Collaboration between the arts and sciences has the potential to create new knowledge, ideas and processes beneficial to both fields. Artists and scientists approach creativity, exploration and research in different but increasingly connected ways and perspectives; when working together they open up new ways of seeing, experiencing and interpreting the world around us.

This dual degree program enables students to complete a Major sequence from those available in the Bachelor of Science and complete a Bachelor of Fine Arts, where students can study a wide range of fine art, design and media art disciplines.

The typical duration of this program is 4 years full-time. For admission to the program, students must satisfy the entry requirements to both the Bachelor of Science (3970) and the Bachelor of Fine Arts (4800) programs.

For questions regarding the Bachelor of Fine Arts requirements for the program, students should consult staff in the UNSW Art & Design Student Centre. For questions relating to the Bachelor of Science component of the program, students should consult the Science Student Centre.

Please refer to the program objectives as listed for the 3970 Bachelor of Science program and the 4800 Bachelor of Fine Arts program.

A total of 192 Units of Credit (UoC) is required to complete this dual degree program. Students must satisfy the following requirements for the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Fine Arts components.

Where the requirements for the two programs are completed in less than 192 UoC due to overlapping courses, students must make up the remaining UoC from UNSW Art & Design or UNSW Science.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Science in dual degree mode:

When taken as part of a dual degree, a Bachelor of Science is comprised of 96 units of credit which includes:

Academic rules relating to the Bachelor of Science in dual degree mode are as follows:

   1. Students must complete a minimum of 96 units of credit;

   2. Students must complete at least one approved Bachelor of Science major, and this must be declared before enrolling in level II courses (see the 3970 Bachelor of Science page for approved majors). Information about how to declare a major can be found on the Science Student Centre website;

   3. Students may choose to complete an optional minor using their Science electives (see the 3970 Bachelor of Science page for the list of approved minors).

Students cannot complete a minor with the same name as their nominated major, and Level II and III courses cannot be double-counted between majors and minors. More than one minor may be completed subject to the limit on double-counting. Students must declare their minor(s) before their final semester.


   4. In addition to the courses required for a student's chosen major, students must take 'Science' courses so that the major plus 'Science' courses total 96 UoC. ‘Science’ courses are listed in Table 1 on the 3970 Bachelor of Science page.

   5. Students must complete at least 24 UoC of Level I ‘Science’ courses. ‘Science’ courses are listed in Table 1 of the 3970 Bachelor of Science page.

   6. Students may not enrol into Level II courses until at least 30 UoC of Level I courses have been successfully completed.

   7.Students may not enrol into Level III courses until at least 72 UoC of courses have been successfully completed

Double Majors and Minors in Dual Degrees

Students who intend to complete a double major or a major combined with a minor in the Bachelor of Science when taken as part of a dual degree should be aware that it may be difficult to complete these combinations within 96 UoC. This may involve extra time and cost to complete, and may have visa implications for international students.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Fine Arts in dual degree mode:

Fine Arts Major (48 UoC)

Level 1:

Fine Art Streams:

Drawing (24 UOC), Interactive Media (24 UOC), Painting (24 UOC), Photography (24 UOC),
Printmaking (24 UOC), Sculpture Installation Performance (24 UOC), Textiles (24 UOC).

Design Streams:

Graphics Media (24 UOC), Object Design (24 UOC), Spatial Design(24 UOC), Jewellery (24 UOC), Ceramics (24 UOC)

Media Art Streams:

Animation and Visual Effects (24 UOC), Digital Media (24 UOC)

Honours in the Bachelor of Science Component

Students undertaking the Bachelor of Science in Dual Award mode may apply to complete an additional year (48 UoC) of study for the award of Honours. For details of Honours please see 4500 Bachelor of Science (Honours).

Honours in the Bachelor of Fine Arts Component

Students undertaking the BFA in Dual Award who would like to apply for Honours should contact the UNSW Art & Design Student Centre for more information.

For program rules and requirements, please refer to the Program Structure section above.

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

The Faculty of Science has some rules that relate to all students enrolled in programs offered by the Faculty in relation to recognition for prior learning, general education, course exclusions, study load, and cross-institutional study. All students should read the information contained on the Faculty General Rules and Requirements page in this Handbook.