Are you interested in completing a Bachelor of Arts at WSU?
Look no further! We’ve compiled all of the info you could possibly need to make your decision—we cover it all from majors to assessments.
Have a peep below!
What is a Bachelor of Arts at WSU?
Core Units and Majors
How to Get into a Bachelor of Arts at WSU
What’s the Teaching Format?
What’s the Faculty and Culture Like?
What is a Bachelor of Arts at WSU?
A Bachelor of Arts at WSU is an extremely different degree for each individual depending on how they choose to structure it. With 27 different majors that students can choose from, this degree is able to be customised to what you want to get out of university!
This degree is great for people who are creative, innovative and want to make a positive impact on our world!
Can this degree be studied in conjunction with another?
The Bachelor of Arts at WSU can be studied as a double degree, which means that students can choose to pair it with a degree from another discipline. If students choose to undertake a double degree, it will take more time for them to complete their studies.
Popular additions to the Bachelor of Arts at WSU are:
Careers Paths
The career paths that can be taken on with this degree are as vast as the majors that can be chosen! Students can potentially develop careers in the following industries:
-
- Communication and media
- Education
- Psychology and counselling
- Cultural, political and social policy analysis
- Writing and publishing
- Anthropology
Core Units and Majors
The Bachelor of Arts at WSU is a very much “choose your own adventure” type of degree. With a multitude of majors and different directions students can go in, there are lots of different ways this degree can look!
What are the Core Units?
There are a few common core units that all WSU Arts students must undertake over the course of their degrees. Those units include Australia in the World and Contemporary Society.
The other two units that all Arts students will take are:
Thinking Critically about Texts and Society: This unit allows students to think critically about texts and the society in which these texts were composed within. Through the close study of selected texts and the society in which they were composed, through this unit students are able to get a grasp on technical analysis.
Analytical Reading and Writing: This unit allows students to explore the meaning and purpose certain texts can have. Students can improve and develop their textual analysis skills as well as their critical thinking skills!
What are the Majors?
The way this degree is structured is that students must complete a first major or Key Program in Psychology, and a second major too.
For your first major, you’ll need to complete 80 credit points worth of units in order to be qualified. With the second major, you’ll complete 100 credit points which can consist of either:
-
- a sub-major (40 credit points) in a different specialisation to their initial major and electives (60 credit points worth) OR
- a second major (80 credit points) and electives (20 credit points worth)
If you choose to complete a Key Program in Psychology, you will complete 160 credit points worth of psych units. You’ll also have the chance to complete a sub-major worth 40 credit points as well as 20 credit points of electives.
There are 27 different majors to choose from—here’s a little about each of them:
| Major | Description |
|---|---|
| Anthropology | This major has a focus on humanity and the different cultures we have in our world. |
| Arabic, Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese | These majors provide students with a proficiency in the customs, language and culture of their chosen discipline. |
| Creative Writing | This major enables students to learn how to write, edit and publish their own works to a high standard. |
| Criminology and Criminal Justice | This major offers students to critically study the notions of crime and criminal justice, with focus on the law and case studies. |
| Cultural and Social Analysis | This multidisciplinary major allows students to develop their analytical, critical and research skills, honing in on global trends and happenings. |
| Economy and Markets | This major has a focus on the relationship between individuals, stakeholders, institutions and how they are globally connected. |
| English | This major encourages students to question and study literary theory, approaches to language and linguistics analysis. |
| Geography and Urban Studies | This discipline allows students to explore the geography of Australia, combining the study of people, places and environments. |
| Global Business | This major has a focus on the global economy, consumer habits and the development of networks. |
| Heritage and Tourism | This major covers the concept of conservation and degradation due to the impact of tourism. It aims to produce future-oriented individuals who are able to combine visitation with conservation. |
| History and Political Thought | This entails the study of how humans think, develop and have changed and evolved over time. |
| Indigenous Australian Studies | This major has a focus on gaining cultural competencies, having the history and lifestyle of Indigenous Australia, presented and fronted by Indigenous Australian individuals. |
| Innovation and Change | This major has a focus on the business side of things, teaching students how to continually adapt with our ever-changing world and landscape. |
| International English | This major extends beyond native English speaking and looks at this language through an international lens. |
| International Relations and Asian Studies | You will be taught about interrelations with the government, business and society to create long lasting relations. |
| Islamic Studies | This major provides students with an interdisciplinary understanding of Islam. Students will learn about modern and historic aspects of Islam. |
| Linguistics | This major has a focus on language and the human experience that comes along with it! Students will become enriched learning about how language works within society. |
| Musicology | This major provides students with a theoretical understanding of western classical music, progressing into pop music. |
| Music Performance | This major has an emphasis on performance, students will develop and grow their skills in the realm of writing, performing and developing music. |
| Organisations and Work | This major is aimed towards students who are interested in careers in organisational development. Students will learn all about human resources and ways to treat people within a business. |
| Peace and Development Studies | This major teaches students how to promote and develop peace, human rights and sustainability. |
| Philosophy | This major makes students ask and consider life’s big questions, trying their best to come up with rational and well-rounded answers. |
| Psychological Studies | This major has a focus on psychological studies in the method of scientific techniques. |
| Sociology | This major provides students with a knowledge in methods, theories and select leading areas of sociology. |
Internships
Within this degree, there is a non-compulsory, yet extremely beneficial unit that can be undertaken, which is the School of Humanity and Communication Arts Internship!
This unit helps students gain relevant industry experience at an institution and they will be guided by their coordinator to find an appropriate internship and arrange set hours! There is also a small amount of course work for this unit.
How to Get into a Bachelor of Arts at WSU
To gain guaranteed admission to the Bachelor of Arts at WSU the ATAR needed is 75. However, if you are unable to achieve this ATAR, there are other ways to gain admission into this course!
Pathways
The HSC True Reward Early Offer Program aims to give students early entry into their desired degree through looking at their Year 11 or Year 12 results rather than the scaled ATAR. It should also be noted that students who choose to use their Year 11 results will still need to complete the HSC for admission into the Program.
Students can apply here!
Students who do not meet the ATAR requirements to gain admission to the Bachelor of Arts at WSU can also potentially be invited to undertake their first year of study at The College. The College Program mirrors the first year of the Bachelor’s degree but has smaller class sizes and extra classes so students can receive extra help!
Once the first year of study at The College is complete, students will gain admission into the second year of study in their desired degrees.
Prerequisites/Assumed Knowledge
To get into a Bachelor of Arts at WSU there are no prerequisite subjects that students must take within their HSC years, however, there is assumed knowledge.
This means that the degree runs off the assumption that its students have a HSC level understanding of certain subjects. The assumed knowledge subjects for the Bachelor of Arts at WSU are any two units of HSC English.
Scholarships
WSU hosts a large range of Scholarships. To see if you are eligible for any, check out the Scholarships Calculator Tool here!
What’s the Teaching Format?
At WSU, years of study are structured across semesters. This means that teaching periods are held over two different academic sessions each year with breaks in between!
Class Structure
Your classes for a Bachelor of Arts at WSU will mainly be lectures and tutorials!
Lectures
These classes typically last 1-2 hours and you’ll have around 100 to 300 other students in the lecture theatre with you. Due to the lack of interactive nature in lectures, you’ll find that the professor will mainly be teaching you content and there isn’t a lot of back and forth discussion.
Tutorials
Even though lectures may not feel as engaging, it’s still important to pay attention to them as the content taught will primarily inform tutorials. With a much smaller size of 20 to 30 people, for 1-2 hours, students will consolidate their knowledge with a tutor, do group tasks and complete work!
How many hours do you spend on campus?
The number of contact hours for each semester will vary depending on what units are taken, however as a base note, students can expect to be on campus for around 12 hours each week!
Assessments
WSU Arts assessments will vary from each unit, but typically students will have three assessments each unit per semester.
Two of those assessments are generally exams with the other being an assignment. The assignment could be group work, report writing, and analysis of a text or many other things!
Skills That You Refine and Learn
The Bachelor of Arts at WSU is an extremely extensive degree with many paths. With each discipline, you can gain additional and specialised skills but the following ones are common to all Arts students.
You will learn to become an excellent communicator, through teamwork. Within group tasks and discussions as well as analysis, students will be able to socially navigate their worlds a little easier!
There are lots of readings to complete for the subjects in this degree, so you will inevitably develop your critical thinking skills.
What’s the Faculty and Culture Like?
The tutors and professors within the Bachelor of Arts Faculty at WSU are understanding, helpful and diligent! They are passionate and able to put their all into helping and guiding their students to achieve their best possible marks.
WSU Arts students typically match this passion within their discipline, eager to learn more and connect with students in their cohort! Another way to connect with fellow students is to join a club.
Societies
Some of the clubs and societies you might want to check out are WSUP, The Parramatta Music Club and The Humanities Project!
- WSUP: WSUP is Western Sydney Uni’s student-run publication! The publications on WSUP’s site and print magazine are entirely made by students—both the design and articles.
- The Parramatta Music Club: This group is for all WSU students who love music! The music club holds events, jam sessions and more.
- The Humanities Project: This group was developed to improve WSU students’ lives on and off campus! In doing so, The Humanities Project has completed multiple projects in the aim of making the community better for students and community members.
WSU hosts many different societies and clubs—there are clubs based on cultures, hobbies, interests and more! To check out the clubs WSU have, check out their website here!
Support Program
WSU also hosts the mentoring program, MATES. This program is aimed at first year uni students and gives them the opportunity to connect with other first year students and later year mentors—it allows students to ask questions, connect and have fun!
Keen to learn about the pros and cons of this degree? Check out our article here!
Matilda Elliott is a Content Writer at Art of Smart and a Communication graduate with a major in Journalism at Western Sydney University. You can find some of her published work in a range of platforms including SBS World News, The Music Network and within her own creative exploits with her twin sister. Matilda is a lover of listening, helping people to tell their stories, making genuine connections, clowning around in her circus troupe and dancing like no one is watching at live music shows!
