Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Arts - Sociology (Dual Degree)

at La Trobe University - Melbourne Campus Australia

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 opportunities 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.

If you can't let go of unanswered questions. If you love learning. If you're passionate about the world around you. Then it's time to start your journey at La Trobe.

With our flexible Bachelor of Arts, you can choose from an incredible array of majors and minors. You'll have access to around 50 majors and minors from humanities, social sciences, business, health and science, keeping your career options open. Pursue your passion and your profession.

Shape your own future with this interdisciplinary degree. You'll choose one arts major, then explore your interests or build an essential skill when you choose secondary majors, minors and electives from across the university. You'll graduate with your primary major on your academic transcript, so future employers can recognise your expertise.

Create your own path. Want to major in sociology, with a second major in psychology, then take Chinese as an elective? Go for it. Or perhaps you'd like to pair economics and English. Or crime, justice and legal studies with linguistics. Build your own future – we're here to help you achieve your dream. No matter which path you choose, you'll learn from world-class academics and leading researchers.

In your first year, you'll explore your interests and passions. Try a language; or get a taste for history, English, politics or creative writing. In your second and third years, you'll delve deeper while also choosing electives and minors that broaden your skills and knowledge. You may also choose to develop professional skillsets in areas like psychology, public health, marketing, science, sport management and more.

This flexible degree also offers a range of study options. You can choose to study face-to-face at our Melbourne Campus and enjoy our on-campus facilities, or you can study online – knowing your experience will mirror on-campus students, with tutorials delivered in a synchronous manner. Unlike many other online degrees, at La Trobe you can login to live sessions and engage directly with academics and your fellow students in real time.

Gain real-world experience and build valuable connections that will shape your career. Take on an industry placement at organisations like SBS Radio, the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre or the United Nations Association of Australia or travel overseas for an international sustainability experience.* Many of our exchange programs are financially supported. Your dedicated course advisor will help you to find your path and explore new opportunities.

The world is waiting for you. Step into it.

The Visual Cultures major brings together multidisciplinary approaches to visual culture, from the moving image to art history and art theory. Today's world is image-saturated, from art to advertising, propaganda to photography, fashion to film, architecture to graphic design, and from newsfeeds to Instagram. As digital technology expands, more and more people become active producers and consumers of visual culture. In this major you will learn how visual meaning is socially, politically and culturally constructed and received in the past and the present.

The Visual Cultures major will provide you with theoretical and analytical skills to critically interpret and write about images and objects. You will be trained to shape, transform and engage with contemporary visual culture, exhibitions and museum practices, and to work in the arts industry, education, and the GLAM sector (Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums).

If you're looking for a rewarding career in education, La Trobe's Associate Degree of Teacher Education is a perfect pathway to an accredited teaching degree.

When you successfully complete the Associate Degree of Teacher Education, you could progress to a Bachelor of Education (Primary), Bachelor of Education (Secondary) or Bachelor of Early Childhood and Primary Education. You'll also receive advanced standing for up to two years of full-time study.

You'll develop strong foundational skills in professional literacy and numeracy, as well as knowledge of contemporary approaches to learning.

You'll also start specialising in your chosen field – primary, secondary, or early childhood and primary – and build discipline-specific knowledge, choosing from electives in science, languages, arts, health, psychology, physical education and more.

We're at your side every step of the way. Receive personalised advice from a dedicated Student Adviser and connect with discipline-based peer mentors. We'll help you enrol, choose your subjects and navigate university systems and requirements. You can also access the university-wide careers service for advice and assistance on your resume, interview skills and career planning.

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 interdependence of our modern world and the fragility of the environment are challenging our everyday lives.

The major in human geography enables you to think geographically when exploring the intersectionality between society, the economy, politics and the places we live. In particular, you will develop skills in geographic methods and analyses for investigating the spatial processes embedded in all aspects of life.

This major allows you to explore these issues at multiple scales and equips you with strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills for tackling key issues such as social justice, population growth and sustainable economic development, securitization and community resilience.

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.

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.

Print. Online. Radio. TV. Podcasts. Social media. Mobile storytelling. There are many ways to create content and break the news. As digital storytelling rapidly evolves, employers need graduates who are more than just writers or presenters. They need producers, designers, videographers and podcasters – people who understand the core elements of a powerful story, with the technical skills to make stories shine.

With La Trobe's Bachelor of Media and Communication, you'll learn how to tell stories across any medium. Graduate with a portfolio of work, industry experience and specialised knowledge to meet the demands of the rapidly changing media and communication landscape. With majors in journalism, sports media, media industries, creative and professional writing, or marketing – you can make your degree your own.

Cover news and feature stories as part of Upstart and Upstart Live. Our industry-grade newsroom boasts a three-camera television studio, professional radio broadcast spaces, a dedicated audio recording studio and digital editing suites. You'll experience the adrenaline of live television and radio broadcasting as a presenter, producer and vision switcher – all under the mentorship of highly experienced teachers.

And you won't just create news. You'll also look behind the headlines and investigate the ethical and legal questions that confront journalists every day. Explore the new dilemmas created by rapidly evolving technologies and draw on the expertise of a wide range of experts and media professionals.

Shape your own future with this interdisciplinary degree. You'll choose one major, then explore your interests or build further skills when you choose an optional second major, minors and electives from across the university. You'll graduate with your primary major on your academic transcript, so future employers can recognise your expertise.

Gain real-world experience and build valuable connections that will shape your career. Take on an industry placement at a media organisation or study overseas through international exchange.

Marketing

In today’s digital landscape, marketing is a high-demand skillset across a range of industries. La Trobe’s major in Marketing provides you with specialised knowledge of marketing in a digital era.  The major equips you with the essential knowledge and skills such as understanding consumer behaviour, brand management, product innovation and marketing in the digital space. You will focus on the latest practice and future trends in marketing. The key attributes that a major in marketing develop are communication, creative thinking, problem solving, creativity and innovation, ethical responsibility, leadership, and teamwork. Graduates will gain internationally transferrable skills and be ready for career in businesses that demand innovative marketing expertise.

As the Internet of Things continues to grow exponentially, cybercrime is growing with it. In Australia, an average of one cybercrime report is made every ten minutes.* To keep our communities safe, it’s critical to understand cybercriminals’ psychology, craft effective defences and stay one step ahead.

In La Trobe's Bachelor of Cybersecurity/Bachelor of Psychological Science, you'll build a career at the nexus of two rapidly evolving sciences and learn how to combat the constantly evolving threat of cybercrime.

In this distinctive combination of study areas, you can pursue a career as a professional psychologist (after further postgraduate study) or build a career within the growing field of cybersecurity.

Learn from experts in world-class facilities, including our Cyber Security Research Hub – one of the largest cybersecurity research hubs in Victoria.

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.

Italian Studies Advanced

In the Italian Studies major you will combine the study of the language with the study of Italian culture, literature, cinema, history and translation. The primary focus of this major is on contemporary Italy, but you can explore aspects of early modern, Renaissance and twentieth-century Italy in selected subjects. A major in Italian Studies provides you with the opportunity to develop your written, spoken and comprehension skills in Italian to a high level, while enhancing your critical thinking skills, and becoming proficient at analysing texts and at presenting reasoned arguments. Studying Italian will equip you with valuable communication skills. Recent graduates of Italian studies have found employment in teaching, diplomacy, government, social work, art history and restoration, international business, publishing, journalism, tourism, and translating and interpreting. Students of Italian are encouraged to consider spending one or two semesters studying at an Italian university as part of an approved exchange program. (Please note: overseas programs may be impacted by travel restrictions.) Italian is taught at a number of levels starting from beginners. For those with prior knowledge of and/or qualifications in the language, a placement test and interview may be used to determine the appropriate stream for a student.

Life in today's world brings harsh challenges. Poverty, addiction, mental illness, domestic violence and personal crisis can severely impact a person's ability to feel safe, find a stable home and pursue opportunities.

With businesses of all sizes grappling with the internationalisation of trade, there’s an urgent need for highly skilled business leaders who can navigate the complexities of trade across multiple borders, cultures and continents.

La Trobe's Master of International Business offers you the opportunity to advance your understanding of international commerce and trade. Build a highly specialised skill set and advance your business career to the next level.

This comprehensive postgraduate degree will accelerate your knowledge of finance, accounting, logistics and supply chain, human resources, governance, marketing and management – all from an international perspective. You'll explore how multinational firms operate, including the intricacies of cross-cultural trade.

You'll also have the opportunity to specialise in your area of interest and connect with industry – both in the classroom and in the field.