This diploma will prepare you for a variety of professional roles – you could work with elite sportspeople, promote health in the community, work in corporate health or a wide range of other exciting environments. Throughout your diploma and degree, you will gain the skills to design, implement and evaluate programs targeted at improving general health and well-being, helping to prevent or reduce the impact of chronic disease and enhancing athletic performance.
You can also specialise in a related field, with majors in Football Performance, Health Promotion, Nutrition, Occupational Safety and Health and Sport Business helping broaden your career prospects. You can also pathway into further study in areas such as clinical exercise physiology, education, dietetics and strength and conditioning coaching.
Your Diploma of Health Science can lead into ECU second year of this degree:.
If you commence at ECU in July, it will take 2.5 years to complete at ECU due to sequencing of units.
Domestic students must enrol minimum 2 units (30 credit points) per study period.
Students will need to graduate from this degree to be eligible to register with the Exercise and Sports Science Australia (ESSA).
Career Opportunities
Graduates have successful careers in specialty areas such as exercise rehabilitation, sports administration, teaching, sports coaching, exercise science, strength and conditioning, corporate fitness, workplace health, sports development and sports performance analysis.
Stage 1 of this course consists of 8 units of study and can be completed over 2 or 3 trimesters. It provides opportunities for scaffolded learning and the development of core academic and employability skills.
This unit will provide you with a core understanding of the fundamentals of chemistry. It has been specifically designed for science students pursuing a career in health or engineering. This unit will prepare you for the chemistry component of core discipline units at tertiary level studies, where a basic understanding of chemistry is required.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Science Lab
Credits: 15
This unit teaches the foundations of academic writing, from library research using databases and approved resources, to writing paragraphs and essays, and using the approved referencing system. In addition, the unit covers essential study skills to assist with time management, note-taking, and use of memory aids for study purposes.
This unit will enable you to improve the ability to communicate in English to participate effectively in academic and professional environments and will also provide language awareness tools to enable self-directed and ongoing learning.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Class
Credits: 15
This unit will introduce you to the basic concepts and skills required by a project manager. Project Management is applicable in almost all industries as projects and project teams are normally a key part in any organisation’s efforts to achieve their goals. Whether you are planning to work in business, IT, engineering, tourism or health, some principles of project management are relevant to your field. This unit will provide you with an understanding of what project management is, as well as some of the key skills such as project planning, organizing, leading, communicating, managing issues and risk, as well as the use of project management tools and technology.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Class
Credits: 15
This unit is designed for students who require a general mathematics background. The general mathematics taught will enable students to then apply some of these techniques to studies in different fields. This includes but is not limited to fields like business, health sciences and computing/IT courses. In this unit you, as a developing professional, will develop the knowledge and skills necessary to identify and implement appropriate mathematical procedures in different contexts.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Class
Credits: 15
This unit offers a science background for entry into science-based courses at university level. Students are introduced to general scientific concepts in chemistry, physics and maths. It includes various levels of chemical and biochemical organisation (important to living systems); physics concepts (kinetic theory, thermodynamics, optics, motion, and radiation), experimentation, measurement, and mathematical techniques relevant to the science professions.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Science Lab
Credits: 15
This unit covers three key areas of employability: how to work effectively within teams; how to communicate effectively in the workplace and how to develop awareness of your soft skills.
To be effective in the workplace we need technical skills and knowledge, but just as important are the employability skills we develop during our studies. In addition to job-related skills, individuals now need skills such as communication, problem solving, teamwork and personal attributes such as adaptability, resilience, enthusiasm, and openness to new ideas.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Class
Credits: 15
This unit is an introduction to computing and you will develop theoretical knowledge and practical skills in computer systems. Theoretical knowledge including a broad range of essential topics such as software, hardware, digital security, privacy, ethics, communication networks, Internet and the management of information and data. During this course you will develop practical skills in MS Word, MS Excel and MS Power Point applications and some basic hands-on skills in program design using Pseudocode.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Class
Credits: 15
An additional elective unit will be taken to complete stage 1 of Diploma. This unit may vary each study period. For more information contact the health science program coordinator.
Stage 2 of this course consists of 8 units of study and can be completed over 2 semesters.
Semester 1 units
This unit provides a comprehensive introduction to foundational concepts in human anatomy and physiology. The unit investigates core concepts in the cellular, chemical and biochemical structure and functions of the body. It then examines the developmental, anatomical and physiological features of the nervous and musculoskeletal systems.
Students evaluate and submit a written response to a case scenario involving a range of anatomical and physiological deviations from normal. Students will be assessed on their ability to analyse relationships in order to solve problems, communicate ideas through written discussion, apply appropriate scientific terminology, and demonstrate academic integrity.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Laboratory
Credits: 15
PSY1101D – Introduction to Psychology
This unit introduces psychology and the role of the scientific method. It equips students with a basic understanding of psychology by examining the biological basis of behaviour as well as psychological health and disorders.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Class
Credits: 15
This units deals with the methods and skills or organising, summarising and presenting numerical data. The concepts of estimation and hypothesis testing are studied, with the emphasis on analysing real data. Students will learn to use statistical software packages and be expected to work through the tutorial worksheets.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Laboratory
Credits: 15
This unit provides coverage of human growth and development throughout the lifespan as it relates to movement of the body. This unit focuses on the physical, cognitive, motor and affective characteristics of the individual from the prenatal period through to late adulthood as they relate to exercise and sport.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 2hr Lecture, Weekly 2hr Laboratory, 3x1.5hr Seminar
Credits: 15
Semester 2 units
This unit examines the anatomy and physiology of the major organ systems within the body. The systems will be investigated both with respect to their individual structure and function, as well as their roles as part of an integrated whole. Students undertake basic research and submit a written report on a clinical case scenario that requires anatomical and physiological knowledge. Students will be assessed on their ability to analyse relationships in order to solve problems, communicate ideas through written discussion, use scientific terminology correctly and demonstrate academic integrity.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Laboratory
Credits: 15
This unit explores cross-cultural understanding through development of lifelong learning principles informed by professional and ethical considerations within health systems. Students will build culturally reflexive awareness by practising critical reflection of health practitioner knowledge, skills, attitudes, behaviours and power differentials to establish culturally safe environments for all concerned. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health will be the primary focus of the unit, however, cultural safety and cultural capability will be applied in several additional contexts including the significance of: individualism and collectivism, gender and sexuality, spirituality and religion, and attitudes toward mortality.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Class
Credits: 15
This unit aims to develop students as critical consumers of published research. Students will gain knowledge of the main steps in the research process and of the range of research strategies and methods utilised by contemporary researchers. This unit prepares students to utilise research as evidence in their professional practices.
Pre-Requisite Units: MAT1114D
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 3hr Laboratory
Credits: 15
This unit focuses on two aspects of exercise prescription - the basic principles of exercise programming and the competencies required in fitness appraisal. Students will address these in a lecture and laboratory series.
Pre-Requisite Units: None
Tuition Pattern: Weekly 2hr Lecture, Weekly 2hr Laboratory
Credits: 15
*This unit is service taught on the ECU Joondalup campus.
^Mid-year starters will take this unit in the semester 2
+Mid-year starters will take this unit in the semester 1