Bachelor of Biological Sciences in Zoology

at La Trobe University - Melbourne Campus Australia

Whether it’s advocating for a client, supporting community services or writing policy that shapes the nation, studying law empowers you to make an impact on society.

In La Trobe's Bachelor of Laws (Honours), you'll develop the knowledge and expertise to establish yourself as a forward-thinking legal professional. You'll combine outstanding intellectual and skills-based legal training with a progressive approach to law, preparing you for a rewarding career.

Explore the principles of key areas of legal practice. Tailor your degree to your career aspirations with a diverse range of electives. Study how legal practice shapes the most pressing challenges of our time, including in areas such as environmental law, international law, intellectual property law, and cyber law and policy.

As you study, you'll build your talents in advocacy, negotiation and dispute resolution, so you'll be ready to apply them in both legal and non-legal settings. You'll also have opportunities to test your skills in competitions – whether that's competing against fellow La Trobe students, going up against students from other Australian universities, or even competing with representatives from international universities like Harvard, Cambridge and the University of Hong Kong.

Learn from legal experts in our Law School and hone your skills in critical thinking, research, writing and teamwork. Then put your knowledge into practice with opportunities for real-world placement experiences – from working in environments including community legal centres, law firms and government agencies to building mentor relationships with judges, magistrates and coroners.

Want to use your legal training to pursue your passion? Study your Bachelor of Laws (Honours) as a double degree and add a new discipline to your expertise – such as arts, criminology, commerce, science, psychological science, global studies or media and communications. You'll be prepared for exciting careers that mix legal expertise and technical knowledge to meet the needs of modern employers.

La Trobe's Bachelor of Global Studies gives you a strong grounding in the issues facing key regions and countries around the world. We've designed this degree to introduce you to global problems and their policy responses, so you'll develop the tools to tackle the challenges of the future.

Study core subjects examining the history of international relations and geopolitics, contemporary security issues – such as American power, the rise of China, contemporary armed conflict and terrorism – and the emerging challenges of human and environmental security.

Look at international cooperation and conflict. Analyse the dynamics of power, sovereignty and security, exploring transformational changes in 21st century international relations. Investigate the powerful role of international law – including humanitarian, environmental and refugee law.

Whatever your ambition, tailor your degree with specially curated majors and minors that allow you to explore the geopolitical and humanitarian forces shaping our world. Choose from majors such as international relations, human rights, conflict and negotiation, Asian politics and security, government and policy, sustainability and development, Chinese, Japanese, Hindi, Spanish, Greek, French and Italian.

Global experiences are a vital part of global studies. Get out of the classroom and into the real world with a study experience at one of our overseas partner universities and build both your skills and your professional network. You'll also have the opportunity to do an internship, either in Australia or overseas, that's tailored to your career goals.

Human rights

The Human Rights major will train you to analyse the social and political dynamics of human rights struggles across the world. In this major you will explore the extent to which states institutionalise human rights norms and how different movements seek justice using the power of human rights discourse. Across a variety of countries and issues including social justice, gender, sexuality, and Indigenous politics, you will learn to evaluate various human rights situations and develop responses to improve them.

Undertaking a Human Rights major at La Trobe will connect you to experts in democracy and democratisation, political theory, the international politics of human rights, gender, sexuality and diversity, human trafficking, and the history of Australian Aboriginal struggles.

Explore your passions and build a rewarding career.

Today’s workplaces are rapidly evolving. Governments, businesses and law firms need passionate professionals who not only have advanced legal expertise, but also the ability to think critically, analytically and creatively.*

La Trobe's Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Arts lets you enrich your legal education by pursuing your interests and passions. Open doors to a diverse range of rewarding careers, while exploring how to make a difference in your community.

Learn the fundamentals of criminal, constitutional, property and company law. Explore the legal system and understand how it can be used as a powerful and positive force in society. Develop key skills in advocacy, negotiation and dispute resolution.

You'll also choose from our list of arts majors and explore your area of interest. Broaden your knowledge and experience by studying areas like politics, languages, sociology, history, philosophy and media studies. Learn how to communicate effectively and think critically, analytically and creatively.

You can also choose to complete law electives that complement your arts specialisation. For example, a politics major can be matched with related subjects like public international law and human rights law. While a language or philosophy major could be augmented by subjects in areas like Indigenous Australians and the law, intellectual property law or family, society and law.

Enhance your classroom learning by taking advantage of optional internships, work experience, and our study abroad program*. Gain hands-on experience working with community legal centres, law firms and government agencies. Find out what it takes to interview clients, prepare legal advice and work with senior lawyers to develop legal solutions.

Graduate ready to make a positive difference. With combined expertise in law and arts, you can build a career as a solicitor or barrister, in-house counsel or corporate consultant, working in commercial law firms or community legal centres. You could also work in the public service as a government lawyer or support social justice initiatives in the not-for-profit sector.

The Greek Studies major offers you the opportunity to study aspects of Greek language, culture, history and politics from the ancient world to contemporary Greece. In this major you will develop a critical understanding of the evolution of Greek culture in its original homeland and the diaspora, including multicultural Australia. Melbourne’s large Greek community provides you with a stimulating cultural and social environment in which to observe and practice what you learn. You can pair language subjects at a variety of levels with cultural subjects focussed on ancient and modern Greek literature, history and society. The skills obtained in this major will prepare you for a variety of work including teaching, translating, interpreting, health, banking, tourism, and related industries in Australia and overseas. You will also be encouraged to study in Greece or Cyprus through exchange programs or La Trobe’s overseas short study program “Connecting with Language and Culture in Greece.” (Please note: overseas programs may be impacted by travel restrictions.) Depending on your prior knowledge and/or qualifications in the Greek language, you may commence at Beginners, Intermediate, Advanced (post-VCE) or Extended levels.

The field of biotechnology is vast, varied and rapidly growing. Whether you want to create vaccines or explore genetic modification, we’ll teach you what you need.

In La Trobe's Master of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, you'll learn to harness new and emerging technologies in human health, diagnostics, sustainability, food security and renewable energy.

Develop the human skills and technical expertise to launch a career in a range of exciting industries. From biological products to pharmaceuticals, agriculture to nutrition: you'll be prepared to work in the fields that rely on this fast-growing area of science.

This degree gives you more than flexibility in your career – it also gives you flexibility in how you study. In your final year, you could take an advanced bioinformatics pathway. Or you could choose the research project pathway instead, enjoying unrivalled access to industry networks and researchers in the field and benefiting from 25-30 hours of laboratory time each week.

If you decide you want to head straight into the workforce, you could even exit with a Graduate Diploma in Biotechnology and Bioinformatics after successfully completing the first year of this degree.

Despite the efforts of multilateral organisations, governments and philanthropists, more than 700 million people (around 10 per cent of the world’s population) still live in extreme poverty – often without adequate clean water, food or access to healthcare.* As inequality continues to increase around the world,** we desperately need more skilled professionals who understand the complexities of the development sector and who can help fight this alarming trend.

If you're passionate about supporting our world's most vulnerable communities, La Trobe's Master of International Development will give you strong foundations to advance your career in the humanitarian and development sector.

Build a meaningful career and learn how to create sustainable, positive change in areas where we need it most. You'll learn from experienced experts as you choose from a wide range of specialisations and specially curated electives, allowing you to pursue your passion.

You'll learn how to build strong relationships in the development sector and have the opportunity to undertake an internship or placement with a local or international development organisation, helping you to further build your skills and networks.

Rapid evolutions in science and technology mean our advancements sometimes outpace the law. Get the skills to stay ahead.

In La Trobe's Bachelor of Laws(Honours)/Bachelor of Science, you can pursue multiple interests and gain a powerful combination of legal skills and cutting-edge scientific knowledge.

From stem cell research to how personal information is collected, stored and shared, advances in science and technology have real human impacts. This double degree uniquely prepares you to address contemporary challenges from a scientific, legal and ethical perspective.

Benefit from our progressive approach to legal education with a law degree you can shape to your own career goals. You'll get a solid grounding in the basics of law and hone your expertise in advocacy, negotiation and dispute resolution – skills valued by employers across industries.

Your science degree offers you huge flexibility, with an extensive range of majors to choose from. Follow your interests in emerging areas like cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and data science or traditional fields including chemistry, botany and genetics. Bring knowledge to life in world-class facilities, including the La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science (LIMS), and learn from academics who are leaders in their fields.

Take your skills into the real world while you study. You'll have the opportunity to do placements in a range of legal settings, including community legal centres, law firms, government agencies, and judges and magistrates (subject to availability). On the science side, you could complete a placement with one of our industry partners – previous students have worked with CSIRO, Bayer Crop Science, and various government departments.

You will graduate ready to start your career as an expert legal practitioner, with an advanced understanding of scientific concepts or a science professional with a solid understanding of regulatory environments and how they impact scientific work.

Applied cybersecurity

Cybercrime continues to pose a major threat, not only to individuals, but also to corporations and governments worldwide. This threat can only be combated by highly skilled specialists with the technical expertise to adapt to new challenges. Our applied cybersecurity major gives you the skills and knowledge to face these challenges, which include safeguarding data and critical infrastructures against malicious cyber-threats. It opens up a world of opportunities, addresses the global shortage of cybersecurity professionals and prepares you with diverse skills across network engineering, forensics and strategic communication. In this major, you’ll be introduced to the basic principles of cybersecurity, look at current practices used to protect organisations from threats, explore models and architectures of the internet and other networks, and study strategies for effective crisis communication. You’ll also build specialist knowledge in information and data security and learn how digital forensic investigation techniques are employed across different scenarios. The skills you build in this major will prepare you to appraise cybersecurity problems, construct cyber-attack defences such as firewalls, examine the roles of protocols and services in different operating environments and perform forensic analysis in a digital environment. Importantly, you’ll be equipped to respond to and manage emerging crisis situations, such as cybercrime and terrorism. Graduate with a broad portfolio of valuable and practical cybersecurity knowledge and expertise. You’ll understand current practices in cyber defence, be able to adapt to evolving real-world cybersecurity problems and have the knowledge to solve those problems. Cybersecurity is one of the most rapidly expanding global industries and experts are sought after in a range of different roles.

More than ever, employers are searching for professionals with advanced STEM skills.* With job growth expected in this area* – including in areas that don’t even exist yet – there’s no better time to build the scientific skills you need to create a successful, interesting and satisfying career.

La Trobe's Bachelor of Science offers you foundational skills in science and the freedom to delve into your passions. Whether it's protecting endangered animals, developing new ways to treat disease or fighting climate change, you'll be ready to pursue your dream journey in science by tailoring your degree with a mix of majors and minors.

As you learn from leading academics and researchers, you'll take a deep dive into science – not only scientific concepts, but also how scientists think, work and share their findings.

Build skills in problem-solving, communication and collaboration – all highly sought after by employers – then use these skills to come up with innovative solutions to real-world problems.

Personalise your learning so you can spend time focusing on the areas that really interest you. Choose from majors in a range of fields, including botany, statistics, microbiology, genetics, data science and more, and learn from academics who are leaders in their fields.

You'll have opportunities to put theory into practice through work placements with our industry partners. Previous students have undertaken placements with CSIRO, Bayer Crop Science and various State and Federal Government departments.

Crop science

Want to help meet the growing worldwide demand for sustainably produced nutritious food? This is the challenge addressed by crop science: the study and improvement of production of our most important food crops. In this major, you’ll explore the issues set to dominate the future of crop production, including unpredictable water supply, climate change, food security, environmental impacts of agriculture, and the impact of pests, pathogens and advances in biotechnology. Build your knowledge in agronomy, agricultural systems, and sustainable intensification. Learn to advise clients and solve problems to improve crop production, improve profits and sustainability. You’ll develop expertise in plant, land and soil management and understand the science of using plants for food, and how to address issues in plant health and sustainable agriculture. Theory is good, but hands-on experience is even better. This major includes a range of practical learning opportunities in the lab and the field, so you can see first-hand how your skills and knowledge apply in real-world settings. These experiences will give you the opportunity to begin building your network of industry contacts – something you’ll be able to draw on throughout your career.

Explore your passions and build a rewarding career.

Today’s workplaces are rapidly evolving. Governments, businesses and law firms need passionate professionals who not only have advanced legal expertise, but also the ability to think critically, analytically and creatively.*

La Trobe's Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Arts lets you enrich your legal education by pursuing your interests and passions. Open doors to a diverse range of rewarding careers, while exploring how to make a difference in your community.

Learn the fundamentals of criminal, constitutional, property and company law. Explore the legal system and understand how it can be used as a powerful and positive force in society. Develop key skills in advocacy, negotiation and dispute resolution.

You'll also choose from our list of arts majors and explore your area of interest. Broaden your knowledge and experience by studying areas like politics, languages, sociology, history, philosophy and media studies. Learn how to communicate effectively and think critically, analytically and creatively.

You can also choose to complete law electives that complement your arts specialisation. For example, a politics major can be matched with related subjects like public international law and human rights law. While a language or philosophy major could be augmented by subjects in areas like Indigenous Australians and the law, intellectual property law or family, society and law.

Enhance your classroom learning by taking advantage of optional internships, work experience, and our study abroad program*. Gain hands-on experience working with community legal centres, law firms and government agencies. Find out what it takes to interview clients, prepare legal advice and work with senior lawyers to develop legal solutions.

Graduate ready to make a positive difference. With combined expertise in law and arts, you can build a career as a solicitor or barrister, in-house counsel or corporate consultant, working in commercial law firms or community legal centres. You could also work in the public service as a government lawyer or support social justice initiatives in the not-for-profit sector.

The Hindi studies major introduces you to one of the most widely spoken languages in the world—a language with around half a billion speakers, the language of Bollywood cinema, and one of the fastest growing languages in Australia. Hindi is the ideal subject for students who want to study Indian culture, religion, media or politics. Hindi also gives you access to the larger linguistic world of South Asia, including competence in Urdu. Knowledge of Hindi is welcome in many professional fields, including media, diplomacy, and healthcare. India is Australia’s 5th largest trading partner, and one of the world’s fastest growing economies, making Hindi crucial for international trade and business. Opportunities are available for you to study in India, where you take courses on Indian politics, society, and history, as well as improve your language skills. Students with no prior knowledge of the language should enrol in beginners Hindi, where they develop competence in speaking, reading, writing and understanding Hindi in everyday social contexts. Students with prior knowledge of Hindi should consult with the instructor to determine which of the intermediate or advanced subjects are appropriate.

Modern business needs to be more innovative than ever. Learn to solve complex business, sustainability and ethical issues in evolving global markets with a progressive dual lens of legal and commercial innovation.

Stand out from the crowd with La Trobe's Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Commerce. Gain a prestigious double degree that prepares you to be a change-maker in business and law, navigating complex legal and regulatory frameworks.

Develop specialised knowledge of financial markets, economics, and accounting. Combine it with an understanding of business practice, legal process, and advanced negotiation. You'll develop financial literacy and discover the power of contemporary digital business tools.

Get ready for an exciting career. You'll be equipped to meet the challenges of a field disrupted by automation, the power of big data, and the rapid evolution of business and consumer technologies.

You'll have opportunities to learn in legal placements across government and corporate sectors.

Economics

As a social science, economics is an exciting and challenging discipline that explores real-world issues and analyses ways to improve the well-being of people and the societies we live in. This major will give you valuable insights into the application of economic principles to develop government policy, business solutions and understand the choices people make. Analyse important issues such as poverty, inequality, inflation, unemployment, environmental issues, innovation, digital transformation, international competition, trade and economic development. The key graduate attributes that a major in economics develop are critical thinking, problem solving, researching and evaluating information. Overall you gain the skills for careers in economic and social policy, business, banking, financial markets and consulting.

Want to play a role in shaping the future of health? By combining legal and biomedical expertise, you’ll build the foundations you need to make a difference.

Blend a law qualification and knowledge in biomedicine with La Trobe's Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Biomedicine. This future-focused double degree gives you the knowledge and skills to launch your career in the world of scientific advancement.

Your studies in law will give you a solid legal grounding and the flexibility and practical experience to shape your learning to your career goals. Explore the fundamentals of legal practice and hone your skills in advocacy, negotiation and dispute resolution through a mix of intellectual and skills-based training.

At the same time, delve into the diverse field of biomedicine with subjects in biochemistry, molecular and cell biology, data analysis and disease control. Take your learnings into the lab, where you'll build your practical scientific skills under the supervision of our supportive academic staff.

There's plentiful opportunities for hands-on experience in this double degree. Law placements offer the chance to learn in a real-world environment, such as community legal centres, law firms, government agencies and building mentor relationships with judges, magistrates and coroners. Depending on the subjects you choose, you may also be able to put your skills to work with an internship in the biomedical industry.

Our range of electives allows you to tailor this double degree to your interests and career aspirations.