Ninety senior secondary school students have had a taste of what lies ahead for them in the Science and Maths Academy at Flinders (SMAF) program.

November 16 was the orientation day for a unique teaching experience, which will involve students from eight schools being on the Flinders campus for up to a day-and-a-half per week throughout the 2012 school year in 2012.

SMAF  sees Year 12 students, drawn from schools across the southern Adelaide and Hills regions, come to the teaching spaces and laboratories at Flinders to be taught their Stage 2 physics, chemistry and specialist maths by highly skilled teachers who are competitively selected from the participating schools.

Pictured is Holly Braidwood, a SMAF graduating Year 12 student from Aberfoyle Park High School, who spoke about the program to the incoming students.

The program gives students access to University resources that would not otherwise be available, along with a tangible taste of university life.

The second SMAF intake was welcomed by the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Flinders, Professor Warren Lawrance, and Aberfoyle Park High principal Ms Liz Mead.

As well as meeting their fellow students and teachers for next year, the SMAF participants were rotated through different team-building activities including maths for gaming, lasers and cryogenics. There was also a tour for parents.

Two more schools, Yankalilla Area School and Mount Barker High School, have joined the original six participant schools: Aberfoyle Park High School, Christies Beach High School, Eastern Fleurieu School, Hamilton High School, Mount Compass Area School, Seaford 6 -12 High School and Wirreanda High School.

The program is facilitated by the University’s Southern Knowledge Transfer Partnership Office.