SERIOUS STUDIES: From left, Morgan Pendergast, from Emmanuel Anglican College Ballina, with Ben Schutte-Mallouf, from Duval High School Armidale, and other Ballina students James Rodgers and Josh King get some hands-on science experience at UNE.
YEAR 10 and 11 students got hands-on science experience at Armidale’s University of New England before the new school term even began.
UNE hosted students from across the state at the Science Experience event, a national summer program for students entering their senior schooling years.
Students came from a range of schools in Armidale and surrounding regions from Woolgoolga to Bathurst.
The program is conducted at more than 30 universities in Australia and is designed to help students engage in a range of science-based activities under the guidance of scientists who love their work.
One of the activities involved students engaging in imaginary scenarios, including identifying a series of chemicals dumped in a Sydney river which put residents at risk.
Other tasks included experiments from robotics to DNA extraction and chemistry, as well as demonstrations and talks.
A visit to Dangar Falls was also arranged for them in the evenings.
UNE school of environmental and rural science senior technical officer Richard Willis helped run the program.
He said it was a huge success last year, really encouraging students to take up science courses at university.
Mr Willis said it expanded students’ horizons about the number of careers that science could open up.
As part of the program, participants learnt about further studies in science, engineering and technology.