Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Social Science in Peace and Development Studies (Dual Degree)

at Western Sydney University - Penrith Campus (Kingswood) Australia

Mathematics plays a crucial role in almost every sector of the economy. From finance to engineering, teaching, medicine and politics – mathematics is essential to model, analyse and solve problems.

The essence of mathematics is the use of abstraction and logic to discover, describe and completely and unambiguously understand systems.

Develop your ability to discover, describe and analyse patterns with the Bachelor of Mathematics. You will learn from world-class academics with a research strength in mathematics, and have opportunities for industry engagement. With your logical mind and analytical skills, you’ll enter the job market as a highly sought-after graduate.

Our degree also gives you the option of completing majors in Financial Mathematics, Data Science, or Computational Mathematics, or you can use the degree as a pathway to secondary teaching.

If you’re creative, passionate and a problem solver, our enhanced Arts degree could be for you.

With a Bachelor of Social Science from Western, you will have the ability to help shape the world we live in. This degree expands your knowledge through theory, research and practical application and offers you a deep understanding of our complex, culturally diverse and dynamic world. You will gain access to industry-based projects and placements, local and international work experience and build the practical skills that will get you ready to apply your knowledge to the workforce.

Anthropology 

Social Anthropology is the study of humans and the cultures they create. The major in Anthropology within the Bachelor of Social Science offers students the opportunity to examine social patterns and practices across cultures, to discover similarities and differences between cultures, and to understand the processes by which humans organise and create meaning.

Areas of focus include the development of anthropology as a discipline; globalisation and culture; power and politics; gender and sexuality; identity and belonging; ethnography and ethnographic methods; indigenous peoples and nation states. Specific attention is given to cultures of Australasia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific, and to cross cultural interactions, at both global and local levels.

The major seeks to equip students with multi-cultural knowledge as well as to provide a thorough grounding in research methods and ethics with utility in a variety of professional and academic contexts.

The specialist knowledge of engineering technologists is a key element in the practice of engineering. The engineering technologist’s focused learning and practical skills are highly utilised in industry and make a significant contribution to Australian engineering success and prosperity.

The Western Sydney region has experienced strong growth and the engineering industry requires engineering technologists in a range of specialisations to support industry.

Construction

Construction Engineering consists of core subjects in structural engineering, project management and construction technologies. Graduates will work in the fields of construction, structural design, and project management. Career opportunities include those in the private or public sector on projects covering highways, airports, and residential & commercial buildings.

Graduate destinations include:
Construction Engineering Technologist, Structural Engineering Technologist, Geotechnical Engineering Technologist, Site Engineering Technologist.

This double degree program is designed for students whose interests span the Arts and Social Sciences.

It will give you the skills and versatility to work across a range of academic and professional disciplines, including the opportunity to develop global perspectives and communication skills.

You need to include a Social Science Major, so you can design your own academic program within the Bachelor of Social Science program structure.

Sociology

Sociology is the study of society and culture. Using diverse methods, practices and theories, it helps us understand social life. Sociology is fundamental to the social sciences because the quality of life of every human on the planet is directly or indirectly influenced by their relative position within, and responses to, society.

This major in Sociology provides you with a thorough training in the methods, theories and select leading areas of contemporary sociology. In the Sociology major, you will have opportunities to study particular themes from a sociological perspective, including inequalities, deviance, identities, gender, religion, medicine and health care, ethnicity and migration, and the family, among other possibilities.

Western offers a specialist Computer Science degrees to equip you with the skills you need to be career-ready by specialising in different applications of computer science and computer systems.

Networked Systems

This major is only available to students enrolled in the Bachelor of Computer Science and Bachelor of Computer Science Advanced. This major aims to develop graduates with sound skills in the discipline of networked computer systems. Recent advances in computer and telecommunications networked systems, particularly those based on TCP/IP, have increased the importance of network technologies in the discipline of computer science.

This major covers a wide range of topics including computer communication network concepts and protocols, multimedia systems, Internet standards and technologies, network security, wireless and mobile computing, and distributed systems. The candidates are also introduced to some of the relevant current key research issues of the field.

The degree will develop the mindset, risk tolerance, creativity, passion, big thinking, team formation and leadership capabilities – the key distinct characteristics of high-impact entrepreneurs.

In an entrepreneurial ecosystem, you will learn the knowledge and techniques for opportunity discovery, impact analysis, customer analysis, strategic team-building and leadership, the psychology and ethics of the start-up, funding modelling and financial analysis, growth and exit strategies.

The Games Design and Simulation specialisation will convert your passion for playing games into deep knowledge of the science and art of problem solving through development and application of games and simulations.

This area of study includes gamification, games design, game-based learning, and psychology of gaming, serious games, games entrepreneurship, as well as broader modelling and simulation. It features two majors that are not available in any other Western University degree - Game Programming and Game Design.

Upon completion you will have developed an entrepreneurial mindset and will know how to apply this mindset to address a diverse range of problems through game and simulation-based solutions.

The program incorporates practical experience in every semester of study, placing students in entrepreneurial environments (incubators, technology parks, innovation centres) and enabling them through all the stages from creative ideation through the sustainable development of the idea into a lean start-up.

Game Programming

In this major you will gain skills in programming, data structures, video game development, artificial intelligence and more. 

If you’re creative, passionate and a problem solver, our enhanced Arts degree could be for you.

With a Bachelor of Social Science from Western, you will have the ability to help shape the world we live in. This degree expands your knowledge through theory, research and practical application and offers you a deep understanding of our complex, culturally diverse and dynamic world. You will gain access to industry-based projects and placements, local and international work experience and build the practical skills that will get you ready to apply your knowledge to the workforce.

Sociology

The major in Sociology provides students with a thorough training in the methods, theories and select leading areas of contemporary sociology. As well as units in which methods and theories are taught, through the social science core, students enrolled in the Sociology major will have opportunities to study a number of particular themes from a sociological perspective, including inequalities, deviance, identities, gender, religion, medicine and health care, ethnicity and migration, and the family, among other possibilities.

A Bachelor of Social Science (BSS) with a major in Sociology will prepare students for both employment and a research higher degree.

You’re curious, enjoy telling stories, and you want to use media to share ideas about the things that get people talking.

Our Communication degree will give you the professional skills and knowledge to build the ‘go anywhere, do anything’ career you want. Major in Journalism, Advertising, Public Relations or Screen Media and develop job-ready skills in communication, digital media, media production, research, and innovation.

Advertising

The Advertising major gives students a thorough grounding in general principles of communication as well as practical skills in advertising. The major offers a balance of advertising theory and practice and focuses on real, project-based outcomes.

Areas of study include advertising strategy, advertising creative and art direction, client and account management, digital and social media contexts, advertising campaigns.