Hello, welcome to Flinders University. I'm Dr
Jeanne Young-Kirby Teaching Program Director and a Senior Lecturer
in Natural Sciences. Congratulations on taking the first step
to your learning journey of unlocking the secret relationships between the
earth's environment and all life big and small. Science is
everywhere. How we travel, communicate and what we
eat, scientists are involved in the
development of all of these things. Science teaches us how to apply evidence
to better understand our world and it enables us to innovate
for the benefit of society and the environment.
Any person who has a curious mindset, is interested in the way things work,
perhaps has a passion for nature, is keen
to discover ways to protect the environment or
perhaps has an innovative side would be a great candidate for studying
environment. The skills you develop as a scientist we
often call them STEM skills. STEM skills are broadly
applicable and scientists often find jobs across a
broad range of industries. Job growth in STEM areas is growing
faster than non-stem occupations. In 2019
73.9% of STEM occupations were held by staff who had a bachelor
degree or higher. Job growth in natural sciences
is spread across many disciplines with higher growth
in the area of agricultural and forestry management,
environmental sciences, geosciences and life sciences
We need you as science graduates to apply your skills
to advise our decision makers of today and maybe even become
a key decision maker in the future. Considering
the current impending impacts of sea level
rises on our ever-growing coastal populations
coastal and marine scientists are becoming increasingly important
Flinders graduates with coast and oceans and marine biology degrees
are currently applying their skills and expertise
to give advice to local, national and global authorities
on how we manage this impending environmental issue
Other employers of Flinders environment graduates
include consulting agencies, environmental statistical or industrial
consulting, eco-tourism, education within government
and conservation organisations, local councils and even in
schools. Flinders graduates may also find
positions in industries such as aquaculture, mining, renewable energies
and sustainable farming. Students may complete their degrees
as a Bachelor of Science with a specialisation
or they might do a Bachelor of Science with a major
where they can then flexibly enrol in the broad ranges of discipline specific
courses we offer in biology, earth sciences, chemistry,
physics and more. Students undertaking degrees in natural sciences at Flinders
are also able to do a combined degree with arts, education, engineering,
law and psychology. Students with a bachelor's degree in a science
discipline can undertake a one-year honors program
in research or they can complete graduate diplomas,
graduate certificates and master's programs. We're ranked
number one in South Australia for teaching and
learning environment in science and mathematics and across
Australia, Flinders University has been given a
five-star ranking for university teaching
in the sciences. Flinders University has cutting edge
teaching and research facilities including our state of the art learning
laboratory the Biology Discovery Centre. Flinders
also has the coastal geomorphology DNA
palaeontology lab. We combine field, lab, computer
and theory across all of our degree programs.
You will study under the guidance of academics
who run internationally recognised research programs
and have strong links to national and international scientific and
industry communities. Flinders University boasts the largest
and most diverse palaeontology team in Australia. We also
have the largest group of marine scientists
in South Australia. The team includes internationally
imminent marine biologist biologists,
oceanographers and aquaculturists undertaking world-class research.
Flinders University offers programs to help our undergraduates undertake
internships in the Fiji, Maldives, China
Philippines, South Africa and more. Some of my students have gone off to
undertake studies in animal behavior and conservation.
One student studied the impacts on shark behaviour and metabolism
from ecotourism related feeding in the Philippines.
Thank you for visiting Flinders University we look forward to welcoming
you on campus very soon.