USC to become first AIS accredited university
21 December, 2005
The University has received a very special Christmas present and
new students who have chosen USC as their preferred university now
have another reason to come here.
From 17 February, USC will be the first university in Australia
to be awarded Australian Institute of Sport (AIS)
accreditation.
AIS staff visited the University's Centre for Healthy
Activities, Sport and Exercise (CHASE) last month for a final
inspection of its facilities and delivered their decision late last
week.
Provided all CHASE staff complete a First Aid and CPR course by
the February deadline, USC will have an Australian first.
Accreditation is based on the quality and standards of the sport
science testing facilities within the CHASE laboratories, all of
which are overseen by Associate Professor and former Paralympian,
Brendan Burkett.
"It has been a long road and a very detailed process - but it
has all been worth it," Associate Professor Burkett said.
"Accreditation hinged on meeting the stringent
requirements of the National Sport Science Accreditation
Committee.
"Our application for Exercise Physiology Laboratory
Accreditation was given provisional accreditation late last week,
and once staff have all completed First Aid and CPR training by 17
February, we will officially be an AIS accredited facility.
"This means that we have strict quality assurance of the
standard of the testing in our laboratories.
"For our students it means they will have valuable hands-on
experience of quality assurance procedures and operation," he
said.
In a letter to the University, the National Sport
Science Accreditation Committee acknowledged the progress that
the CHASE team had made toward achieving accreditation and the
obvious commitment they had to "establishing a culture of
'best practice' both for CHASE… (and) the students of the
University of the Sunshine Coast".
Acting Vice-Chancellor Professor Greg Hill congratulated the
CHASE team for achieving this milestone.
"This is a coup for the University," Professor Hill said.
"Within the university sector there is an increasing focus on
quality. It is a wonderful achievement for USC to be the first
university to achieve this quality recognition."
The University is becoming well-known for its sport
sciences with additional degrees in Sport and Industry and
Sport and Technology being introduced in 2006.
USC now joins the following AIS accredited laboratories;
Australian Capital Territory Academy of Sport, Australian Institute
of Sport, Northern Territory Institute of Sport, New South Wales
Institute of Sport, Queensland Academy of Sport, South Australian
Sports Institute, Sydney Academy of Sport and Recreation, Tasmanian
Institute of Sport, Victorian Institute of Sport and the Western
Australian Institute of Sport.