School leavers whose Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) was not as high as they had hoped have been told they don’t have to give up their university aspirations, with Charles Sturt University (CSU) continuing its Pathway Program in 2013. The program, a partnership between CSU and TAFE, runs for one year full-time and provides entry options for students who applied to CSU but were unsuccessful, or who need further preparation. Pathway coordinator Ms Sandra Fisher said the program offered multiple benefits. “Upon completion, students receive a Diploma of General Studies from Charles Sturt University and the Certificate IV in Further Education, or Tertiary Preparation Certificate from TAFE,” she said. “They are also guaranteed entry into a range of CSU degrees and may receive credit for some subjects.” The program is offered face-to-face at CSU in Bathurst, Wagga Wagga and Albury-Wodonga, and this year will be offered at CSU in Dubbo as a blended distance education option.

Twenty five general practitioner (GP) registrars commenced their training in regional NSW through Beyond Medical Education (BME), based at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst, on Monday 21 January. The registrars are fully qualified doctors who are undertaking specialist training to become GPs. BME’s Chief Operating Officer, Ms Megan Armstrong, said, “The GP registrars are undertaking the Australian General Practice Training program through Beyond Medical Education. They commenced their training in general practice yesterday under the supervision and support of the local medical practices and Beyond Medical Education, and they are committed to the area for at least two years. The start of term is always an exciting and busy time for Beyond Medical Education as all the registrars, medical educators and administration staff come together for the first workshop of the year”. The registrars are from diverse cultural backgrounds (Australia, China, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Burma), and, in NSW, will be living and working in Bathurst, Orange, Dubbo, Parkes, Forbes, Cowra, Lithgow, Mudgee, Oberon, Wellington, Wallerawang and Broken Hill.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will hold Wellness and Wellbeing Expos at its five main campuses, starting in Bathurst on Tuesday 5 and Wednesday 6 February, to promote happier, healthier, more satisfied and more productive employees who are also resilient in an ever-changing workplace. Mr David Tallentire, CSU manager of occupational health and safety, said, “Charles Sturt University recognises and values the importance of staff wellness and wellbeing, and aims to adopt a holistic approach to the treatment of workplace health and safety. The University appreciates that personal problems can adversely affect employees’ work performance, work satisfaction, health, and feelings of wellbeing. We’re running Wellness and Wellbeing Expos to provide information to staff on the many health and wellbeing services available to them at Charles Sturt University and in our local communities, and to participate in workshops.” The Wellness and Wellbeing Expos will be held at CSU in Bathurst on Tuesday 5 and Wednesday 6 February; at CSU in Orange on Thursday 7 February; at CSU in Dubbo on Friday 8 February; at CSU in Wagga Wagga on Monday 11 and Tuesday 12 February; and at CSU in Albury-Wodonga on Thursday 14 February.

The Vice-Chancellor and President of Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor Andrew Vann, was one of the first to attend the Wellness and Wellbeing Expo for staff which commenced at CSU in Bathurst today, Tuesday 5, and continues on Wednesday 6 February. The series of expos will be stage at the five main CSU campuses, and aims to promote happier, healthier, more satisfied and more productive employees who are also resilient in an ever-changing workplace. Mr David Tallentire, CSU manager of occupational health and safety, said, “Charles Sturt University is running Wellness and Wellbeing Expos to provide information to staff on the many health and wellbeing services available to them at the University and in our local communities, and to participate in workshops.” Among the sessions, CSU psychology lecturer Dr Stephanie Quinton from the School of Psychology discussed eating disorders, and staff from the School of Human Movement Studies offered hi-tech balance testing. Other services represented include Relationships Australia, Men’s Sheds Australia, financial planning, and a range of counselling, health, fitness and wellbeing interests.

The Charles Sturt University (CSU) Regional and Remote Learning Support Team will visit Homebush in Sydney as well as Broken Hill in far west NSW next week to assist distance education students in person. CSU manager of Regional and Remote Support, Mr James Brann, said “The University’s outreach program is free for current Charles Sturt University distance education students, and is designed to assist them to be more successful in their studies. We hold both group and one-to-one sessions with students to provide advice and guidance about online learning, effective reading skills, note taking, time management, and assignment writing.” Learning support advisers will be at Sydney Olympic Park at Homebush on Monday 18 February for individual sessions from 1.30pm to 3pm, and for a group session from 5.30pm to 7pm. To book a place at the Homebush session students are asked to please email Mr James Brann on jbrann@csu.edu.au. On Tuesday 19 February at the Western Insitute of TAFE in Broken Hill individual sessions are from 10.30am to 12pm, then again from 1.30pm to 3pm, with a group session from 5.30pm to 7pm. To book a place at a session in Broken Hill please email Ms Diane Middleton on dmiddleton@csu.edu.au or Ms Sharon Patterson on spatterson@csu.edu.au .

A national information technology service award will be presented to the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Division of Information Technology (DIT) in Bathurst on Thursday 14 February. CSU has been ranked number one in the tertiary education sector (Australia/New Zealand) for IT service quality for staff in 2012. The award will be presented to Mr Brian Roberson, director of Customer Service Management, and Ms Vicki Brown, manager of Customer Service Management in the DIT. Ms Bronwyn Fletcher, the executive director of Systems Thinking, the company working for the Council of Australian Universities Directors of Information Technology (CAUDIT) conducting these annual surveys, will make the presentation at 12 noon Thursday 14 February at The Rafters Bar (in building C4) at CSU in Bathurst.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst will host a training day on Tuesday 19 February for primary and secondary school teachers and pupils from schools across the NSW central west to help them prepare to compete in the regional 2013 RoboCup Junior Challenge to be staged at the University in mid-June. RoboCup Junior Challenge coordinator, Mr Allen Benter, a PhD student and researcher at the CSU Centre for Research in Complex Systems (CRiCS) in Bathurst, saidRoboCup Junior Australia is a project-oriented educational initiative that supports local, regional and international robotic events for primary and secondary students. “The focus of RoboCup Junior is the development of cooperative teamwork and technical skills in an environment of participation, fun and excitement. Teams choose to take up the challenge at their own skill and interest level. RoboCup Junior offers three distinct challenges - Dance, Rescue, and Soccer. The first event for the year is the workshop for teachers and pupils to assist them through the process of constructing and programming a robot using Lego to compete in one of three events at the competition in June. The winners of the regional competition will then advance to the state competition.”

Orientation Week begins on Monday 25 February for approximately 1 200 new students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst, a week before the start of the 2013 academic year. CSU student support officer, Ms Alex Leis said, “O Week is a busy and exciting time for students and staff at the University. A lot of preparation has gone into making the new students’ transition as smooth and enjoyable as possible. We are assisted by a raft of continuing students, five of whom work as O Week coordinators and about 40 others as O Week leaders”. The schedule of events for O Week includes a Commencement Ceremony at 10.30am Monday 25 at the CD Blake Auditorium (building E1, the gym), followed by a morning tea for parents and supporters hosted by the Head of Campus, Mr Col Sharp; a market day and welcome barbecue on the library lawn; tours of the campus, and information sessions. On Tuesday 26, Wednesday 27 and Thursday 28 there are compulsory School and course information sessions for students, with a special orientation for international students on Friday 22. A range of entertainment is scheduled for the evenings and at various times during the week.

A child and family health nursing textbook edited by Charles Sturt University (CSU) nursing academics will be launched at Bathurst Base Hospital on Wednesday 13 March. The text book, Child and Family Health Nursing in Australia and New Zealand, was edited by Ms Christine Haley and sub-edited by Ms Amanda Stott, both lecturers at CSU's School of Nursing, Midwifery and Indigenous Health in Bathurst. There were about 25 contributors, including seven clinicians from Bathurst Base Hospital, and others from local health services and academics from Monash University, who all edited and revised chapters of the textbook. Ms Haley says, "Until now we have only had US textbooks. Our textbook applies a nursing and midwifery focus in its evidence-based approach to child growth and development. It establishes the core skills necessary to recognise illness in children before moving onto clinical areas such as management of childhood diseases. The region-specific references to statistics, drug names, legislation, culture, community and public health systems are all pertinent to Australia and New Zealand.”