Studying science, engineering, technology and maths (STEM) at QUT opens a world of opportunities to achieve your full potential and forge a rewarding career.
Why study STEM at QUT?
Discovering how to improve lives by solving a range of real-world problems will be crucial in the
future. Many of the jobs of today were unheard of a decade ago: app developers, big data
analysts and sustainability engineers.
STEM careers provide the greatest opportunities to
succeed in the future.
No university is better placed to help you launch your STEM career
than Queensland’s only university of technology.
Why study STEM at QUT?
The fundamental underpinning of the skills you need for jobs of the future is STEM.
But did you know that there’s a secret formula to getting that great-paying, in-demand and stellar career that you’ll love? We call it STEM+X - where X is your passion, another field or a world-changing goal.
To help get you started on finding your perfect STEM+X combo, we’ve created a 60-page STEM+X guide in partnership with Careers with STEM.
Think about the future. What issues do we need to address, as a society, to ensure longevity? Climate change. Water scarcity. Food shortages. Species extinction. Affordable housing. With a predicted 75 per cent of future occupations needing STEM literacy, it means that a skilled STEM workforce is central to addressing these complex issues now and into the future.
Science and Advanced Science
Understand and tackle the greatest challenges facing our world and its future.
Lauren Blackwell, Bachelor of Engineering (Honours)/Bachelor of Science student
Double your career opportunities
A double degree can help you develop a portfolio of skills and capabilities so you will be flexible, prepared for change and able to maximise your career opportunities. Create your own specialist career niche by combining your STEM degree with a complementary study area that interests you.
The Careers with STEM Job Kits are free 8-page e-mags you can download, offering a complete introduction to individual STEM careers.
Discover what a job in STEM is all about, meet real people working in the field, and find out what you can do right now to set your career on the right path.
Tune in to hear from a great line-up of guest alumni from around the world, sharing their stories about the paths they’ve taken to get where they are in their STEM careers. Hosted by QUT STEM graduate, Mackenzi Oliver, these episodes will help you find your inspiration for a STEM career.
QUT alumnus Dr Abigail Allwood is at the cutting-edge of space exploration
Women in STEM
With only one in four STEM workers being women, we recognise the importance of supporting and celebrating women pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and maths.
We're tackling this gender divide through a number of programs and initiatives, including #STEMtheTide.
Libby Hogarth is a passionate urban planner with a focus on inclusive and meaningful spaces. Libby uncovers the varied range of projects which use the expertise of urban planners to become the best possible developments for all users.
In celebration of International Women’s Day, QUT's Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Margaret Sheil sat down for an interview with Minister Karen Andrews, Australia’s Minister for Industry, Science and Technology.
Donald Piggott-McKellar is an Associate Director at Forge Advisory, and one of the minds behind the evolving infrastructure of Brisbane for over 10 years.
Dr Naomi Paxton explains what biofabrication is, the importance of being in a supportive and diverse team and how she made the leap from physics to biomanufacturing.
You’ve got ideas that can help shape the world? Our courses will give you the tools, equipment and technology to bring your concepts to life.
We're Queensland’s only university of technology - future-focused and always exploring emerging disciplines and equipment. We'll help you push the boundaries of scientific development using cutting-edge facilities housed in our specialist precincts, labs and workspaces.
Our researchers work in key STEM areas, aiming to solve some of the major challenges facing society and the planet, including:
sustainable development and climate change
energy and food security
an ageing population and chronic disease
information dissemination and security.
Many of these leading researchers will be your lecturers. Their experience, passion and knowledge will be shared with you as part of your studies. They will inspire you to reach your potential and exceed your goals.
Naomi Paxton
"Combining polymer science and engineering innovations in biofabrication research has the potential to revolutionise how we treat tissue loss and improve the quality of care for patients."
Mardi McNeil
QUT PhD student Mardi McNeil was part of a team carrying out the first ever assessment of how a particular type of green macroalgae, Halimeda, affects the marine ecosystem in the Great Barrier Reef.
Evangeline Corcoran
"A highlight of my PhD studies so far is publishing my first lead author paper and receiving international honours as a ‘Woman to Watch’ in the drone industry for my role in researching the use of drones, thermal imaging and machine learning to monitor threatened wildlife."
Scholarships
We recognise the achievements and potential of our students, and encourage you to apply for our scholarships, bursaries and development programs. Scholarships offer both financial support and a wealth of invaluable experience. They can help shape and support your time at university. All you need to do is apply.
Vanessa and Riva are both recipients of the prestigious Westpac Young Technologists Scholarship. Only five universities across Australia offer this $15,000 scholarship. The scholarship includes a personalised enrichment program, giving you access to paid internships, inspiring mentors and an international leadership development experience, and membership of the Westpac 100 Scholars Network.
Brody Foy, a QUT mathematics graduate and past Dean’s Scholar and Rhodes Scholar, is using his PhD to apply his maths skills to computational biology. Specifically, lung function testing. Brody has also co-founded a non-profit consultancy that uses data analytics and machine learning to solve problems in healthcare, energy and social services.
Saskia Mathers
Saskia Mathers, a current Deans Scholar and computer software systems engineering student, is a Women in Engineering scholarship recipient and past president of Women in Technology (WiT) at QUT. Saskia has used her experiences in the program to build networks with sponsors and combine her leadership experiences and passion for STEM.
Are you an international student?
Discover more about studying with us as an international student. Find out how to apply, information about scholarships and pathway programs, and what student life is like at QUT.
A common misconception about university is that you have to do it ‘on your own’. You’ll be relieved to know that QUT offers many opportunities to get involved, make new friends, and receive proactive and timely support services to help you succeed.
Join a range of student-led projects and clubs: QUT Aerospace, QUT Construct, Girls in Engineering Making Statements, QUT Maths Society, QUT Motorsport, QUT Planning Student Association, Women in Science, and QUT Women in Technology are just some.
Why wait until you graduate to create your business, social enterprise or side hustle? QUT Entrepreneurship is the perfect place to collaborate, network and share ideas with fellow budding entrepreneurs and like-minded students from across the university.
The Oodgeroo Unit is QUT's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student success unit, providing admission pathways, dedicated study spaces, tutors, cultural support and scholarships for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students
News
18th February 2021
New QUT graduates Jack and Bhosten Savage spent last year studying remotely from two different cities, but yesterday the father and son reunited in Brisbane for their second graduation ceremony this summer.
Both were able to attend “in-person” ceremonies at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, thanks to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions and QUT spacing out smaller graduation ceremonies over summer.
Jack and Bhosten are among QUT’s 136 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander graduates for 2020.
Jack is a descendant of Poruma, Mauar and Erub Islands in the Torres Strait and Bhosten also has ancestry from the Bidjara and Dunghutti nation from his mother’s family.
In addition to their formal graduation ceremonies, they also celebrated their achievements in December at QUT’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Pre-graduation Ceremony.
Jack and Bhosten's new qualifications will further strengthen their already impressive careers.
Bhosten is a graduate engineer with CPB Contractors on Brisbane’s Cross River Rail project and Jack is a Detective Senior Sergeant with the Queensland Police Service (QPS) and Officer in Charge of Mackay’s Criminal Investigation Branch.
Bhosten at the Cross River Rail tunnel.
The pair weren’t the only family members studying at QUT last year … Bhosten’s younger brother has a year left of his behavioural science degree and his older brother is studying business.
Their mum Suzanne also has a QUT connection – she works at the Oodgeroo Unit, which is the university’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student support centre.
Bhosten at his graduation with his dad Jack and mum Suzanne.
“Dad has a Bachelor of Policing in Criminal Investigation from Charles Sturt University, so he was the first one to get a degree,” Bhosten said.
“A lot of Indigenous kids are the first in family to go through high school and the first to go to uni, but we’ve had a great role model in dad and our parents have always encouraged us to study and go to uni.”
That said, Bhosten wanted to skip uni at first and do an apprenticeship after high school.
“I didn’t do an OP at school because I wanted to be a carpenter,” he said.
“Then I thought I better get serious and go to uni. I did a Diploma of Business through TAFE while I was in Year 12 so I used that to apply.”
Bhosten originally enrolled in a property economics degree at QUT but then switched to a Bachelor of Urban Development (Honours) with a construction management major.
It’s a four-year degree though, which presented a challenge given he’d set himself a goal of only being at uni for four years and had already studied property economics for a year.
“So I did five subjects instead of four each semester and finished my course in three years,” he said.
Amazingly, he also worked full-time while completing that increased study load.
And now he’s decided he’s not ready to give up the books after all. He has enrolled in a law degree, with the ultimate aim of being a construction lawyer.
“I think construction and infrastructure is a pretty interesting and complex field, particularly with the high levels of risk and costs involved on large infrastructure projects,” he said.
“I’m pretty logical and structured and I think that suits construction and law.”
Bhosten is based at the Woolloongabba tunnel site.
He joined the construction company in 2017 and has worked on projects including Brisbane Airport’s new parallel runway and the Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Motorway upgrade.
He’s currently working on the Cross River Rail project as a graduate engineer with the Woolloongabba tunnel team.
For his dad Jack, the decision to pursue postgraduate qualifications in public sector management at QUT came more than a decade after his first degree.
“I wanted to study something that would benefit me in my workplace and enhance my skillset – and QUT has a very good relationship with the QPS,” Jack said.
“The course really focused on leadership, supervision and management skills, the involvement of community, and how the public are valued in terms of decision making. The QPS is very community-woven so it was all very relevant.”
Jack has been a CIB detective for 27 years and has worked at Thursday Island, Cairns, Brisbane and now Mackay, where he is Officer in Charge of Mackay CIB.
He said combining studying with the long hours of police work had been a balancing act.
“It’s a challenge, but it’s a case of ‘how much do you want it?’ – you just do it,” he said.
“I’m proud that my sons have also made that commitment. You can only bring your kids so far but they’ve all gone on to be successful young men.
“We’ve joked about who’s going to graduate first while we’ve all been studying. But it’s not about who gets there first, it’s about getting it done.”
Jack and Bhosten at QUT’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Pre-graduation Ceremony.
QUT currently has the more than 1000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people interested in studying at QUT – including mid-year enrolment – can contact the Oodgeroo Unit for advice.
QUT Media contacts: Mechelle McMahon, media@qut.edu.au Rose Trapnell (after hours), media@qut.edu.au or 0407 585 901
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