Bachelor of Arts (Honours)(Media and Communications)

The BA Media & Communications (Honours) program is an advanced and specialised course of study requiring a higher standard of performance than for the pass degree. It enhances your ability to acquire advanced skills of analysis, to develop original ideas, and to apply innovative solutions to complex problems. The Honours program involves one additional year of study at fourth-year level. Commencement of honours must occur within five years of the completion of your degree course.

This BA Media and Commuication (Honours) program is available to students who have completed the Bachelor of Arts heritage degree including the BA (M&C) combined degrees at the University of Melbourne. Students who have completed the new generation B-ARTS or an Arts degree from another University should apply for the new generation Honours program (BH-ARTS) - more information

In order to meet the requirements for the BA (Media & Communications)(Honours) degree, you must complete 100 points of study at fourth-year level.

Pure honours consists of 62.5 points of coursework and a thesis of 37.5 points. Combined honours usually consists of the thesis and two coursework subjects in one area of study (37.5 + 25 = 62.5 points) and three coursework subjects in the combined area of study (37.5 points).

Students intending to complete combined Media & Communications Honours with the thesis in Media & Communication enrol in this course stream. Students intending to complete combined Honours with the thesis in the second area of study enrol in the BA (Honours) course stream (104AA). In most cases, BA (M&C) combined degree students who meet the required academic entry standards can enter the Honours program. However, before you are admitted to fourth-year level studies you must complete your Media & Communications component as well as enough relevant subjects from your combining degree to allow you to take out the pass degree if you were to discontinue your combining degree. You will not be eligible to graduate with the BA (Media & Communications)(Honours) degree until all the requirements of the combining degree or program are met.

Students undertaking the pure honours stream complete:

• three fourth-year level Media and Communications core subjects (*see note below) (37.5 points); and

• two optional fourth-year level subjects (25 points); and

• a Media and Communications thesis of 12,000 words (37.5 points).

Double major students may complete one of the following combined honours streams:

• two fourth-year level Media and Communications core subjects (*see note below) (25 points); and

• three fourth-year level subjects in the combining discipline (37.5 points); and

• a Media and Communications thesis of 12,000 words (37.5 points).

OR

• three fourth-year level Media and Communications core subjects (37.5 points); and

• two fourth year-level subjects in the combining discipline (25 points); and

• a thesis in the combining discipline (37.5 points).

Please note: students undertaking the second option will graduate with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) NOT a Bachelor of Arts (Media and Communications Honours).

*Note: Students intending to undertake MULT50001 Research Principles and Practices should undertake this subject in the first semester of their Media and Communications Thesis enrolment.

For information on policies that govern this degree, see Academic Policies and Procedures listed in the Melbourne Policy Library.

Media & Communications thesis subject

Note: the thesis requires two consecutive semesters of enrolment.

Media & Communications core honours subjects

Media & Communications optional honours subjects

The prerequisites for entry to fourth-year honours in Media and Communications are:

• completion of all the requirements of the BA (Media and Communications); and

• completion of a major in Media and Communications; and

• an average grade of H2A (75%) or higher over the second/third-year Media and Communications subjects.

Entry into combined honours is contingent on completing a second major and meeting the average grade requirements for that major.

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this course are articulated in the Course Description, Course Objectives and Generic Skills of this entry.
The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

Coursework Masters

If you wish to continue your professional studies at postgraduate level, the studies you undertake in your major can provide a direct pathway to Coursework Masters Degrees in areas such as editing, media and communications, public policy and management, international studies, arts management, development studies and many more. Entry is based on academic merit and in most cases requires a Bachelors degree or equivalent in the relevant study area.

For more information on entry into a coursework masters degree, please refer to the The Graduate School of Humanities & Social Sciences:

Research Higher Degrees

If you wish to undertake advanced research and explore particular study areas in more depth, there will be opportunities to proceed to a range of Research Higher Degrees at masters and doctoral level. For more information about research higher degree study in Arts, see the Faculty of Arts Graduate Research Programs.

Students who graduate with Honours in the Bachelor of Arts (Media & Communication) at Melbourne receive a passport to a world of opportunities. The degree provides students with the scope to refine their analytical skills and research techniques while significantly expanding the range of options available after graduation.