Member for Riverina Michael McCormack is “extremely disappointed” at Charles Sturt University’s decision to dump pharmacy from its Wagga campus.
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CSU Wagga has been offering the course to regional students since 1997 and was the only pharmacy course based outside the metropolitan area at the time.
Executive Dean of the CSU Faculty of Science Professor Tim Wess said the university has decided to refocus the Bachelor of Pharmacy program on one site.
“Orange has been selected and Charles Sturt University will offer additional student places in pharmacy in Orange from 2016,” Prof Wess said.
Mr McCormack said he understood the rationale of the decision, but said it was a big loss for the Riverina community.
“This is a blow for not just local students but also the community which fought so very hard to establish the program in the late 1990s,” Mr McCormack said.
"I appreciate that CSU is now operating in a far more competitive environment even in pharmacy where it is no longer the only regional university offering that course.”
Brittany Santilla, the president of the pharmacy student body in Wagga – Pharmers’ Society – says the decision to axe pharmacy is a death sentence for the group.
“The club will have to close. It has a big presence both locally and nationally, being linked with the National Australian Pharmacy Students’ Association (NAPSA),” Ms Santilla said.
The club does a lot of fundraising for the Wagga community, which will soon be lost. It was awarded the CSU Rivcoll fundraising club of the year award last year and in 2012.
“Pharmacies around Wagga employ so many of the students from CSU – it’ll be a big loss for them,” Ms Santilla said.
Rivcoll Union president Brandon Harry said it was an “interesting development”.
“Rivcoll will be looking into this further,” Mr Harry said.
Professor Wess said current students on campus at CSU in Wagga would not be affected.
“The program will no longer be open to new enrolments on campus in Wagga, but current students will continue to be taught there until 2019,” he said.
"Pharmacy started in Wagga and we recognise the strong community support that allowed this to happen.
“We want to offer future students in the program the most consistent and high quality learning and teaching experience possible and we believe this is best done on one site at Orange.
“In the current uncertain and competitive higher education climate, CSU must ensure it is delivering viable and strong programs for our students and the regions we serve.”
Prof Wess said CSU pharmacy students were still in demand, with more than 90 per cent of students gaining employment in the industry.
“We have a firm record as innovators in the education and training of key health professionals, such as pharmacists, and this will continue into the future.”
A local community steering committee headed by Wagga pharmacist Peter Gissing lobbied successfully for the program to be run by CSU in the late 1990s.
Mr McCormack has spoken to CSU Vice-Chancellor Professor Andy Vann about the decision.
“I have received an assurance that CSU will retain a very comprehensive course profile at Wagga and in particular is building upon the role of the Wagga campus as an agricultural learning hub," Mr McCormack said.
“The Wagga campus has just picked up the Agricultural Business Management course from Orange to enhance its reputation as the centre of Agricultural tertiary excellence.
“It is vital that regional universities remain strong, progressive and sustainable into the future and I know that any decision taken by CSU to rationalise any course is not done lightly.”
Prof Wess said the peak of pharmacy student applications was in 2009 with 366, compared to 147 in 2014. Around 30 students began study in 2015.
“The landscape of a developing healthcare means that we have to be responsive to change all courses are under a process of annual review so that we are agile.”
“Courses change in popularity with time, but no other courses in the faculty are facing cuts.”
Mr Wess said there would be no redundancies associated with this change.