A group of CPAS students have recently returned from a month long tour of Queensland where they were working towards obtaining their Master of Science Communication Outreach degree.

The 16 students, who are members of the Shell Questacon Science Circus, spent their days performing science shows for school students, holding public science exhibitions and sharing their passion for science.

This was their first major tour of the year and was an opportunity to hone their skills on the road. The team saw over 35,000 people as they delivered ten public exhibitions and visited over 100 schools from Rockhampton to Cairns.

Assistant Tour Coordinator Ben de Vos was impressed with the efforts of the team. “This was a great test for the students, not only did they meet the requirements of a large tour, they grew as a team, became better presenters and sparked a passion for science in a huge number of people,” he said.

“The Master of Science Communication Outreach program is unlike any other in the world. The students’ academic coursework covers a raft of different science communication topics and then they get the chance to put it all into practice on the road, where they take on the roles of performers, managers, roadies, media and promotional strategists and above all science communicators.”