Bachelor of Arts (Humanities and Social Sciences)

Assessment (Internat.) 

Assignments, essays, class presentations, exams.
 
Outline 

The Bachelor of Arts (Humanities and Social Sciences) offers a multidisciplinary, liberal education in the Humanities and Social Sciences. The course prepares graduates for careers in the public and private sectors including Personnel, Management, Education and Social Research. It also provides a basis for further study including postgraduate training and higher degrees. The program can be flexibly and individually tailored to meet student's interests, and it provides for breadth and depth of study in at least one coherent, multidisciplinary major. Three introductory units lead students into a broad range of disciplines from the humanities and social sciences. From Teaching Period 3 of Year 1, students can specialise in one of the following multidisciplinary/disciplinary areas of study:

Social Inquiry
This multidisciplinary major combines critical social analysis with the development of a range of professional skills. It draws upon the disciplines of sociology, politics, anthropology, indigenous studies, rural social welfare and statistics. The central questions in this major are: What is the nature of society and social relations? What forces are shaping Australian society, the region and the international order? What forms of human agency are effective and influential? What is the character of urban life and how is this changing? Issues of power and control and structures of inequality and injustice will be considered. This major also provides opportunities for students to develop skills and knowledge in social research, data analysis, policy making and policy analysis, social planning, and change management.

Globalisation Studies
Contemporary processes of globalisation demand awareness of and sensitivity to other cultures. A major in globalisation studies gives students an opportunity to learn another language (Japanese) and to experience a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of globalisation, multiculturalism, Indigenous (Aboriginal) cultures and/or cultures and societies in the Asia-Pacific region. Comparative reflection on social and cultural patterns in the Australian and global contexts is fostered systematically in this major. A deep study of another language or culture enables students to appreciate other world views and to critically analyse their own from a more informed perspective.

Literary and Cultural Inquiry
This multidisciplinary major draws on studies in film, literature, children's literature and cultural studies. The major focuses on analytic and interpretative skills in these disciplines, with particular application to visual and verbal texts. The major introduces students to a wide range of critical approaches, including formalism, psychoanalysis, structuralism, post-structuralism, feminism, literary history and studies in genre. Some opportunity is given for the exploration of theory via creative projects. In this major, students are encouraged to understand the cultural history and contemporary contexts that shape their understanding of themselves and the world.

Disciplinary Major: Australia Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) Accredited Psychology Major
The APAC-accredited Psychology major will continue as the only disciplinary major in the Bachelor of Arts (Humanities and Social Sciences) degree. It comprises eight units prescribed by the APS, plus two of six optional advanced Psychology units and MS501 Statistics must be included.
 
Career Opportunities 

The Bachelor of Arts is a versatile qualification. Rather than channelling you in one direction, the breadth of this course enables you to keep many career options open. Recent statistics from the Graduate Careers Council of Australia show that some of the most popular career destinations for BA graduates include personnel and management, environmental management, education, human resource management, computing, health science, teaching and lecturing, social welfare, editing and research, community work, clerical administration. Key skills valued by employers are an integral part of the Bachelor of Arts and include critical thinking, analysis, communication skills, higher level research skills and the ability to write texts appropriate to the audience.
 
RPL and Credit Transfer 

International students wishing to apply for RPL and Credit Transfer are required to provide syllabus of previous study undertaken at time of applying for course. Not all courses offer RPL and Credit Transfer. Contact the International Student Programs office at international@ballarat.edu.au
 
Objectives 

Successful completion of the Bachelor of Arts (H&SS) will give you the foundation, knowledge and skills to:
- Appreciate of the value of an integrated approach across disciplines
- Experience advanced intellectual and personal development, more broadly than technical or specific vocational training
- Develop an opened appreciation to the world of ideas, behaviours, values and cultural products and artefacts
- Be confronted and challenged within a positive and supportive environment
- Develop intellectual inquisitiveness, creativity, a love of learning, and reflective self-awareness
- Appreciate different cultures and alternative ways of viewing the world
- Display flexibility in applying and developing knowledge in different, changing circumstances
- Pursue a wide range of careers and further study
 
Requirements 

In order to qualify for the degree of Bachelor of Arts (H&SS), a student must satisfactorily complete a total of 360 credit points including:
- At least one major (listed below) with a minimum of 150 credit points
- The balance of the credit points are to be taken from other majors (listed below), and/or elective units (maximum of 60 credit points) taken from any recognised program (TAFE and higher education) offered by the University and approved by the School's Courses Committee.

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