Dear
We hope you enjoy the first edition of GradNet e-news bulletin for 2009, which incorporates both local and international news. Welcome to 2008 University of Melbourne graduates, who are now part of our rapidly expanding alumni community. We look forward to keeping you all up to date with the latest University and alumni news each month.
Best wishes for 2009,
The Alumni Relations Team
News
Vets call for help to monitor wildlife health
Study shows hoarding rainwater could “dramatically” expand range of dengue-fever mosquito
A bunsen-burning ambition: Strong surge in students seeking science in 2009
Alumni Preferences Survey - Competition winners announced!
VCA alumnus shapes film career out of clay
Alumni honoured on Australia Day
Events
Celebrating Charles Darwin's 200th birthday
Help the Baillieu mark 50 years
New 'Director's Tours of the Potter' series for alumni
Join an intimate Conversation at Masani
Remembering Mildura over lunch
More local and international events for alumni – A complete list of networking, arts and entertainment events and reunions events.
Lifelong Learning
Upcoming Public Lectures - This month's free lectures explore climate change, anorexia, human rights in Gaza,the economic benefits of research and more.
Ready, Set, Job! Free workshop for graduates of 2008
Considering graduate law? Upcoming Melbourne JD information sessions
Get involved
Choral Society sings out for new members
Call for Science alumni to join committee
Employment
Job of the Month - Marchment Hill Consulting seeks three Management Consultants and Analysts
Careers at the University of Melbourne
Special Offers
Escape the heat with a night at the theatre – Win tickets to MTC’s production of Poor Boy
Book of the Month - After the Celebration - Australian Fiction 1989 to 2007
NEWS
Vets call for help to monitor wildlife health
VET SCIENCE researchers have called for alumni to report death and disease among Victoria’s native wildlife. The Faculty of Veterinary Science is leading a collaborative project monitoring wildlife health to learn more about wildlife diseases and develop strategies for tackling them. Alumna Dr Pam Whiteley (BVet (1975)), who helped set up the Australian Wildlife Health Network in 2002 before joining the Wildlife Health Surveillance Victoria project, said the team wanted as many people as possible to notify them of sick or dead wildlife. “Anyone that sees wildlife can get involved, from people who live in the country with a flock of Crimson Rosellas on their land to people who see kangaroos moving in the wild,” she said. More>>
A bunsen-burning ambition: Strong surge in students seeking science in 2009
THE University of Melbourne has defied a national decline in university students undertaking science, with more than half of its 2009 offers for students entering science-based courses. A strong demand for science-based subjects at the University in 2009 has seen a 28 percent surge in New Generation Bachelor of Science offers and a 50 percent increase in New Generation Bachelor of Biomedicine offers since last year. Almost 80 percent of the 5768 offers made across 22 courses were for New Generation degrees introduced as part of the Melbourne Model, including Arts, Biomedicine, Commerce, Environments, Music and Science. Melbourne’s New Generation Bachelor of Arts remained the most popular course in Victoria, with more than 1518 offers made in 2009. More than 3034 of the offers made were for science-based courses, including Agriculture, Biomedicine, Dental Science, Engineering, Environments, Oral Health, Physiotherapy, Science, Veterinary Science, and Environmental Horticulture. The 2009 first-round offers of university places were released by the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) on Monday 19 January. The ENTER for each Melbourne course and the number of offers that have been made is can be viewed here.
Study shows hoarding rainwater could “dramatically” expand range of dengue-fever mosquito
A STUDY led by a University of Melbourne ecologist has shown hoarding rainwater could “dramatically” expand the range of dengue fever carrying mosquito Aedes aegypti. Dr Micheal Kearney, from the Department of Zoology, and colleagues made the discovery when they developed a new model to predict the impact of climate change on the mosquito.They found that climate change and evolutionary change could act together to accelerate and expand the mosquito’s range. But human behaviour – in the form of storing water to cope with climate change – is likely to have an even greater impact. More>>
Alumni Preferences Survey - Competition winners announced!
THREE lucky alumni will be resting easy with the news they have each won a $500 hotel accommodation voucher. Dr Clifford Barker (MB BS (1963)), Mr James Hart (BSc (1974)) BFine Art (2005)), Mr Shane Gong (BCom (Hons) (1999)) are the latest winners of the 2008 Alumni Preferences Survey competition. The survey results have already led to the launch of a new range of alumni benefits. Stay tuned for the release of more benefits and services in 2009, as the survey results continue to unfold. Click here for a detailed look at the results so far.
VCA alumnus shapes film career out of clay
A CLAY animation movie created by a VCA alumnus has become the first Australian film to open America’s most prestigious film festival. Animator Adam Elliot’s (GDip Film and TV (1997)) debut feature film Mary and Max is expected to be snapped up by American agents, after premiering at the international Sundance Film Festival on January 15. Featuring a star studded cast, including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Toni Collette, alumnus Barry Humphries (LLD (2003)) and Eric Bana, the $8.4 million film is loosely based on Mr Elliot’s friendship with his long term pen pal, a New Yorker with Asperger’s. More>>
Alumni honoured on Australia Day
THIRTY-EIGHT University of Melbourne alumni and staff were awarded Australia Day Honours this year. Click here to view a full list of recipients and details of their awards.
EVENTS
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Celebrating Charles Darwin's 200th birthday
THE University of Melbourne is a major sponsor of an evolution-themed festival marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin. Evolution: The Festival will celebrate the famous thinker's birthday and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his revolutionary theory of evolution. The festival will run throughout 2009, offering a rich smorgasbord of lectures, forums, films and exhibitions that explore themes with an evolutionary flavour including human health, global climate change, biodiversity, human history, the interface between science and religion, dinosaurs, the global financial crisis and more. One of its many highlights will be the Charles Darwin Birthday Dinner on 12 February, which will be attended by his great great grandson, Chris Darwin. More>>
Help the Baillieu Library mark 50 years
IT may look like a building filled with books, but for many it’s also a place filled with memories. As the Baillieu Library celebrates its 50th Birthday in 2009, University staff members are developing a project to commemorate this special event. They are calling for alumni to share their memories of the Baillieu with the University community. If you would like to contribute or find out more about this project, please contact Mary Stone on +61 3 8344 3766 or via email . Your recollections will be included on the library’s website.
Special exhibition
THE Baillieu Library will kick off its 50th birthday celebrations with an exhibition of treasures from its past. The Baillieu as it Ever Was – A 50th Anniversary Celebration will bring together photographs, newspaper articles, prints, paintings, books and film drawn from various University of Melbourne and private collections. The exhibition, which runs from 9 March to 11 May, will mark the beginning of a series of events throughout 2009 to celebrate the Baillieu Library’s 50th anniversary. More>>
Tee up a team for Golf Day
REGISTRATIONS for the University’s annual Golf Day are now in full swing, with tee slots filling up fast. The Vice-Chancellor’s Cup will this year be held on Friday 13 March at Woodlands Golf Club, one of Melbourne’s finest sand-belt courses for a Team Ambrose event. Followed by a gourmet barbecue and presentation ceremony, the event aims to give alumni, staff, students and University stakeholders the chance to socialise and network in a fun and relaxed environment. More>>
Join an intimate Conversation at Masani
VICTORIA’S 2009 Australian of the Year; the author who won the 2008 Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Fiction; and the sole Indigenous female barrister currently practising at the Victorian Bar are among the many fascinating guests who will speak at this year’s Conversation at Masani series. Each month, from March to December, a renowned alumnus will join other alumni in an intimate, challenging and thought-provoking conversation about their field of interest. Dr Berhan Ahmed (PhD 2001), a scientist who won Victoria’s 2009 Australian of the Year award for his work to raise the standard of living in Melbourne’s African communities, will be guest speaker at the first Conversation for 2009. Bookings for each Conversation will open four weeks prior to the event. Click here to find out about booking for the March event.
New series of 'Director's Tours of the Potter' for alumni
SIX special alumni tours of the Ian Potter Museum of Art will be held in 2009, following on from great success in 2008. The first tour will explore Louis Kahan’s remarkable portraits of famous Australian writers. This is part of a series of special tours of the Ian Potter Museum of Art that will guided by Director and alumnus Dr Chris McAuliffe (BA(Hons) 1983 MA (1987)), one of the gallery's curators or a guest curator. These tours were organised to give alumni expert insight into six of the gallery’s major exhibitions, and the chance to later network over cheese and wine. The first tour will take place on 26 February, but places are limited and alumni are encouraged to reserve their place early to avoid disappointment. More>>
Remembering Mildura over lunch
MILDURA alumni are set to reunite over lunch to celebrate the 62nd anniversary of their former University campus. The luncheon will be held at the University’s Parkville campus on Saturday 28 March and will include a presentation from Professor Emeritus David Penington (LLD (1995)), AC, Chairman of biotechnology research cluster Bio21 Australia Ltd and will be hosted by Professor Susan Elliott (MBBS (1982) MD (1993)), Pro Vice-Chancellor (Teaching, Learning & Equity). The University’s Mildura campus ran from 1947 to 1949, and was attended by more than 1300 students. It was opened in response to a strong demand for University entry at the end of World War II, and was the first completely residential University in Australia. More>>
More local and international events for alumni
A HUGE range of activities are on offer for alumni and friends in 2009. The Events for Alumni page this month includes an Asialink discussion with renowned philosopher and ethicist Professor Peter Singer (BA(Hons)(1968), MA (1969)), a classical music event, events for the University Ski Club and India-based alumni and much more. Click here to view the full list of upcoming events.
LIFELONG LEARNING
Upcoming public lectures
WANT to hear another reason to hug a tree? Or would you like to know more about the influential works of French radical intellectual Pierre Bourdieu? This month's public lectures listing includes events spanning a diverse range of topics, such as climate change, anorexia, human rights in Gaza,the economic benefits of research and more.
Please click here to view the full list of public lectures
Left: Photo by Andreas Pollock / Getty Images. Image source: About.com:Holistic Healing website.
Ready, Set, Job! Free workshop for graduates of 2008
GRADUATES... finished your course and still looking for graduate employment? Take the next step and improve your odds. This is an intensive half day workshop on 12 February to give you practical skills for finding vacancies, applying for jobs successfully and being effective at interviews. Facilitated by Careers & Employment staff, you will be working in groups so that you can learn through practice. Attendance is free for this program but you’ll need to register to secure your place and bring your student ID on the day. Book via Careers Online. More>>
Considering graduate law? Upcoming Melbourne JD information sessions
WHETHER studying law has been a long term goal or you are just curious to find out more about what a graduate law degree would mean for you, come along to Melbourne Law School’s first Melbourne JD information session for 2009 on 18 March. The Melbourne JD is now the only degree offered by Melbourne Law School leading to admission to practice, and has established an excellent reputation amongst the legal profession. Its highly qualified graduates are sought after both within Australia and internationally. More>>
GET INVOLVED
Choral Society sings out for new members
VICTORIA’S oldest varsity choir is singing out for new members. In celebration of its 70th birthday, Melbourne University Choral Society (MUCS) is inviting University and MUCS alumni to join (or rejoin) the choir and partake in a year of birthday festivities, including a formal dinner, special concerts and an overseas tour. MUCS Choral Director Andrew Wailes said the choir regularly staged highly successful concerts, both on its own and in collaboration with esteemed Australian and international musical organisations. More>>
Call for Science alumni to join committee
THE Committee of Convocation is calling for two Science graduates to represent fellow alumni on the committee in 2009. The committee, which represents all graduates of the University, currently has two casual vacancies for representatives of Science. The vacancies have a term of office to 31 December 2009. Science graduates interested in joining the committee and finding out more about it should contact Steve Halliwell for a nomination form. Nominations close on Friday 6 March 2009.
EMPLOYMENT
Job of the Month: Marchment Hill Consulting seeks Management Consultants and Analysts
Marchment Hill Consulting seeks three enthusiastic and motivated Management Consultants & Analysts to join their team. Applicants should have highly developed analytical skills and 3-5 years experience in the professional services sector, or a proven background and responsibilities in senior leadership positions from the infrastructures sector. Some experience in the utilities industry will be an advantage. A competitive remuneration commensurate with the experience and capabilities of the successful applicants will be offered. To find out more about this position (Vacancy ID #46741) current students and recent graduates should log onto Careers Online with your student number and family name.
Careers@Melbourne
Positions available at the University of Melbourne.