Ep 9 - Biomedicine and Public Health

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What we’re talking about:

Today I’m chatting with Bronte, a former student of mine who has recently completed a Bachelor of Biomedicine and has started a Master of Public Health, both at the University of Melbourne. As well as giving us lots of great information about these two courses, Bronte shares how she takes risks and gives herself the opportunity to explore areas she’s interested in by looking at all the possible pathways so she can pivot when necessary.

Different opportunities in VCE

Bronte did 2 subjects that were a bit different in VCE - Extended Investigation and University Extension (Biomedicine). She gives us an insight into her experiences in these subjects and we discuss the links between them and what she’s doing now.

Looking Beyond Course Names to Find the Best Fit

Halfway through Year 12, Bronte had a change of heart and wondered if she should pursue Biomedical Engineering instead of Biomedicine, but instead of just filling her preference list with different Biomed and Engineering options, she looked into the courses and found one which would allow her to explore both options before choosing a major once she had a better idea of which path she really wanted to go down.

Being Self Aware When Considering Career Options

While Bronte was interested in anatomy and physiology, she chose to pursue public health rather than medicine because she was aware that working 1:1 with patients would have a negative effect on her mental health.

Exploring all the options so that you can take risks

There’s a theme all the way through Bronte’s story, where she talks about doing lots of research before making decisions about her next step so that if she explores an option and doesn’t want to pursue it, she already knows how she can pivot and follow a different pathway. By doing this, it takes the pressure off the decision and gives her the freedom to explore with confidence. She also tells her mum’s story and explains how much of a role model her mum has been for her.