More precisely, the Biomedical Engineering program run by Senior Professor Gursel Alici.

“Biomedical engineering is a huge discipline. When we started the course we decided to focus on the technology side of biomedical engineering,” Prof Alici said.

“It applies engineering principles, problem solving skills and methodologies to the research and development of novel medical and diagnostic devices, tools, systems and technology that will deliver substantial healthcare benefit and improve the quality of life for individuals.

“Being able to do something medically to help our ageing population is one of the reasons why we offer this program, but it is not the only reason.”

The School of Mechanical, Materials, Mechatronic & Biomedical Engineering head added focusing on medical devices catered to the staff’s expertise.

“But more importantly we found out that 55 per cent of the medical devices’ companies in Australia were registered in NSW.,” Prof Alici said.

“So the demand for jobs was there. In fact, Biomedical Engineering is one of the engineering degrees where the job market is growing above average growth in engineering disciplines.”

Read more: UOW expert, union back tough new standards for graduate teachers

UOW, which took its first intake of students in 2017, is one of only five NSW universities offering the Biomedical Engineering degree.

“Newcastle just came on board this year,” Prof Alici said.

“The course is based on our strengths, the job market and the fact we are not duplicating the program.

“It is an exciting program which has attracted a lot of female students. About 49 per cent of our first intake of students are female. That’s well above average. It is usually 10 to 15 percent of female engineering students.”