Planning Your Degree

Step 1. Choosing a degree

If you are reading this Handbook as an enrolled student you have already made a choice, but this does not mean your degree path is set. You may decide to change; from a double to a single degree, or vice-versa. If you wish to change your course, please consult Arts Central or an academic staff membr.

In a single degree you will have a wide range of choice and you will be able to accommodate a single or double major.

When you undertake a double degree program, you will graduate with two degrees (for example a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws). You will complete the course in approximately two-thirds of the time it would take to complete the two full degrees (usually from four and a half to five years) because your required credit-point total will be reduced in both degrees.

Students often ask ...

Q: If I want to change degrees, can I do so after I have enrolled?
A: Normally a student must complete 24 credit points and attain a 65% credit average before permission is given to change degrees, and the Faculty into which s/he wants to move must be satisfied of the student’s suitability.

Q: If I change degrees, can I carry over the subjects I have already completed?
A: If you are transferring into Arts you can carry over most subjects, because Arts is an open degree.

Q: Can I transfer into the Bachelor of Communication and Media Studies?
A: You will need to achieve an average mark of at least 65 (24 credit points) of study to be able to transfer. If you want to transfer, contact Arts Central. 

Step 2. Choosing a major

(A) CHOOSING A MAJOR IN THE BACHELOR OF ARTS
It is best to choose several areas of study in your first year; for example, Sociology, Philosophy, Aboriginal Studies and STS (Science, Technology and Society) or Communication Studies, English, History and Politics. Include the 100-level requirements for the major in each area. You will then be able to choose one or two as your majors when you progress to second year. In some majors like French and Psychology you will need to take three subjects in your first year; so this will mean that you will probably choose just one more area of study.

If you intend to teach in government secondary schools, your major will be the subject which you most want to teach (English, or French, or History, for example). You will also need a second teaching subject, and your balance of subjects will need to comply with Department of Education guidelines. (See the note for prospective teachers in the Course Structures under the Education major).

Choosing a major from the Faculty of Arts
The following majors are offered in the Arts Faculty. You must choose one of these (i.e. you must have a major to graduate), but many students choose to do two. This is called a double major.

Wollongong Campus

Aboriginal Studies, Asia-Pacific Studies, Australian Studies, Employment Relations, English Studies, English Language  and Linguistics Studies, European Studies, French, Gender Studies, History, Information Studies, Italian, Japanese, Media and Communication Studies, Philosophy, Politics, Resource and Environmental Studies, Science, Spanish, Technology & Society and Sociology, War and Society.

Shoalhaven Campus, Bega, Batemans Bay & Moss Vale Education Access Centres

Community Culture and Environment

Interdisciplinary Majors. In majors like Aboriginal Studies and Asia-Pacific Studies, you will take subjects from various programs/departments. When planning your course of study, you will need to take into account that, to enter 200-level (usually in second year) most subjects have 100-level prerequisites. You need to build those subjects into your first-year program of study.

Approved Major Studies from other Faculties
As part of your Bachelor of Arts degree, you may choose one of the following majors outside the Faculty of Arts, provided that you satisfy the prerequisites and combine it with a major from the Faculty of Arts:

Accountancy, Economics, Education, Geography, Legal Studies, Management, Marketing, Mathematics, Psychology.

Students often ask ...

Q: I want to major in French. Do I have to do other subjects as well?
A: Yes. As much as you love French, there are just not enough subjects in French to fill up your degree. You will need to fulfil the requirements of the French major, and complete your degree with other subjects approved for inclusion in the Bachelor of Arts. We believe students should graduate with knowledge of a range of disciplines.

Q: If I have one major, is it OK to just “fill up” my degree with all sorts of other subjects, or is it better to restrict my choice to a few areas?
A: When you graduate, you will have to show your academic record to your prospective employers. It is far more impressive to have something which looks like a planned programme of study with a focus than something which looks like a sampler of University subjects. You must have one major to graduate. Use the rest of your degree to construct a coherent programme of study which suits your needs.

(B) CHOOSING A MAJOR IN THE BACHELOR OF COMMUNICATION AND MEDIA STUDIES
The Bachelor of Communication and Media Studies offers four specialisations:

• Advertising and Marketing
• Journalism
• Digital Communication
• Screen Studies

In this degree you must complete the core subjects, and your major is completed when you add the compulsory subjects in one of the specialist streams above. You may choose two streams, and, if there is room in your degree, you may combine a major in this degree with a major from the Faculty of Arts.

Step 3. Choosing your subjects

Most majors set out clearly the requirements for each year of study. In interdisciplinary majors like Resource and Environmental Studies, the structure is more specific than in majors like History or English where you have a choice of subjects mostly from one Program.

Your first year is the year which sets the groundwork for your major. First year full-time Arts students normally take 48 credit points (8 subjects); four subjects in each session. You will need to enrol in any 100-level (first year) subjects compulsory for your major, and cover the 100-level requirements of the major. If, for example, your major is Media and Communication Studies, you will need to enrol in SMAC100 – the compulsory first year subject.

In the Bachelor of Communication and Media Studies and in the BA Community, Culture and Environment your first year is largely prescribed. In the BA, the required components of your major will probably take between 6 and 18 credit points of your first-year load. The balance of your 48 credit points will be made up of subjects you choose; probably mainly from Arts Faculty Programs, but possibly from outside the Faculty. Arts enables you to construct your degree by combining Arts subjects and subjects from other Faculties if you wish. In the University Calendar, there are two lists of subjects from which you can choose Arts subjects: subjects in the Arts Course Structures, and subjects from the General Schedule.

Outside your major study area, you will want to pursue at least one of your first year subject areas into second year. You will need to ensure that you have the prerequisites to enter this subject area at second year.