Graduate Certificate in Veterinary Public Health

The Graduate Certificate in Veterinary Public Health comprises the first four subjects of the Master of Veterinary Public Health.

The Graduate Certificate and the Graduate Diploma also represent early exit options from that Masters course.The Master of Veterinary Public Health is an online Masters degree for veterinarians, animal scientists and animal health workers to enable them to identify and respond to animal health issues at the population level.

A component of the degree deals specifically with responses to emergency animal disease occurrences, in Australia and internationally.For the past 25 years the animal health and quarantine services in the Commonwealth and State governments have encouraged continuing education and have provided a number of short courses in “exotic” diseases for graduate veterinarians to promptly detect, control and eradicate newly introduced and other emergency diseases.

This course will enhance and formalise this training and educational experience by providing co-ordinated and targeted modules to cover the skills that have been identified from experience in recent emergency diseases situations, such as Hendra virus infections and the 2007 outbreak of equine influenza in Australia.This course has been developed in direct partnership with CSIRO’s Australian Animal Health Laboratory and the Victoria State Government’s Department of Primary Industries.

It has been tailored to suit experienced full time animal health professionals, expecting to remain in employment whilst studying part-time.

The online method of delivery and broad range of elective topics will provide students with flexibility and allow them to manage their study commitments and educational needs.VETS90083 Selection and Interpretation of Laboratory Tests will be taught as a short residential course to cover hands-on experience and to personally introduce students to each other as well as to their future tutors and mentors to ensure that they are familiar with the resources and requirements of online learning.Other subjects in the Veterinary Public Health program may be studied individually under the Community Access Program, without applying for the full program.

Any such successfully completed subjects may later be credited towards the Masters, Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate level programs in Veterinary Public Health.

Course structure

This course requires completion of one compulsory subject plus three elective subjects, each worth 12.5 points.

Entry requirements

1. In order to be considered for entry, applicants must have completed:

• a degree in Veterinary Science, or an equivalent qualification from a Veterinary School listed in the World Health Organisation Directory of Veterinary Schools, and at least 2 years of documented relevant work experience in the diagnosis and control of animal diseases; or
• an undergraduate degree in a relevant scientific field (such as agriculture or biology), with a demonstrated appropriate background in Master of Veterinary Public Health core curriculum areas including veterinary anatomy, physiology, pathology and microbiology, and at least 4 years of documented relevant work experience in the diagnosis and control of animal disease (for example, as a government employed Animal Health Officer).

Meeting these requirements does not guarantee selection.

2. In ranking applications, the Selection Committee will consider:

• prior academic performance; and
• the professional experience.

3. The Selection Committee may seek further information to clarify any aspect of an application in accordance with the Academic Board Rules on the use of selection instruments.

4. Applicants are required to satisfy the university’s English language requirements for postgraduate courses. For those applicants seeking to meet these requirements by one of the standard tests approved by the Academic Board, performance band 6.5 is required.

Notes

(a) Up to 25 credit points of advanced standing may be given to applicants who have either:

• an undergraduate degree in a cognate discipline and a minimum of two years (veterinary graduate) or four years (other graduate) of documented animal health related work experience; or
• a Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma in a cognate discipline.

(b) Students enrolled in the University of Melbourne Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) may be permitted to enrol in the Graduate Certificate of Veterinary Public Health after the completion of the second year of the DVM and may receive up to 25 points of advanced standing. This pathway is not available to students who have already completed the DVM.

Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)

For the purposes of considering a request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry. The University is dedicated to providing support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website. http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

Intended learning outcomes

This course will reinforce and strengthen all the graduate attributes that will have already been achieved by the participants by way of their primary degree and work experience before enrolling in this postgraduate certificate course.

Academic excellence will be fostered by utilising the high level professional skills of internationally recognised experts in technical content and adult learning.

This course involves subject material across a wide range of disciplines including veterinary science, management, leadership, outbreak risk assessment, decision-making and communication. Participants in the course will be veterinarians, animal scientists and animal health professionals who are already in positions that bring them into professional contact with the general public and where they are involved in providing leadership in technical matters.

This course specifically addresses issues of leadership development for responding to diseases at the population level. These diseases are often transboundary diseases, which are not confined by national borders and thus require multinational approaches to achieving their control.

Working professionally across cultures and social groups is critical both at official levels and also at local levels to ensure community involvement in control programs. It is anticipated that this course will attract veterinarians, animal scientists and animal health professionals from around the world, including from developing countries, and cultural diversity will be deliberately used when assigning students to syndicate work projects.

This course focuses on dealing with animal health issues that are global issues and which require global, regional and local approaches. It is expected that graduates will be prepared and sensitised to opportunities to work at a global, regional or local level, either within their own State or national agencies or through one of the many international veterinary and public health agencies and non-governmental organisations.