Exploring Research in Clinical Pathology (PATH40010)

This subject aims to facilitate students’ development of research skills and to foster their professional identity as researchers, in the broad context of clinical pathology research. It also provides the unique opportunity for students to work alongside members of the community with a lived experience of cancer. In diverse workshops with guest speakers, students will learn the value of patient engagement in research, how to plan and design for impactful research and how to communicate research to a range of audiences. With a strong emphasis on critical analysis skills, students will learn to evaluate and make valuable contributions to an exciting, contemporary field of research. To practice these skills, students apply what they learn in workshops to a mini-research project, conducted in collaboration with a small group of peers, a scientific tutor and a patient collaborator. Throughout this project, students explore the published literature, a range of research approaches, major advances and research gaps, and translational application in one area of clinical pathology research. Practising research skills in this collaborative environment provides opportunities for students to learn, develop and engage in feedback, in preparation for the closely aligned assessment tasks.