Graduate Diploma of Medical Science

Build on your existing medical, biomedical or clinical knowledge and experience with JCU’s Graduate Diploma of Medical Science. This one-year degree has two pathways for students, one as a Medical Laboratory scientist (MLS) and the other as a Clinical Measurements scientist (CMS). You’ll have extensive opportunities to apply your theoretical skills as you complete clinical placement at public and private Clinical Measurements or Medical Science Laboratories.

Through this graduate certificate, you will gain advanced skills that will enable you to work in high-demand areas including regional, rural, remote, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Throughout your placement, you will apply recognised methods and tools of medical science to the process of enquiry and discovery, particularly in a clinical/medical investigative context. You will develop strong skills in communicating information to those with and without a medical or scientific knowledge base.

As you complete the Graduate Diploma of Medical Sciences, you will transition to work alongside experts in the clinical and medical laboratory science field; the network connections that you make and professional relationships that you form will have the potential to lead to future employment.

Course pre-requisites and admission requirements

View the Handbook for a detailed overview of available subjects.

Inherent requirements

Inherent requirements are the identified abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours that must be demonstrated, during the learning experience, to successfully complete a course. These abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours preserve the academic integrity of the University’s learning, assessment, and accreditation processes, and where applicable, meet the standards of a profession. For more information please review the inherent requirements for the Graduate Diploma of Medical Science.

International students must attain an IELTS Academic with an average level of 7.5 or more, across the four components of listening, speaking, reading and writing; no score below level 7.0 in any of these components; and a score of 8.0 or more in the components of speaking and listening. Internationally schooled applicants may also be required to meet this requirement.

English competency requirements may also be satisfied through completion of one of the following:

• Bachelor degree or master degree from Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK or the USA, or
• Undergraduate degree taught in English from a South African University.

As a JCU Medical Science graduate, you will be equipped with specialist skills that enable employment in a variety of medical settings.

By choosing the Clinical Sciences major you could work as a clinical scientist, cardiac scientist, respiratory scientist, sleep scientist, or neuroscientist. By choosing the Medical Science major you could specialise in areas of diagnostic pathology such as clinical microbiology, haematology or transfusion science. Alternatively, you could find opportunities in clinical biochemistry, histopathology, immunology, serology, or laboratory management. Some graduates also go on to study the Master of Medical Science.

Graduates may be eligible for membership with the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists (AIMS).

Graduates (CMS major) may be eligible for membership with Australian Council of Clinical Physiologists (ACCP) or Professionals in Cardiac Sciences Australia (PICSA).