Program

Psychology (Honours) / Law - 4721

Program Summary

Faculty: Faculty of Law

Contact: http://www.law.unsw.edu.au

Campus: Sydney

Career: Undergraduate

Typical Duration: 6 Years  

Typical UOC Per Semester: 24

Min UOC Per Semester: 6

Max UOC Per Semester: 24

Min UOC For Award: 288

UAC Code: 426000

Domestic Entry Requirements: See Domestic Entry Requirements

International Entry Requirements: See International Entry Requirements

Award(s):

Bachelor of Laws

Bachelor of Psychology (Honours)

View program information for previous years

Program Description

This program is for new 2017 commencing students. If you are a continuing student please refer to the Online Handbook in the year you started your Dual Law degree or contact the Faculty of Law for advice.

The Dual award degree Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) / Bachelor of Laws is a 6 year program (full-time) and provides an opportunity to obtain two degrees that would be of interest to students wishing to study both psychology (at honours level) and law. The Law courses satisfy the requirements for the award of the professional LLB degree.The Fourth Year program in Psychology (typically taken in the fifth year of the combined program) meets the requirements of a fourth year towards provisional registration as a psychologist nationally (http://www.psychologyboard.gov.au/) and associate membership in the Australian Psychological Society

Program Objectives and Graduate Attributes

For the Bachelor of Laws, please see the program objectives and learning outcomes listed in program 4701 Bachelor of Laws

For the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours), please see the program objectives and learning outcomes as listed in program 3632 Psychology(Honours)

Program Structure

In this dual degree program, students must successfully complete 288 UOC, including 144 UOC for the BPsych(Hons) and 144 UOC for the LLB.

Total Unit Requirements

Law compulsory courses - 96 UOC
Law prescribed elective - 6 UOC
Law elective courses - 42 UOC
Psychology Courses - 144 UOC - please see below for further detail
Total 288 UOC

The subject requirements for the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) are as follows:

Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
PLUS

30 UOC from level 3 Psychology courses: must include TWO courses from each of the elective groups below.

Note: Not all level III Psychology elective courses are necessarily offered each year.

Elective Stream A:
Elective Stream B:
Stage 4 (Honours)

Semester 1
Semester 2
Approved Sequence of Study
Students must study Psychology courses in a sequence approved by the Faculty of Science and Law courses in a sequence approved by the Faculty of Law. An approved sequence can be found here:

LAWSA14721 Psychology and Law

General Education Requirements

Students enrolled in a dual law degree (with exception to Jurisprudence/Law) are not required to complete general education courses.

Honours

Honours in Bachelor of Law

High achieving students may be eligible to graduate with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours).

Please visit the Honours in law website for further information about the current Honours policy (applicable to students who commenced the LLB in 2014 or earlier) and the new policy (applicable to students who commenced the LLB from 2015 onwards).

Honours in Bachelor of Psychology (Honours)

Stage 4 of the Bachelor of Psychology(Honours) program, comprises an honours year consisting of completion of a 30 unit of credit independent research project completed under the guidance of an academic supervisor, and 18 units of credit of advanced level coursework. The research project may be undertaken in most areas of psychology including: psychopathology; behavioural neuroscience; cognitive science; cognition and perception; forensic psychology; organisational psychology; and social, personality and developmental psychology. Students can indicate their preferred research areas but cannot be guaranteed the supervisor of their choice. The Honours coursework requirement includes content that encompasses history, professional ethics, evidence-based practice and advanced coverage of selected contemporary issues in psychology that reflect the expertise and research specialisations of School staff.
The research project culminates in and is assessed by a written thesis. This thesis is assessed independently by two academics, neither of which is the student's supervisor. Where there is a discrepancy in the marks between the two assessors, a third assessor may be engaged.
At the completion of their Honours program students will be awarded an honours grading as follows:
  • Honours Class 1: mark of 85 or greater;
  • Honours Class 2 Division 1: mark from 75 to 84;
  • Honours Class 2 Division 2: mark from 65 to 74;
  • Honours Class 3: mark from 50 to 64.
The calculation of class of award will be determined from the student’s weighted average mark for all of the courses (research-based and coursework) required in the final year of the program. Only courses completed as part of the final fourth-year Honours will be included within an honours calculation.

Academic Rules

Requirements for the Bachelor of Psychology(Honours) in Dual Mode

Students enrolled in the Bachelor of Psychology(Honours) as one part of a dual degree must complete a minimum of 144 Units of Credit (UoC) for the award of the degree. Academic rules relating to the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) as one part of a dual degree are as follows:
  1. Students must complete a minimum of 144 units of credit (UOC).
  2. Students must follow the program of study as outlined in this Handbook and defined under the Program Structure above, completing a minimum of 144 UOC in Psychology including 48 UOC in Psychology at Honours level.
  3. No student may commence level II courses until 24 units of credit of level I courses have been successfully completed.
  4. Students may commence level III courses upon successful completion of 72 units of credit.
  5. Students will not be allowed to progress to Stage 4 (Honours) unless they achieve an average of 75% or higher across Psychology courses that they have taken as part of the Psychology major sequence, i.e. level 1 elective courses in Psychology such as PSYC1022, PSYC1023, PSYC1024 and PSYC1031 do not count in the calculation of this average. Students achieving an average of 70%-74.99% across Psychology major courses may be admitted subject to appropriate research and supervision resources being available and at the discretion of the Head of School. Students with an average of less than 70% across all Psychology major courses will normally not be admitted. Students not gaining admission into Honours are required to transfer to 4722 Psychological Science / Law.
  6. The final grading for the degree is based on performance in Stage 4 (Honours) of the degree. Award: Class I, Class II of Division 1, Class II Division 2, or Honours Class 3. Students who achieve less than 50% in the Honours program will be awarded the Pass degree, Bachelor of Psychological Science.
  7. Study Load: This is a four-stage full-time program. In any one session students must enrol in a full study load of 24 UoC in accordance with the requirements of the program. Only in exceptional circumstances will students be allowed to enrol in a reduced program for a Stage.
  8. Academic Standing: Students are required to achieve an average of 70 percent or higher in Psychology courses taken in any Stage (based on the first attempted result for each course). Students not maintaining this level of performance in Stage 1 will be counselled. Students who fail to achieve an average of 70 percent or higher in all Psychology courses taken in Stages 2 and 3 will normally be required to transfer to the 4722 Bachelor of Psychological Science/ Law.
Requirements for the Bachelor of Laws
For Academic Rules relating to the Bachelor of Laws component of this dual law degree program, please refer to program 4701. Although 4701 program is no longer on offer, all dual law students enrolled in the LLB will need to comply with the rules stated here.

A direct link is given below:
Bachelor of Law 4701

Fees

For information regarding fees for UNSW programs, please refer to the following website:  UNSW Fee Website.

Professional recognition

The Bachelor of Laws (LLB) is an undergraduate law degree that is recognised as satisfying the academic requirements for admission as a legal practitioner in NSW. The degree is only offered in combination with another approved undergraduate degree (dual award mode).
The Fourth Year program of the Bachelor of Psychology(Honours) (typically taken in the fifth year of the dual program) meets the requirements of a fourth year towards provisional registration as a psychologist nationally (http://www.psychologyboard.gov.au/) and associate membership in the Australian Psychological Society

Note: As of 1 July 2010, a single national registration scheme operates for psychologists in Australia, and all practising psychologists must be registered with the Psychology Board of Australia (PBA). The national scheme will allow psychologists to work in any Australian State or Territory.

Area(s) of Specialisation