Unit Synopsis
Identification of the characteristic histopathological and cytopathological features of human organ systems and the hallmarks of pathological dysregulation of tissue organisation is fundamental to the work of the medical laboratory scientist. In this unit you will study normal and abnormal histopathological features of a range of tissues along with normal and abnormal cytopathological features of a range of cells. The relationship between cellular injury, immune response, tumour formation, infection and pathological dysregulation of tissue organisation will be explored in relation to clinical cases you may encounter. You will be provided with the knowledge and skill to perform microscopic examination of tissues and cells. Case studies will include new developments in immunohistochemistry and fluorescence imaging. Attendance at residential school practical activities in Rockhampton is a requirement of this unit.
Details
| Level | Undergraduate |
|---|---|
| Unit Level | 3 |
| Credit Points | 6 |
| Student Contribution Band | SCA Band 2 |
| Fraction of Full-Time Student Load | 0.125 |
| Pre-requisites or Co-requisites |
Prerequisites BMSC12001 Histological and Cytological Techniques Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework). |
| Class Timetable | View Unit Timetable |
| Residential School |
Compulsory Residential School View Unit Residential School |
Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2026
Term 1 - 2026 Profile
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Assessment Tasks
| Assessment Task | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. Practical Assessment | 40% |
| 2. Case Study | 20% |
| 3. Examination | 40% |
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).
Past Exams
All University policies are available on the Policy web site, however you may wish to directly view the following policies below.
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of policies are available on the Policy web site .
Term 1 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 100.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 31.25% response rate.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Source: SUTE
Most students prefer the Moodle Lessons, while others prefer 15-20 minute lectures.
Keep the Moodle Lessons, but provide a tutorial at the beginning of term to ensure all students are aware of the printed lecture material and tutorials which can aid in their learning.
Moodle lessons retained and brief tutorial at the beginning of term outlined the location of all learning material.
Source: Self reflection
Assessment 1 should be updated to include more case studies, and the format changed.
Update assessment 1 to include more case studies, and change the format to accommodate the use of Generative AI.
Format of assessment 1 changed to accommodate the use of Generative AI.
Source: Student informal feedback
Loved the residential school.
Maintain the layout and style of the residential school.
Layout and style of residential school maintained incorporating three expert demonstrators.
Source: SUTE and self reflection
Students appreciated the breakdown of content into smaller portions, as it helped them organise their study.
Maintain the structure of the learning resources.
In Progress
Source: SUTE and self reflection
Residential school is well organised, insightful and helpful.
Maintain structure of residential school. Keep experienced sessionals to help demonstrate.
In Progress
Source: Self reflection
Student engagement may be enhanced further through the provision of more comprehensive learning resources and interactive instructional tools.
Consider increasing the variety and accessibility of learning materials and incorporating interactive elements to foster deeper engagement with weekly content in future iterations.
In Progress
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Distinguish histopathological and cytopathological specimens according to body system, pathology and artefactual morphology
- Analyse the features of inflammatory disease processes and the range of tissue responses
- Perform techniques and explain the principles, mechanisms and requirements of use for special stain procedures and specialised fixation techniques
- Describe the neoplastic process, grading systems for staging malignant neoplasms and correlation with gene expression
- Discuss the principles, mechanisms, requirements and the application of use for special stain procedures and specialised fixation techniques of new molecular and hybridisation techniques in histology and cytology.
The learning outcomes achieved are linked to the objectives of the accrediting body, Australian Institute of Medical and Clinical Scientists (AIMS).
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Practical Assessment | • | • | |||
| 2 - Case Study | • | • | • | ||
| 3 - Examination | • | • | • | • | • |
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | • | • | • | • | • |
| 2 - Problem Solving | • | • | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | • | ||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | • | • | • | • | • |
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | • | • | |||
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | |