Bachelor of Science
Degree Structure
Choosing courses
As the choice of first year courses may restrict later-year choices, you should decide which majors you may be interested in taking and seek advice for the chosen majors. Note prerequisites may be required for later year courses, and you will need to be guided by first year course required for later year courses that you may want to study. It is important to note that some first year courses are terminating courses, that is, they do not serve as prerequisites for later year courses in a discipline. Including more than one or two such courses in the first year of your program will significantly reduce your flexibility in choosing later year courses.
To maximise options in later year courses students should take at most four courses with the same prefix.
Science Majors
Single major
A Science major requires 42 units of courses with a common theme comprising:
- a maximum of 12 units of Group A courses;
- a minimum of 30 units of Group B or Group C courses, including 18 units of Group C courses.
No major requires more than 18 units of Group C courses, but some majors allow more than 18 units of Group C courses to be included in the 42 units.
No specific Group C course may be counted as meeting the requirements of more than one major.
Double major
Some majors with a common theme are available as a double major. A double major consists of a minimum of 60 units of courses with a common theme comprising:
- a maximum of 12 units of Group A courses
- a minimum of 48 units of Group B or Group C courses, including 36 units of Group C courses.
The list of possible majors is:
Climate Science and Policy
Earth and Environmental Science
Natural Resource Management
Quantitative Biology and Bioinformatics
First Year
It is important, particularly if you are doing a combined degree, to make sure that your first year selection of courses prepares you for majors in more than one area of the Colleges. Students often want to change their initial preferences based on the greater knowledge they obtain in first year. Because of this, you do not need to choose your major or majors until the end of the first year. Furthermore, most areas of science increasingly rely on knowledge from other areas.
Specific advice is available for first year courses under each major.
To choose your courses start considering which majors you are interested in and determine the courses needed for those majors. Some majors will give you fewer options (specifying four suggested first year courses) whilst others will leave you many choices. In the case of Quantitative Biology and Bioinformatics, you will need to study at least five science courses including four specified courses in first year in order to study that major. In general, provided it meets the requirements of the majors in which you are interested, it is a good idea to study both semesters of a subject with one prefix. Finally, having made your choice, check that you will be able to take majors in more than one area.
If in doubt consult a sub-dean or first year course advisor.
The Degree with Honours
The information published on the Study at ANU 2010 website applies to the 2010 academic year only. All information provided on this website replaces the information contained in the Study at ANU 2009 website.
