Global Utilities

La Trobe University
Health Sciences

Common First Year

Matthew Oates - Co-ordinator of Common First Year Program

"The common first year provides students with a strong foundation for professional studies in their discipline.  The focus on inter-professional learning allows students to collaborate with their peers in other disciplines which future employers look upon favourably.  It also provides some students with an opportunity to transfer to other courses at the end of the year without having to complete an additional year of study.” Matthew Oates

One of the biggest advantages of the common first year is that it allows for successful transfer applicants (those students who have already undertaken the common first year in another course within the Faculty of Health Sciences) to continue in the second year of another double degree program.  Transfer is subject to grades and places being available. The exception to this is the social work program

Seven (7) Units common to all courses (with the exception of Human Services/Social Work) in the common first year are as follows.

Semester 1

Human Biosciences A

  • Individual Determinants of Health and Well-being
  • Perspectives of Health and Wellbeing
  • Inter-professional Studies A

Semester 2

Human Biosciences B

  • Social Determinants of Health and Well-being
  • Inter-professional Studies B
  • Elective (in all courses other than Nursing and Health Information Management)
  • Units undertaken in 1st year of Human Services/Social Work course

Semester 1

  • Psychology A
  • Interprofessional Practice A
  • Self and Community: Introduction to Sociology
  • Individual determinants of Health and Well-being

Semester 2

  • Social Work in an Unequal World
  • Interprofessional Practice B
  • Social Determinants of Health and Well-being
  • Psychology B

 

Matthew Oats - Co-ordinator of Common First Year Programs
Co-ordinator of Common First Year Programs Matthew Oates