Why study Anatomy?

Anatomy is a diverse, vibrant, and visual subject. It explores the relationship between the structure of the body and the functions it performs, and can be studied from microscopic to macroscopic levels.

Some of the things you will learn include:

• How the body develops from just a single cell to an individual with millions of cells organised into many different tissues and organ systems.
• How the desire to move is transmitted from the brain to the muscles.
• How you can tell the age a person was when they died just by looking at their bones.
• What changes occur when we develop from child to adult.
• How our brains control what we think how we feel, and what we do.
• How the reproductive system functions.
• Using skeletal remains to track movement, culture, and health of ancient people.

Studying papers in Anatomy will expose you to world-leading research in the anatomical sciences. You will learn techniques such as immunohistochemistry, cell culture, and gene sequencing, and have access to state-of-the-art equipment such as electron and confocal microscopes, and next-generation sequencing technology.

Career opportunities

A University of Otago graduate in Anatomy has the world at their feet. Opportunities available to them are varied and numerous, ranging from health professions such as Medicine, Dentistry, and Physiotherapy, to research and teaching at university or secondary and primary school, to technical work in medical or agricultural laboratories, to sales, marketing, and research positions with pharmaceutical, medical, or agribusiness companies, or national bodies such as the Cancer Society of New Zealand.

Graduates also work as funeral directors, winemakers, policymakers,  and beyond – there is definitely something for everyone with a degree in Anatomy!

Anatomy students gain a high level of knowledge and competencies across a broad range of topics, with a range of skills that can be applied to any chosen career. These skills range from learning to speak and work in group environments, honing and extending thinking and communication skills, through to having an awareness and understanding of ethics and developing the ability to undertake self-directed learning. Ant then of course, there are the technical and applied skills that are used every day in practical labs.

Some graduates use their degree as a stepping stone to further study in a health professional course, while others have gone on to postgraduate study in forensic science, clinical embryology, and of course the various research fields – biological anthropology, clinical anatomy, neuroscience, and reproductive and developmental biology – offered in the Department of Anatomy here at the University of Otago.