Health Sciences First Year

Papers

Seven required papers make up the HSFY course.

Students may take an optional eighth paper selected from an approved list. More information is available on the Health Sciences First Year website:

Optional eighth paper – Health Sciences First Year

Note: Health Sciences First Year (HSFY) is treated like a major subject for enrolment purposes, however you cannot complete a three-year Bachelor of Science majoring in HSFY. Instead, after completing your first year, you must transfer to a different major subject for second year and beyond. For example, after HSFY, you might enter second-year Anatomy or Biochemistry or Medicine.

Background and entry requirements

Health Sciences First Year must be your first year of university study. Undertaking any other tertiary study before enrolling in HSFY could jeopardise your enrolment in the HSFY programme, so you are strongly advised to contact AskOtago if you are considering this.

Contact AskOtago

All HSFY students will sit a compulsory English Diagnostic in week 1 of semester 1. If you do not meet the threshold grade, you will have a second opportunity to sit the test, and if the threshold grade is not reached again, you will be required to pass  ENGL 128 in semester 2. More information about the English Diagnostic is on the English and Linguistics Programme website:

Health Sciences First Year English Diagnostic

If you have not studied Chemistry, Physics or Calculus at NCEA Level 3 (or equivalent) you may find CHEM 191 and PHSI 191 challenging. The Health Sciences First Year website has information about options that may help you succeed in HSFY:

Preparing to study Health Sciences First Year

Admission to Health Sciences professional programmes

Applications for professional programmes must be submitted in the application period of 1 July to 14 August in the year preceding entry to the programme. Selection of eligible applicants is determined by the relevant Admissions Committee.

Admission to the Health Sciences professional programmes is governed by the regulations stipulated in the University Calendar and the professional programme Guidelines for Admission pages. You should read these regulations to ensure you are familiar with the admission requirements.

Guidelines for Admission to Health Sciences professional programmes

For Medicine, the University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) must be completed in the year of application as part of the selection process.

University Clinical Aptitude Test for Australia and New Zealand (UCAT ANZ)

Information for international students

International students interested in progressing into professional health sciences programmes should check the guidelines for admission.

Guidelines for Admission to Health Sciences professional programmes

Information on places for international students in Health Sciences professional programmes is available on the Health Sciences website:

Undergraduate Health Science: Information for international students

Contact

The general contact point for Health Sciences admissions is:

AskOtago
Tel 0800 80 80 98
Email health-sciences@otago.ac.nz

Physical address:
AskOtago Central Hub
Information Services Building, University of Otago Dunedin campus
65 Albany Street
North Dunedin
Dunedin 9016

Website

For more information, visit the Health Sciences First Year website:

Health Sciences First Year