Meet our inspiring alumni

Image of Xavier Maddern

Meet Xavier

Xavier’s study path started with a Bachelor of Science, followed by a Master of Biomedical Science and now a PhD. Throughout his studies he has been focused on developing as a researcher and says one of his greatest achievements has been publishing his own research in the field of addiction neuroscience, investigating sex differences in relapse to alcohol-seeking and the underlying brain regions and neuro-circuitry involved.

I am passionate about the field of addiction as it is often not appropriately considered nor recognised as a mental health disorder.

Xavier says, “The article was comprised of the experiments I completed as part of my Master’s research project. Being involved in the entire scientific process was really rewarding - from designing and formulating the experiments, to performing them, analysing the data, writing up and preparing the manuscript and presenting what we had discovered.”

The Master of Biomedical Science at the University of Melbourne gave Xavier a balance of research and coursework, a real feel for what a medical researcher would be like and the opportunity to complete his research project in the heart of the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct at a world class institute.

“There was a substantial research component in the Master of Biomedical Science degree which allowed me to deeply immerse myself in my project, learn and develop a range of lab skills and techniques and feel as though I was contributing to the scientific knowledge in my field,” Xavier says.

Xavier Maddern
Bachelor of Science (Anatomy) → Master of Biomedical Science (Neuroscience) → PhD at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health

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