Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Laws

Bachelor

This double degree provides students with the opportunity to combine their study of law with an area of interest drawn from a wide variety of the arts, humanities and social sciences. It thereby gives students a larger variety of career options.

Key details

Degree Type

Bachelor

Duration

5 years full-time, 12 years part-time

Course Code

BA/LLB, 016020J

Study Mode

In person, Online

ATAR

84.4

About this course

This double degree provides students with the opportunity to combine their study of law with an area of interest drawn from a wide variety of the arts, humanities and social sciences. It thereby gives students a larger variety of career options. Studying law in conjunction with another discipline gives you the potential to take an interdisciplinary approach in both your studies and in your future employment.

Students can study an arts major or extended major of their choice. The degree combines excellent communication and analytical skills with a solid foundation in law and has been developed in response to increasing student demand and employer preference for recruitment of double degree graduates.

The University of New England delivers a flexible approach to the study of law. UNE boasts one of Australia's largest law schools outside a capital city, as well as being an early adopter of innovative technology in the delivery of its law programs.

Arts component:

Students who have successfully completed the Bachelor of Arts may, on the recommendation of the head of school concerned, continue to an honours year. The honours program shall include advanced coursework and a dissertation.

Law component:

The Bachelor of Laws is accredited by the Legal Profession Admission Board of NSW for admission as a legal practitioner in NSW and mutual recognition legislation extends admission to other Australian jurisdictions.

There are a range of employment options from which to choose. Graduates who wish to be admitted to practice as a solicitor, barrister or legal practitioner anywhere in Australia will also have to undertake a course of professional legal training (PLT). This can consist of approximately half a year's full-time training, undertaken internally or externally, or of equivalent part-time training. In some jurisdictions, it may be possible to do articles of clerkship instead. Because the system adopted varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, enquiries should be made to the admission authority in the state or territory in which you intend to practice; this is usually a committee of the Supreme Court of that State or Territory or a special body set up to administer admissions to the legal profession. Additional information can be found on the School of Law page.

Students who complete the Honours Pathway may be awarded the Bachelor of Laws with Honours. To be admitted to the Honours stream, candidates must have completed 72 credit points of law units at UNE with a grade point average (GPA) of 5.5 or better.

Entry requirements

A candidate shall:

(a) be qualified for admission (see

Admission Undergraduate and Postgraduate (Coursework) Rule

and

Admission Undergraduate and Postgraduate (Coursework) Procedures

);

or

(b) hold an AQF Level 5 Diploma in Arts from UNE;

or

(c) hold an AQF Level 6 Advanced Diploma in Arts from UNE.

Assumed knowledge is any two units of English.

Recommended studies: Mathematics.

Study locations

Armidale

Online

What you will learn

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

BA component: demonstrate a detailed knowledge and understanding of selected fields of study in core disciplines in the humanities, social sciences and languages and apply that knowledge in diverse contexts;
demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of theories, factual content and research procedures and practice in their major and other fields of study;
analyse, critically evaluate and communicate ideas and solve problems with intellectual independence in their major and other fields of study;
act as informed and critically discriminating participants within the community of scholars; and
display highly developed communication skills and, in the case of those students undertaking a language major, read, write and speak another language with fluency and understand its cultural context.
BLaws component: demonstrate a sound knowledge of the fundamental areas of law prescribed by the admitting authorities; a wide range of legal and theoretical concepts, values and principles; and have an awareness of international law and an appreciation of Indigenous legal issues;
communicate in an effective and persuasive manner an argument, advice or opinion that is clear, coherent and logically sustainable, to both legal and non-legal audiences, both orally and in writing;
demonstrate an awareness of global legal, political and social perspectives;
demonstrate an ability to design a research strategy and access legal resources including using practical applications that respond to the factual, legal, theoretical and policy issues, to achieve a considered outcome that represents an evaluation of the data generated;
demonstrate an appreciation that the law will change and the need for both self-directed and professional legal education that seeks to ensure the currency of legal knowledge;
demonstrate an ability to identify issues and apply legal knowledge and principles to complex problems and projects, with a view to constructing relevant, creative and ethically appropriate responses;
demonstrate an ability to apply principles of professional and social responsibility in formulating considered responses to ethical issues that require an analysis and evaluation of a diverse range of values, norms and behaviours in the professional, societal and global contexts;
demonstrate an ability to engage with others in a way that respects diverse opinions and perspectives to achieve relevant and efficient outcomes that reflect the contribution of all those involved;
demonstrate an ability to critically reflect upon and analyse law's effect on society and, where appropriate, develop arguments for reform;
LLB with Honours students: demonstrate a sound knowledge of the fundamental areas of law prescribed by the admitting authorities; a wide range of legal and theoretical concepts, values and principles; and have an awareness of international law and an appreciation of Indigenous legal issues;
communicate in an effective and persuasive manner an argument, advice or opinion that is clear, coherent and logically sustainable, to both legal and non-legal audiences, both orally and in writing;
demonstrate an awareness of global legal, political and social perspectives;
demonstrate an ability to design a research strategy and access legal resources including using practical applications that respond to the factual, legal, theoretical and policy issues, to achieve a considered outcome that represents an evaluation of the data generated;
demonstrate an appreciation that the law will change and the need for both self-directed and professional legal education that seeks to ensure the currency of legal knowledge;
demonstrate an ability to identify issues and apply legal knowledge and principles to complex problems and projects, with a view to constructing relevant, creative and ethically appropriate responses;
demonstrate an ability to apply principles of professional and social responsibility in formulating considered responses to ethical issues that require an analysis and evaluation of a diverse range of values, norms and behaviours in the professional, societal and global contexts;
demonstrate an ability to engage with others in a way that respects diverse opinions and perspectives to achieve relevant and efficient outcomes that reflect the contribution of all those involved;
demonstrate an ability to critically reflect upon and analyse law's effect on society and, where appropriate, develop arguments for reform;
conceive, plan and implement an independent programme of legal research that could take a theoretical, comparative or an interdisciplinary approach;
develop and present an oral summary of an independent programme of legal research; and
produce a written thesis that demonstrates original thinking, a high level of research skills and the ability to write critically.

Career pathways

A Bachelor of Arts component is, in many ways, the most valuable degree of all. This is because Arts graduates are not as restricted in what they can undertake relative to those with highly specialised degrees. Examples of career paths include management, public relations, foreign affairs, education, business, human resources, research, psychology and archaeology. The employability of Arts graduates is a reflection of the skills they acquire during their study and this is becoming widely acknowledged.

The Bachelor of Laws is accredited by the Legal Profession Admission Board of NSW for admission as a legal practitioner in NSW and mutual recognitions legislation extends admission to other Australian Jurisdictions. Upon completion of the LLB, graduates may complete a period of practical legal training and be qualified to apply for admission as an Australian Lawyer. After admission you are then eligible to apply for a practising certificate as a solicitor from the Law Society of NSW or undertake further studies to obtain a practising certificate as a barrister from the Bar Association of NSW.

At the completion of the five years you will have a range of employment options from which to choose.

University of New England (UNE)