Research Projects - BSc (Hons)

What is a BSc (Hons)?

A BSc (Hons) is a year of study following a Bsc, BBiomedSci or equivalent degree. It consists of a combination of a research project and compulsory course work. The research component is carried out under supervision in one of the research groups in ACB. You will work nearly full time in the laboratory designing. executing and analysing experiments. Your research report is worth 75% of your final mark. The remaining 25% is course work, which includes a literature review, a small statistics course an assignment and statistics and critical review of a paper. The BSc (Hons) year starts in February and ends in November and is only available full time.

Overall, the Honours year adds value to your basic degree and immediately sets you apart from the bulk of students who have only completed a BSc or BBiomedSci. It is also a taste of what working as a scientist would be like as a career.

Entry requirements

You must have completed a suitable degree (BSc BBiomedSci or equivalent) and achieved a faculty honours score of 65 or equivalent. You must also have the agreement of a supervisor in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology (See "enrolling in a BSc (Hons)" below)

Enrolling in a BSc(Hons)

First look through the list of Honours projects and potential supervisors available on the ACB web site (Link to list of projects). Contact the supervisors of the projects you are attracted to by email, phone or visit them in their office, or at the departmental Honours information session in October each year. With the agreement of your chosen supervisor, fill in the Honours application form (PDF file, 109kb). Make sure you complete section 2.2 and indicate which supervisor you prefer. Hand the form into the Anatomy and Cell Biology Office. You will get a letter in late December or early January informing you of the outcome of your application.

Honours projects and supervisors

Projects available in the next Honours year are available here (PDF file, 717kb), or you can look at individual labs (below) for potential projects.

• Anderson Lab - Development of the Autonomic Nervous System
• Briggs Lab - Functional and Applied Anatomy
• de Iongh Lab - Ocular Development
• Fletcher Lab - Visual Neuroscience
• Furness Lab - Autonomic Neuroscience, Pain & Sensory Mechanisms
• Goodwin Lab - Sensorimotor Function of the Hand
• Greferath Lab - Vision Research
• Hime Lab - Drosophila Genetics Laboratory
• Ivanusic Lab - Neural Mechanisms of Bone Pain and Mechano-sensitivity
• Jennings Lab - Trigeminal pain
• Kitchener Lab - Developmental Neurobiology
• Murphy Lab - Behavioural Neuroscience
• Quinn Lab - Animal Models for Cancer
• Rees Lab - Fetal Neurobiology
• Taylor Lab - The Jack Brockhoff Reconstructive Plastic Surgery Research Unit
• Vincan Lab - Cancer Biology
• Whitington Lab - Axon Guidance

• Young Lab - Autonomic Development

Facilities for an Honours Student

Honours students will be attached to individual laboratories, but will also have access to all of the facilities of the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology. Each student will get a desk and locker in the Honours room, as well as use of the molecular biology laboratory, tissue culture facility, imaging and multi media lab, confocal and electron microscopes, human anatomy and histology laboratories as required. Students will also be fully-fledged members of the department, with 24 h access to the department and full involvement in all departmental activities, from seminars to parties.

Contact the Honours co-ordinator

For initial enquiries about doing your BSc (Hons) in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, contact the Honours Co-ordinator:
Assoc Prof Colin Anderson
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology
The University of Melbourne
Victoria, 3010
Australia
Phone: 61 (0)3 8344 5807
Fax: 61 (0)3 9347 5219
Email: c.anderson@unimelb.edu.au

Life after a BSc (Hons)

A number of choices are available to you at the end of Honours. If you have enjoyed it, you may wish to undertake a PhD (3-4 year project, no course work). This is the almost mandatory step to a career as a full time scientist. Other possibilities include postgraduate training in a vocational degree or you may end up working as a Research Assistant in one of the many research laboratories around Melbourne.