I wanted to do Pharmacy and UniSA is the only university in SA that offers this course and that too without maths as I did PCB in year 12. Also, Adelaide is a very good city as it is small and comfortable with everything in a radius of 10km. Therefore, it is very easy and fast to get to the universities from any part of Adelaide and thus students can invest more time on studies rather than on transport.
Course Curriculum
The studies are very practical and we have practical classes for almost all subjects, the degree is very systematic and structured. Being a medical degree it is complex and requires hardwork and time to get good grades.
Exams
IELTS score -6.5 with no band less than 6.5, Year 12 score -70% and above, any Two subjects out of chemistry, biology, maths and physics, PTE- 58 with no communicative score less than 58
Placement
The placements start in the second year and are a very good way to have practical experience of your job. They are unpaid which is a setback but the experience is really exciting and knowledgeable.
Events
I came during the COVID-19 situation so haven't been able to see the different activities on-campus as they all got cancelled. But still the uni has been able to conduct many online events to keep the students engaged. UniSA has a student organisation called USASA who takes care of all the activities and events for the students and also helps students if they face any difficulty. The uni also has many clubs which the students can join and have fun and learn new skills.
Scholarship
Yes I got the UniSA Vice Chancellor scholarship which is 50% of the tuition fees per semester for the course of my degree. It is just for the new students and is given to those who score 95% or above in year 12. It is not awarded automatically and has to be applied by the student separately. It is given per semester and the student has to maintain a GPA of 5 or above every semester to continue having this scholarship in the next semester. If at any point the student is not able to score GPA 5 , the scholarship is not applied to the fees for the next semester but if the student is again able to achieve a GPA of 5 in the next semester, the scholarship is again renewed.
Faculty
Our head of the course is Dr. Kirsten Staff who is a very capable and hardworking professor. He guides us in every way possible. The other staff is also very friendly and have a very good grip over their subjects. The strength of a yearly batch of pharmacy students is about 125 with a good amount of international students in it.
Hostel
Many student accomodations are available in the city centre but they are quite costly but totally worth the money as they provide many facilities. If you don't want that you can rent a room in a share house or if you have friends u can rent a full house for yourselves and that is the cheapest option.
