Bachelor of Laws/Bachelor of Psychological Studies

This five-year double degree lets you combine a law qualification with psychological studies. You'll gain a global and social-justice perspective and an understanding of human behaviour, motivation, relationships, communication and cognitive processes.

You'll examine how the mind works and develop broad legal knowledge, gaining the analytical skills to understand yourself and your clients.

This course prepares you for jobs where there is an interaction between the law, psychology and mental health. You'll also be on the pathway to work as a lawyer or psychologist.

With this double degree you'll be able to pursue careers in law, justice and the courts. You could also work in legal community centres, community services or human resource management, or other fields where there is an interaction between the law, psychology and mental health.

Example job titles are:

• human resources consultant
• mediator
• industrial relations adviser
• legal practitioner (barrister or solicitor)
• talent management executive
• in-house legal counsel
• psychologist
• social researcher.

Upon graduation, you will meet the academic requirements as required by the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. Admission as an Australian lawyer can be obtained after successful completion of the Practical Legal Training requirements.

This course is part of a pathway towards a profession in psychology, in fields such as clinical psychology, clinical neuropsychology or organisational psychology. With further study, you'll be eligible to apply for Provisional Registration as a psychologist by the Psychology Board of Australia.

Find average salaries for various law/psychology professions in Australia, via Jobs and Skills Australia.

To attain the Bachelor of Laws/Bachelor of Psychological Studies will be required to complete 480 credit points in total consisting of:

• 96 credit points of First Year Core Law and Psychology units
• 180 credit points of Professional Core Law units;
• 120 credit points of Professional Core Psychological Studies units;
• 60 credit points of Law electives;
• 24 credit points of Psychology electives.

To be awarded a Bachelor of Laws with Honours:
Students who enrolled in the Bachelor of Laws prior to 31 Dec 2014 may apply to undertake the unit Advanced Legal Research Dissertation in their later years in this degree based on the aggregate of points attributed to the top two thirds of units so listed shall then be calculated and a grade point average determined. Students will be further assessed on an outline of a proposed thesis topic and availability of a college based or college affiliated supervisor. Students will be awarded a Bachelor of Laws with Honours (Class H1, H2A, H2B or H3) based on their aggregate of points and overall mark in Advanced Legal Research Dissertation.

To be awarded a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) (For students enrolled post 1 January 2015):
Students in any Bachelor of Laws course may apply to transfer into any Bachelor of Laws (Honours) course if the selection criteria is met.

Use our credit calculator to find out how much credit you could get towards your course, based on your previous study.

If you have completed study with another university or institution and believe you are eligible to receive credit for skills and past study, you can apply for advanced standing.

Applications for advanced standing can be made after a discussion with your course chair or academic adviser.

Before applying, you should consider whether you also want to apply for:

• Special admission programs: Depending on your life circumstances you may be eligible for special consideration of your application.
• Advanced standing: If you have significant experience or studies elsewhere you may be eligible for credit for some units of your course and not have to undertake them.

Find out more about applying for our courses.