Which Bachelor of Science degree should I choose?

9 November 2020

Selecting your stream, program and majors

With lots of options and flexibility across the suite of Bachelor of Science degrees, choosing which one to enrol in is an exciting decision.

First step is to think about which science disciplines interest you most. They could be subjects you did in school, areas you’ve read about or watched films on, or careers you’ve heard about that interest you.

But don’t worry too much about which science disciplines you choose at this stage – our degrees offer you flexibility to choose your units as you go along, and the opportunity to transfer to another science degree, if you change your mind in later years.

What are science streams and programs?

Streams in our Bachelor of Science degrees are the different named science degrees that you apply for separately, such as the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Advanced Studies (Agriculture) – in this case, the stream is ‘agriculture’. Each stream is linked to its common or parent course – in this case, the Bachelor of Science – by components and rules. You need to complete a core program of study in addition to a set of units of study for that particular stream, which appears on your testamur with the award course name.

Our full list of streams in the Bachelor of Science are:

We also run other undergraduate science degrees that are not streams of the Bachelor of Science, such as the Bachelor of Liberal Arts and Science, and the Bachelor of Psychology, plus all our double degrees, such as the Bachelor of Science and Master of Nutrition and Dietetics, and combined degrees.

Programs in our Bachelor of Science degrees basically build on a major, with more units in a particular discipline. Specifically, our programs are a combination of units of study that develop expertise in a discipline and include at least one recognised 48 credit point major in a field of study, and additional units in the specified area of the program.

Within the Bachelor of Science, you can choose from the following programs:

Agroecosystems: embedded major options: Animal Production, Plant Production, Soil Science and Hydrology.
Medical Science: only available in Medical Science stream.
Neuroscience: embedded major is: Neuroscience.
Psychology: embedded major is: Psychological Science.
Mathematical Science: only available in Dalyell stream. Embedded major options: Financial Mathematics and Statistics, Mathematics, Statistics.

Within the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Advanced Studies, you can choose from the following programs:

Agriculture: only available in Agriculture stream. Embedded major options: Animal Production, Plant Production, Soil Science and Hydrology.
Agroecosystems: embedded major options: Animal Production, Plant Production, Soil Science and Hydrology.
Food and Agribusiness: only available in Food and Agribusiness stream. Embedded major options: Food Science and one of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Accounting, Banking, Business Analytics, Business Information Systems, Business Law, Economics, Economic Policy, Finance, Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management, International Business, Management, Marketing.
Animal and Veterinary Bioscience: only available in Animal and Veterinary Bioscience stream. Embedded major: Animal Veterinary Bioscience.
Medical Science: only available in Medical Science stream.
Nanoscience and Nanotechnology: embedded major options: Chemistry, Physics
Neuroscience: embedded major is: Neuroscience
Psychology: embedded major is: Psychological Science
Mathematical Science: only available in Dalyell stream. Embedded major options: Financial Mathematics and Statistics, Mathematics, Statistics

What is the Bachelor of Advanced Studies?

You can add an extra year of study (1 year full time, or 2 years part time) onto your Bachelor of Science degree by doing one of our Bachelor of Science / Bachelor of Advanced Studies degrees. In this extra year of study, you can choose to do one of two distinct pathways:

extra coursework in your chosen discipline in science, as well as project-based units, and units in leadership, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, such as Applied Psychology in the Workplace, Coaching Skills for Work and Life, Science Communication, and Experimental Design and Data Analysis
an Honours year of research, where you conduct a specific piece of scientific research with one of our academic staff as your supervisor, and write a thesis. This can lead to doing postgraduate research (like a PhD or Master of Philosophy) or entering into a career using your research skills. To do Honours research in the Bachelor of Advanced Studies, you need to have already completed the requirements for the Bachelor of Science, with at least one of your majors being in the discipline you’ll do your Honours research in.

What’s the difference between the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Advanced Studies, and the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Advanced Studies (Advanced)?

What's the second 'Advanced' about? The Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Advanced Studies is a four year combined degree (4 years full time, or 8 years part time) – more details above – while the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Advanced Studies (Advanced) is the same combined degree, just with the addition of doing at least 24 credit points in second and third year at the advanced level. In science, advanced units allow you to do more advanced course material and offer different projects and research opportunities in your chosen disciplines.

The second 'Advanced' in the degree name indicates that you’re in the advanced science stream, which means your advanced units that you choose will offer you a range of more advanced science, from lectures to independent research and in-depth problem solving. Doing the advanced stream will give you the skills to embark on a rewarding career or join the forefront of scientific research.

You can also choose advanced science units in our other Bachelor of Science degrees, as long as you meet entry requirements for each unit.

Focus on streams

Hear from some of our students in our science streams and what they are enjoying about their degrees.

Michelle Sun
Stream: Food and Agribusiness

I come from Buenos Aires, Argentina, and I chose to come to the University of Sydney because it’s a very well-known and prestigious university, but mostly because it offered the very specific degree in food and agribusiness that I love and that no other university was offering.

I did a unit called Production Horticulture this year, which was such an enriching experience that I wasn’t expecting! We got to grow our own mushrooms. Reading about something is very different from having the chance to practise it yourself and it was an especially good idea during the covid-19 lockdown.

Rowena Chong
Stream: Animal and Veterinary Bioscience

I have always been passionate about wildlife and wildlife conservation, so I chose to study my undergraduate degree in animal and veterinary bioscience.

During my animal and veterinary bioscience degree, I got to learn about some of the research that was being conducted on Tasmanian devils by Professor Kathy Belov. So when I finished my bachelor’s degree, I chose to do a PhD with Kathy as my PhD research supervisor.