Bachelor of Politics, Philosophy and Economics

at University of Wollongong - Wollongong Campus Australia

A Bachelor of Creative Arts at UOW encourages you to immerse yourself creatively, critically and practically. The Creative Industries is one of the fastest-growing, most dynamic sectors in the world.

The study of music integrates physical, intellectual and emotional aspects, including instrumental or vocal performance, composition, music production and recording, history and theory. This degree offers a deeper understanding of how music works, as well as the skills to develop as a creative practitioner and prepare for a career in the arts.

This is a versatile, hands-on degree that prepares you for a career in the global creative industries. With a strong focus on contemporary music practice, this major combines performance, composition and both electronic and acoustic media so you can build your skills and expertise across three interrelated areas: music studio, audio production and critical studies in music.

What you will study
The Bachelor of Creative Arts (Music) involves study of theory and practice-based work. You will develop your own style and identity through creative processes, conceptual skills and applying your knowledge into practice, independently and collaboratively with students and staff from other creative disciplines. Beyond that you will build specialised technical skills, and a clear grasp of how your own practice relates to the wider music community.

Criminologists take an interdisciplinary approach to understanding why people commit crime, how societies conceptualise harm, and why some harms are classed as crimes while others are not. Criminologists also investigate how societies respond to crime and whether our responses are effective and fair for offenders, victims and the general community. Social Science draws on a range of disciplines to critically examine current debates and how various contested theories and values translate into policies and practices

This degree
The UOW Bachelor of Social Science (Criminology) involves a common foundation of compulsory social science subjects combined with a major in Criminology. You will complement your degree with a minor study area or elective subjects from any field in the University offering cross-faculty enrolment. You may choose to complete your electives abroad, or stay local and undertake activities to build your cross-cultural communication skills. This degree provides a strong foundation for postgraduate studies in research, Social Work, Public Health, Work Health and Safety and Teaching.

What you will study
Foundational subjects in social science include social determinants of health, human geography, sociology, interdisciplinary competencies and career ready learning. You will also begin your major in first year.

During your second and third years you'll focus on criminology subjects relating to crime and justice with options to extend and explore issues around youth crime, environmental crime, innovative justice, power and resistance, research methods and more.

Public Health is the art and science of promoting population health, creating health environments and including health in all policies. Public Health practitioners work in government, not for profit and private organisations to improve living standards through preventing infectious diseases and poor health caused by unhealthy lifestyle, enabling positive mental wellbeing based on scientific evidence as well as conducting long terms studies of populations to improve current solutions.

This degree
This degree will provide you with an understanding of the key issues affecting the health of populations. You will develop skills in obtaining, reviewing and analysing health information; planning and managing a health program or project, and in improving the health of populations. This degree will expose you to the way governments, not for profits and private institutions conceptualise and tackle a variety of health challenges and prepare you for the future of public health.

High achieving students can undertake an Honours year at the conclusion of the degree to further develop and apply their research skills. Professional Recognition Graduates can apply to be a full member of the Public Health Association of Australia.

What you will study
During the UOW Bachelor of Public Health you will learn the basics of the health sector and develop an understanding of the problems involving health, illness, treatment and welfare. There is an emphasis on the scientific basis of public health, together with social policy and communication aspects. You will also be provided with career ready experiences throughout the degree to prepare you for a changing world of work.

The Master of Engineering (Civil) provides graduate Engineers with discipline-specific knowledge and technical skills in advanced civil engineering. This degree covers many areas including sustainable infrastructure, environmental protection, the conservation of resources, as well as the traditional disciplines of structural, geotechnical and transportation engineering. This course is also suitable for practising civil engineers with relevant work experience in engineering infrastructure constructions.

This degree

The Master of Engineering delivers expert skills and applied competencies required for the professional engineer. It is designed to train and enhance professional practice, advance technical and specialist skills, and provide an opportunity to put theory into practice with applied projects and research. The degree also delivers communication, strategic and project management skills essential to the practising engineer.

What you will study

You will complete core subjects in Professional Communications and Engineering Workplace Practice, Innovation and Design, Structural Design Based on Australian Standards, Advanced Computer Applications, Sustainable Roads and Railway Engineering, Construction Management and Engineering Research Methods. For the Civil Engineering major you will study subjects in Advanced Foundation Engineering, Advanced Soil Mechanics, Engineering Hydrology and Tunnelling and Underground Construction. You will also complete an advanced project.

The Graduate Certificate in Health Research is a coursework program in medical and health research methods aimed at clinicians and health professionals who wish to upgrade their skills in health research.

This degree

The degree is suitable for clinicians and other health professionals. It develops research skills in the fields of health and medicine and prepares you for masters by research or doctoral studies, and also for undertaking research activities in your workplace.

What you will study

• The course comprises two core subjects plus two elective subjects.
• You must complete two compulsory subjects and two electives in quantitative and qualitative research methods including research ethics and integrity.

The Master of Marketing involves an exploration of the motives of consumers during the purchase of products and services. You will learn how to use this market research to make more effective marketing decisions.

Leading Marketing academics will teach you to examine who the customer is to develop a competitive advantage by effectively positioning products/services in the market. You will study how to utilize promotional tools an organization may use to create this competitive advantage and enhance a brand’s equity, whether the organization is a commercial, non-profit, or social entity.

This master’s degree will ultimately enable you to develop and demonstrate technical knowledge and skills in marketing, a field increasingly important for all types of organizations that need to deliver value through the products and services they create. You will have the opportunity to study a wide range of advanced topics in marketing and gain professionally oriented generalist and specialist marketing skills.

A Bachelor of Science - Bachelor of Laws from UOW equips graduates with a comprehensive legal education: a world-class degree that provides a thorough grounding in the law, as well as a real-world focus on the essential practical skills and the social and ethical context in which the law operates.

Combining Law with Science allows you to gain a competitive edge by being able to recognise how law functions in social and scientific contexts. You will tackle projects such as environmental planning, or look at the legal implications of introducing new technology. You can choose to specialise in one specific area of science or choose to work in corporate advisory roles around social responsibility. This double degree will help you develop logical and independent thinking, creative problem-solving, organisational abilities, numeracy and statistical literacy.

We believe that practical experience is a vital part of your legal training. We are the only law school in New South Wales that requires you to complete a legal internship, providing highly valued industry experience. We are committed to social justice and providing a legal education that engages with the complexities of law's intersection with society.

What you will study
The Bachelor of Science - Bachelor of Laws covers the prescribed areas of knowledge for future admission to the profession as well as including a choice of electives. Additionally, an integrated skills program equips graduates with experience in areas such as legal research, interviewing, legal drafting, advocacy and negotiation. Opportunities also exist to undertake subjects by way of international exchange.

You will also choose one major from the Bachelor of Science: Cell and Molecular Biology, Chemistry, Ecology and Conservation Biology, Environment, Geology or Physical Geography.

The Master of Teaching (Secondary) is for university graduates from non-teaching courses who want to become secondary school teachers (Years 7 to 12). On completion of this degree, you will obtain a formal qualification making you eligible to teach specialized subject areas to students aged 13 to 18 in public, religious, and private schools.

This degree produces high-quality teachers with an understanding of diversity in the classroom and with strong connections to school communities.  

This program focuses on building teaching skills through a professional experience immersion program in your very first session, and regular professional experience periods throughout the degree. You will complete 60 days of professional experience (PEX), including the option to complete one PEX in a rural or remote area of NSW. There are also opportunities to undertake international immersion programs that, while not counted as a PEX, allow you to travel overseas, visit schools and develop your understanding of people and cultures.

Your learning will be supported by online teaching, forums, podcasts and video streamed lectures, on-campus tutorials, and in-school activities. You will benefit from the expertise of local teachers and a range of workshops to develop your skills in communication, technology-enhanced learning, working with parents, designing assessments, and conducting school-based research.

During your degree, you will explore the concepts of teaching and learning to build your professional skills in your selected teaching areas. Teaching areas include: English, Science, Visual Arts, Modern or Ancient History, Geography, Society and Culture or Aboriginal Studies, Legal Studies and Business Studies or Economics.  The methods offered are subject to demand, meaning that not all methods are guaranteed to be offered each year.

A Bachelor of Mathematics (Honours) degree considerably widens career opportunities and serves as an initial preparation for employment as a professional mathematician or statistician. It also satisfies the entry requirement for higher research studies such as a Master of Philosophy or a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree.

This degree
The Bachelor of Mathematics (Honours) degree teaches highly transferable skills in problem-solving, data analysis, probability and variability, mathematical modelling, logistics and logic. The degree is flexible, so you can take up to one third of your subjects from other disciplines to expand your career options.

There are opportunities for scholarships from corporate partners, plus summer scholarships and undergraduate research projects with academic staff, access to programs offered by the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI) and inter-university courses via our Access Grid Room.

What you will study
You will complete a substantial thesis in Mathematics or Statistics in an area of interest under the close supervision of one or more members of staff in the discipline. The remainder of the degree consists of coursework subjects chosen from those offered by the School or the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI), with the approval of the Bachelor of Mathematics Honours Coordinator.

The study of Philosophy at UOW teaches you how to think, not what to think. As lovers of wisdom, philosophers are deeply, personally invested in their quest for truth and enlightenment. There are no questions that philosophers will not consider.  How should we live and treat others? Do our lives have meaning? Does science have all the answers?  In studying philosophy at UOW you will explore the most fundamental topics, ask the deepest questions and –rigorously and systematically– scrutinize the answers given by the best minds down the ages.

Studying for a UOW degree in Philosophy will train you in logic and argumentation. It will enlarge and enrich your conception of what is possible. You will acquire the intellectual discipline needed to challenge the assumptions that frame the way we think about the world and how we should behave in it. You will learn to bring philosophical considerations to bear on practical problems in order to make informed decisions about important issues such as:  social justice; free speech; global poverty; climate change, animal welfare; humane psychotherapy; education and expertise.

A philosophical education is valuable in just about any line of work. It develops your persuasive powers; critical thinking, problem solving abilities; and communication skills. A 2016 report by the Foundation for Young Australians reveals that these skills are in great demand today in professions that require people who can stand back and think with an open mind. Past UOW Philosophy graduates have found work in such diverse careers as: administration; art and design; business development; community and social services; consulting; education; entrepreneurship; healthcare; human resources; IT; legal; management; media; program and project research.

What you will study

Core subjects will teach you about: ethics, politics, mind, self, knowledge, science, and the relevance of philosophy to the wider world and the workplace. Elective areas of study include media; art and society; logic; the meaning of life; philosophy in film and literature; global and environmental ethics; bioethics; political philosophy; narrative psychology and selfhood; imagination and emotion; health and happiness; and Eastern philosophy.