cut-off fluctuates every year however for 2011 entry first round cut-off was 177:66 (total score: section 1 score). It is important to note that UQ also offered places to students at the top of the OP1 band (99.95) regardless of whether they met UMAT entry requirements. Upon acceptance of a provisional entry spot the applicant has two options for their two years undergraduate degree: a dual degree (2 years) which can be (1) Bachelor of Science, (2) Bachelor of Health Sciences (Undertaken at Ipswich campus) and (3) Bachelor of Arts or any other undergraduate degree (usually 3 years). These two years will then be followed by entry into MBBS assuming the student maintains a GPA of 4 or above.

NOTE: Upon completion of the two years of a dual undergraduate degree the student does not receive their degree. Instead this will be received once MBBS is completed. However, it is possible to extend your undergraduate degree to three years, meaning you will receive your degree before entering MBBS. Furthermore, if a student fails a course they may sit a supplementary exam, but they may only sit one supplementary throughout their undergraduate degree. If the student fails the supplementary or two courses (as you are only able to sit one supplementary) they may make up for the course by applying for summer semester, overloading next semester (take 5 courses in one semester) or extend their degree to allow for more time. It should also be noted that UQ is currently planning to phase in a doctor of medicine (MD) program, planned to start in 2015. This means that provisional entry students will have to complete a full undergraduate degree (three years) before entering MD.

Graduate Entry

Graduate entry students must complete their undergraduate degree and sit GAMSAT. More details on entry requirements can be found in the UQ medicine entrance article.

MBBS Course Structure

MBBS is a four year degree, as noted previously and is comprised of two distinct phases: (1) preclinical medicine and (2) clinical medicine. Years 1 and 2 make up preclinical medicine, while years 3 and 4 are clinical medicine. Years 1 and 2 will be completed at either the St. Lucia campus or the Ipswich campus. Allocation of these campuses will be done at the end of the year prior to the entry of students. Approximately 90 students, from provisional entry and graduate entry schemes, will be sent to the Ipswich campus. Students can opt for the Ipswich campus however the remaining will be allocated via random ballot. Students who feel disadvantaged by their placement can apply for special exemption subsequent to the ballot.

Phase 1 - Year 1 (41 weeks)

• Foundations of Medical Practice (41 weeks)

Courses completed will be, ordered respective of completion (Semester 1 and 2):

1. Medical Science 1 and 2

Medical Science 1 will begin teaching students the fundamental scientific concepts that apply to medicine. This includes anatomy, pharmacology, immunology, physiology, biochemistry, microbiology and clinical sciences such as radiology. Medical Science 1 includes introductory Cardiovascular, Respiratory, Renal, Gastrointestinal, Endocrine and Musculoskeletal. Medical science 2 builds upon the foundation of medical science 1 focussing on 5 modules: Nervous System, Mental Health, Reproduction & Development, and Immunology, Haematology & Neoplasia. Medical Science 1 and 2 are taught similarly based on PBL tutorials augmented with lectures, laboratory classes, expert tutorials and symposia.

2. Clinical Skills 1 and 2

These courses focus on teaching of history-taking, patient examination, communication, clinical reasoning and procedural skills. The content taught, covering the five major body systems, is done so through Clinical Coaching, Clinical and Procedural Skills Workshops. Clinical coaching is based around a tutorial set up, with a clinical coach leading a small group of students. Clinical communication is focused on basic clinical skills that are necessary for a consultation. Procedural Skills Workshops provides the students with an opportunity to practice basic medical procedures.

3. Ethics and Professional Practice 1 and 2

These courses aim to provide students with the basic framework to practice medicine ethically. To do this students need a solid understanding of the ethical basis of medical practice, medical professionalism and legal and social aspects of practicing medicine. This will be achieved through PBL tutorials, lectures and symposia, as well as online resources and readings.

4. Global and Community Medicine 2: Evidence Based Practice and 1: Australian Indigenous Health

Global and Community Medicine 2 will be focused on research, including topics: acquiring research information, critical appraisal of evidence for validity, quantitative aspects of diagnosis and screening, effect size, precision of study effects, judging the importance of study effects and application of appraised evidence to practice. Global and Community Medicine 1 is, as its name suggests, based around Indigenous health. Therefore, it focuses on culture, history, education, location, employment, family structure and adverse events that affect doctor-patient relationship. It aims to provide a basis for the concept of delivering healthcare in an Indigenous Australian setting. To do this it relies on face to face interactions with elders and indigenous community members.

Phase 1 - Year 2 (40 weeks)

• Systematic Preparation for Clinical Practice (40 weeks)

Courses completed will be, ordered respective of completion (Semester 1 and 2):

1. Clinical Sciences 1 and 2The aim of this course is to link the relevant information gained in Medical Sciences in first year to a clinical setting. The structure of the course is heavily orientated on self-directed learning through PBL and case-based tutorials (CBLs), supplemented with lectures, tutorials and practicals.

2. Clinical Practice 1 and 2

Like Clinical Sciences these courses are centred heavily around self-directed learning and build upon the knowledge gained from Clinical Skills in year 1. Students will have the opportunity to focus their knowledge of history-taking, clinical communication and practical skills through both supervised and unsupervised interactions with patients. To facilitate this Clinical Coaching, Clinical Communication, Masterclasses and Procedural Skills workshops will be held to advance the students’ learning. Clinical coaching directs the peer-group sessions formed in Clinical Skills to small tutored groups using real patients to take a focused history, focussed examination and keep a written journal of patient cases they have investigated. Masterclasses engage students in clinical training in various specialties through workshops.

3. Ethics & Professional Practice 3 and 4

In conjunction with clinical communication taught in Clinical Practice, this course provides the student with the knowledge of safe ethical practice and relevant legal obligations surrounding the patient-doctor relationship. To do this it focuses on core values: scientific and clinical knowledge, clinical competence, and satisfactory professional conduct. This course is taught through a combination of the PBL tutorials, lectures and symposia, web-based resources and readings.

4. Global & Community Medicine 3 and 4

During these courses students will be instructed in key areas of community medicine practice such as the application of public health principles and perspectives to community medicine, and public health assessment. They will investigate health care delivery models in several areas including rural and urban settings, indigenous, refugee and immigrant communities, developing countries and disaster recovery. Students will be examined using case studies, projects (including medical student coordinated projects under Manali, UNMDG and other initiatives) and activities.

Phase 2 - Year 3 (40 weeks)

• 5 Core Clinical Rotations (8 weeks each): Surgery, Mental Health, General Practice, Medicine and Medicine in Society

Phase 2 - Year 4 (42 weeks)

• 5 Core Clinical Rotations including Elective (8 weeks each): Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Paediatrics and Child Health, Specialties 1, Specialties 2, Elective Placement and Clinical Skills.
• 2 week revision and assessment period-Content

Phase 2 is made up of clinical rotations that will be completed in a variety of settings. Each rotation is 8 weeks in total and some rotations require PBL-like activities. Students are examined on their participation (Pass/fail) medical record keeping, and exams.

MBBS Hons and Intercalated PhD or Masters

UQ MBBS Hons stream entry is based upon GPA. The overall duration of the Honours component is just over 18 months comprising of a research project during years 3 and 4 of MBBS. Intercalated PhD or MPhil is offered however the student must meet certain requirements, as outlined here: http://www2.som.uq.edu.au/SOM/FUTURE...s/default.aspx.