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Planning your course
It’s important to understand the structure of your course and the choices available to you. When you plan ahead you can make sure you meet the requirements, and take advantage of any opportunities to tailor your studies to your interests.
Where do I start?
When you plan your course, the first step is to understand the type of course you are enrolling in.
Most of our degrees at the University fall into three degree paths: liberal studies, professional and specialist degrees. These degree paths will influence the way your course is structured, and the type of decisions you may need to make about your studies.
Liberal studies degrees
- Build on your depth of knowledge in one or more areas, by completing a program, major(s) and/or minor as part of your degree.
- Allow you to combine studies from a range of disciplines to tailor your degree to your interests.
Liberal studies degrees include the Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Commerce, and related degrees.
If you are commencing a liberal studies degree on its own or combined with the Bachelor of Advanced Studies, our Liberal studies and specialist degrees page has specific information that will help you plan your degree.
If you commenced one of our liberal studies degrees before 2018, or are starting in a combined degree (not including the Bachelor of Advanced Studies), you can find additional information to help plan your course.
Professional degrees
- Lead to a defined career outcome, such as professional accreditation with an industry recognised body.
- Often follow a more defined path to meet the requirements for your course. This may mean completing core (compulsory) units of study in a specific sequence within your discipline.
- Can be combined with a liberal studies degree so you can access the opportunities available in these degrees, such as studying across a range of disciplines.
Examples include degrees in the areas of engineering, law, teaching and physiotherapy.
Specialist degrees
- Study a defined field in music, design computing, visual arts and economics.
If you are commencing a specialist degree, our Liberal studies and specialist degrees page has specific information that will help you plan your degree.
Other courses
If you are completing an award course that doesn’t fit into one of the degree paths (such as a graduate certificate or graduate diploma), it is important to understand the components that make up your course, and how they fit together to meet your course requirements.
Last updated: 16 March 2023
