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What It’s Like Studying a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University

Commerce Monash - Fact Sheet

So a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash is something that interests you, and you want to learn more?

This article will take you through everything you need to know — including experiences of a real student. You will learn what to expect of the degree, the core units and teaching style, the Monash university culture, and much more. 

Read on to find out what it’s like to study a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash uni!

What is a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University?
Core Units and Majors
How to Get into a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University
What’s the Teaching Format?
What’s the Faculty and Culture Like?

What is a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University?

A Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University is a 3-year degree that will develop your understanding of commerce at a foundational level whilst also specialising in a certain area of commerce that interests you. It will teach you about the influence of trade on nations, politics, leadership, and societies over time, as well as the changing nature of commerce in society today due to global and digital trends!

This degree will strongly equip you to work in the real world by applying this knowledge to abstract problems and encouraging you to drive future change. 

What can you expect from studying a Bachelor of Commerce? 

A Bachelor of Commerce at Monash provides you with a well-rounded look into commerce as a whole through foundational required units, including management, economics and accounting, as well as the opportunity to focus on an area of interest. You can expect supportive teaching staff and a positive, uncompetitive learning environment, as well as smaller classes within your specialisation units, and lots of group work and collaboration throughout the course. 

It’s also recommended you have a strong maths foundation if you’re planning on studying Commerce! The majority of Commerce majors (areas of specialisation) are mathematics-heavy, including economics and accounting, and a level of maths study in high school final examinations is a prerequisite (read more below on prerequisites and assumed knowledge). 

Can this degree be studied in conjunction with another?

It is extremely common for Commerce students to do a double degree at Monash university, which extends study to four years!

Luckily, you can choose from an extensive pool of double degrees:

    • Bachelor of Actuarial Science
    • Bachelor of Arts
    • Bachelor of Biomedical Science
    • Bachelor of Computer Science
    • Bachelor of Economics
    • Bachelor of Finance
    • Bachelor of Engineering (Honours)
    • Bachelor of Global Studies
    • Bachelor of Information Technology
    • Bachelor of Laws (Honours)
    • Bachelor of Music
    • Bachelor of Science

Honours

Students studying a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash may have the choice to complete an Honours year (fourth year), which is added to their course. This year further develops skills and knowledge from your Bachelor’s degree, equips you to conduct independent research, and provides you with a competitive edge over other peers particularly if you want to go on to complete a PhD.

Honours programs are available only to a selected number of students with a distinction average (70%) or above in four units (24 points) in the relevant discipline units at level three. 

In addition, you may choose to specialise under the Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) in any of the following with a supplementary application form: 

    • Accounting
    • Actuarial studies
    • Business analytics
    • Econometrics
    • Economics
    • Finance
    • Management
    • Marketing

Career Paths 

A Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University provides you with a diverse and exciting range of career paths, some of these including: 

    • Accountant 
    • Consultant 
    • Auditor 
    • Actuary 
    • Marketing Coordinator/Manager
    • Financial Controller 
    • Financial Analyst 
    • Behavioural Economist 

Core Units and Majors

What are the Core Units? 

All students studying a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash are required to complete 6 foundational units over the course of their degree. These foundational units can be done at any time, and provide a ‘taster’ per-se of the various specialisations within Commerce that are available to them.

These foundational units are: 

In order to graduate, students only need to complete 6 out of the 7 subjects listed.

These subjects provide a solid background for further study; BTS11100 Commercial Law establishes your basic knowledge of consumer law and rights, involving legal case studies, while ECC1000 Principles of Microeconomics teaches you about small-scale markets, and key graphs such as the supply-demand curve, market failure, and price elasticity.

Students may choose between two accounting foundational units — one an ‘introduction’ and the other more extensive, while ETC1000 Business and Economics Statistics will introduce you to using Excel spreadsheets.

On the other hand, management and marketing are both more humanities-based subjects, teaching you about different leadership styles, ethics, marketing pillars, etc. 

Students must also complete one elective unit (6 credit points) from the Faculty of Business and Economics.

What are the Majors?

If you’re studying a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University you will be required to choose a major out of the 12 available. Depending on the major chosen, you may have already studied one of the required units as part of your Commerce specified study (in your foundational units).

You’ll have to complete at least 96 credit points of a certain major’s subjects to complete that major as part of your Bachelor of Commerce! These majors are: 

    • Accounting
    • Actuarial studies 
    • Behavioural commerce 
    • Business analytics 
    • Economics 
    • Econometrics 
    • Finance 
    • Management studies 
    • Marketing science 
    • Mathematical foundations of econometrics 
    • Sustainability 

Unlike the foundational subjects, a lot of Commerce majors will require you to do mathematics in your coursework. For example, an economics major would observe the mathematical reasoning behind certain graphs taught in foundational commerce, like the supply curve.

Over its wide range of subject choices, it will provide you with tools of economic analysis with application in social, business and policy environments. For example, ECC3600 Experimental Economics, wherein students will analyse, justify, and predict the factors affecting individual economic decisions, social decisions, and behaviours in markets. 

Internships and Work Placement 

Although a Bachelor of Commerce does not have inbuilt internships or work placements as a requirement, every student must do either a capstone, consulting project, international or internship experience unit as part of their core Commerce units.

Internship placement allows students to work off-campus with industry partners, while the consulting project is a small team or individual based unit that provides real world work experience through participating as consultants of a real business project.

Capstone and international experiences both require students to engage with real-world scenarios such as sustainability or country-focused national business. 

 

How to Get into a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University

To qualify for application for a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash you will need to achieve an ATAR of 86 or above.

Assumed Knowledge and Prerequisite Subjects 

If you’re considering studying a Bachelor of Commerce, it’s important to check the entry requirements! This includes (and any equivalents): 

VCE subjects 
    • English: Units 3 & 4: a study score of at least 27 in English (EAL) or 25 in English other than EAL
    • Maths: Units 3 & 4: a study score of at least 25 in Mathematical Methods (any) or Specialist Mathematics
IB subjects
    • English: At least 4 in English SL or 3 in English HL or 5 in English B SL or 4 in English B HL
    • Maths: At least 4 in Mathematics SL or 3 in Mathematics HL or 3 in Further Mathematics HL

Admission Pathways

In the cases of alternative pathways like a VET Certificate IV, Diploma or Advanced Diploma graduates, applicants will require a minimum 70% average to be considered for selection, and preference will be given to applicants whose prior studies are related to the course!

If you don’t have the entrance requirements above, you’ll be able to gain entry to this course by completing the pathway Monash College Diploma of Business. There are also special admissions schemes available for those unable to complete any of the pathways listed above for various reasons that the university acknowledges, which you can find out more about here. 

Scholarships

Monash provides general scholarships for students from/in underprivileged areas, Indigenous background, disability, and academic excellence. For example, Achieving Potential Access and Achieving Potential Support scholarships offer $3000 and $15,000 respectively to an almost unlimited number of students every year (unlimited for Access, limited to 300 for Support).

A full list of Monash’s scholarships and their requirements can be found here!

What’s the Teaching Format?

Monash’s university calendar is structured by semesters. These are the start and end dates for both semesters:

    • Semester 1: Early March to early June 
    • Semester 2: Early August to early November 

Class Structure 

The class structure of a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash typically comprises tutorials and lectures. 

Commerce Monash - Class Structure

Lectures

These classes are informative presentations to large groups (often online/via Zoom) about the key information of the subject. For foundational commerce units these consist of as many as 500 people, while for majors this can be less (50 to 200 students) based on the popularity of the major.

Lectures usually run for an hour. 

Tutorials

Tutes are engaging, classroom-style teaching sessions with a tutor and around 15 to 25 students. Those studying a Bachelor of Commerce can expect a lot of collaboration and problem solving in tutorials, where students are asked to analyse case studies by applying the week’s content.

Tutorials usually also involve hands-on learning including drawing diagrams, question and answer sheets, in-class quizzes, and presentations. Tutorials usually run for 2 hours, though may be 3 hours if the lecture is built into the tutorial. 

How much time do you spend at uni? 

It’s rare students will spend more than 3 or 4 days at uni per week, with class time itself roughly taking up 12 hours of the week. This free time is beneficial if you plan on working while completing your degree!

Assessments

The assessment style of a Bachelor of Commerce will differ depending on your major and subjects! For example, an Economics major will usually have formal examinations/tests, however other assessment forms include essays with case studies and presentations. 

Skills That You Develop 

Commerce Monash - Skills

The foundational subjects in a Bachelor of Commerce at Monash can provide you with a solid base of skills to develop in your own time, and/or through your major. The skillset of each Commerce student usually differs, however the key skills you will learn include: 

    • Critical thinking
    • Communication
    • Collaboration
    • Case study analysis
    • Presentational skills
    • Mathematics skills (e.g. calculus) 

What’s the Faculty and Culture Like? 

Faculty and Culture 

Monash University boasts a vibrant and exciting university life as one of Victoria’s largest and leading institutions. Bachelor of Commerce students can expect to be on the main campus, Clayton!

Clayton is a very social campus, with a welcoming first-year culture and friendly staff, and events such as open concerts and food-stalls constantly running. 

Commerce Monash - Student Quote

The Monash Commerce Society hosts networking and social events throughout the year to keep students connected, and students may even have the chance to write articles for various student publications, as Synnoeve has. 

Exchange Opportunities 

Monash offers exchange to all students; a list of experiences available specifically to Commerce students can be found here!


Zara Zadro is a Content Writer for Art of Smart and a current undergraduate student at the University of Sydney. She studies a Bachelor of Arts/Advanced Studies majoring in Media & Communications and English. In her free time, she enjoys reading, listening to music and discovering new parts of Sydney. She has also written for the student publications Honi Soit and Vertigo. After she graduates, Zara hopes to do a Masters in creative writing and live overseas, which she cannot wait for!

 

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