Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Psychology (Honours)

Name: Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Psychology (Honours)
Price: <a href='#fees-and-scholarships'> Commonwealth supported place </a> AUD

VU course code: LHWP | Level of study: Undergraduate

ATAR

Not required

Duration

6 years full time or longer for part time

Delivery mode

In Person

Fees

Commonwealth supported place

Location

City Tower

Next start date

24 February 2025

Application closes

16 February 2025

View all start dates

Overview

Learn about our legal system and the human mind with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) at Victoria University.

This six-year double degree gives you the flexibility to combine a law qualification with psychology. 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 alongside developing broad legal knowledge and analytical skills.

Honours in Law and Psychology will further enhance your core understanding of the psychology and legal fields, and help ensure you are prepared for a career in a variety of work settings. This course positions you well 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.

We are the only university in Victoria that offers the Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/ Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) as a double degree.

: On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

Demonstrate advanced theoretical knowledge of psychology theories and relevant advanced specialist bodies of knowledge within the discipline of law;

Critically review, analyse, adapt and apply broad and coherent theoretical and technical knowledge of law and psychology and underlying principles and concepts in diverse contemporary international and comparative contexts;

Identify, articulate and respond to complex issues related to the two disciplines by critically analysing and applying information with initiative and judgement in order to both anticipate and creatively address them as relevant to authentic/contemporary professional, community and global settings;

Exhibit professional accountabilities and ethical judgement, by adapting knowledge, skills, professional reasoning and research in responding appropriately to issues that reflect the social, political and contextual factors;

Communicate a clear, coherent and independent exposition of knowledge and skills appropriate for professional and non-professional audiences;

Reflect on personal learning and skills in relation to career goals and implement effective, creative strategies to promote lifelong learning and pathways to further learning including a commitment to ongoing professional development;

Apply personal and interpersonal competencies including organisational and collaborative skills necessary to operate within broad parameters in the immensely divergent and complex global and Australian cultures;

Contribute effectively, with personal accountability for outcomes in a dynamic 21st century work team, working in an ethical and socially responsible manner; and

Plan and execute a research project, professional project or piece of scholarship which demonstrates intellectual independence and integrates and contributes to the evidence bases of the two disciplines.
: You will benefit from the Victoria Law School's many industry connections. These include partnerships and programs with:
Victoria Police
Magistrates’, County and Supreme Courts
community legal centres
Werribee Community Legal Services and the Victoria Police Forensic Services Department.
Through the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) you’ll have an opportunity to engage in a fieldwork placement. The Bachelor of Laws enables you to take advantage of law internship programs. This real work experience in your chosen field may lead directly to future career opportunities.
: This course includes the Priestley 11 units, as set out by the Council of Legal Education.
Completion of these units will satisfy the academic component for students wishing to be admitted as an Australian lawyer in the Supreme Court of Victoria.
: Our Queen Street law hub on our City Campus is in the heart of Melbourne's legal district.
Our dedicated law building features:
specialised law library
legal research centres including the Sir Zelman Cowen Centre
mooting court
computer labs, student lounges, study spaces and a prayer room.
You’ll gain real insight into legal practice and start building networks for your future career.

Entry requirements

When assessing your application, we consider your educational achievements and work experience, as well as your skills and personal attributes (where relevant).

Applicants for this course will need to meet the entry criteria outlined below. If you don’t meet the entry criteria, you may be able to gain entry by first completing a related course or unit(s). We call this a ‘pathway’.

You may also be eligible for course ‘credits’, where you are granted a unit or units towards your qualification for equivalent previous study or work experience, so you can graduate sooner.

ATAR requirements

Minimum ATAR:

This course has a minimum ATAR entry requirement. This means you’ll need to achieve a certain ATAR, along with other criteria, to be considered for this course.

The following table shows the ranking results of our current student intake and is an indication of the ATAR you’ll need to successfully apply.

Learn more about ATAR

What is ATAR?

The Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR) compares the results of final-year school students, with adjustments made for factors such as hardship. The ranking is expressed as a number between 0 and 99.95. ATAR minimum entry requirements are not usually essential entry criteria for applicants who have completed secondary education more than 2 years ago.

Entry criteria

Minimum entry criteria include:

English-language requirements
academic requirements.

Your work and life experience will also be considered.

To find specific entry requirements for this course, please select the section below that is most relevant to you.

Meeting the minimum entry criteria does not guarantee entry into this course.

: This information is relevant if, in the 2 years prior to studying with us, you have completed (or will complete) one of the following:

Australian Senior Secondary Certificate (e.g. VCE)

an Australian or overseas equivalent to VCE

an International Baccalaureate (IB).

Admission criteria

Completion of an Australian Senior Secondary Certificate (VCE or equivalent) including Units 3 and 4: a study score of at least 30 in English (EAL) or 25 in any other English.
PLUS:
Units 3 and 4: a study score of at least 20 in one of Economics, any History, Legal Studies, Australian Politics, Global Politics or Psychology.
: This information is relevant if you have completed an accredited award (such as a certificate or diploma) at an Australian Registered Training Organisation (usually a TAFE, polytechnic or other registered VET institute).

Admission criteria

N/A
: This information is relevant if you’ve previously completed all or part of a university or other higher-education course.

Admission criteria

Completion of at least one semester of an Australian Higher Education award (or equivalent) with a Distinction average.
: This information is relevant if you left secondary school more than two years ago and haven’t studied since.

Admission criteria

Completion of an Australian Senior Secondary Certificate more than two years ago.
PLUS:
Units 3 and 4: a study score of at least 30 in English (EAL) or 25 in any other English (or equivalent).
PLUS:
Units 3 and 4: a study score of at least 20 in one of Economics, any History, Legal Studies, Australian Politics, Global Politics or Psychology.

Special entry programs

Special admission programs

If you are from a disadvantaged or underrepresented social, economic or cultural background, you may be eligible for one of our special admission programs. These programs are designed to help you access education more easily.

Learn more about special admission programs

VU Early Entry

If you're currently in Year 11 or 12, our exclusive VU Early Entry program comes with a Conditional Offer to the course of your choosing*, a personalised course plan, special events, exclusive discounts and access to one-on-one course advice.

*Conditions apply.

Learn more about VU Early Entry

Inherent requirements

Inherent requirements are the abilities, attributes, skills and behaviours needed to meet the learning outcomes of the course.

You should carefully consider the inherent requirement statement as a:

guide for your learning during the course
way for you to identify challenges you may have in studying this course.

Learn more about inherent requirements

Additional information

All applicants are encouraged to complete the law supplementary form which may be used to adjust an applicant’s Selection Rank.

The form will be available at: https://www.vu.edu.au/current-students/your-course/forms/supplementary-admission-forms

Students in any Bachelor of Laws may apply to transfer into the Bachelor of Laws (Honours) degree once they have completed a minimum 192 credit points and have attained an average mark of Distinction or above i.e. 70–100%. Applicants will be assessed on the highest grades achieved in the top 12 Law units. Students will be further assessed on an outline of a proposed thesis topic and availability of a college based or college affiliated supervisor. Successful applicants will enrol in both Advanced Research Legal Methods and Advanced Legal Research Dissertation instead of 24 credit points of law electives.

In order to be eligible to advance to the Psychology Honours year of the course, students must achieve the stringent academic admission criteria that are required for Honours programs in Psychology. Academic admission standards are based on the average grade across all core second and third year psychology units. Students who have successfully completed the first five years of study but have not met the academic admission requirements for the Honours year will be eligible to apply to graduate with a Bachelor of Laws/ Bachelor of Psychological Studies degree. In the Psychology Honours year of study students must complete an additional six units of study (96 credit points).

Credit & Entry pathways into this course

Victoria University is committed to providing a transparent admissions process. Find out more about how to apply for our courses, and our commitment to admissions transparency. Meeting the minimum admission criteria does not guarantee entry into this course. Past academic performance may be considered.

Course structure

To attain the Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) will be required to complete 576 credit points in total consisting of:

96 credit points of First Year Core units;
192 credit points of Professional Core Law units;
264 credit points of Professional Core Psychology units;
24 credit points of Psychology elective units.

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.

In order to be eligible to advance to the Psychology Honours year of the course, students must achieve the stringent academic admission criteria that are required for Honours programs in Psychology. Academic admission standards are based on the average grade across all core second and third year psychology units. Students who have successfully completed the first five years of study but have not met the academic admission requirements for the Honours year will be eligible to apply to graduate with a Bachelor of Laws/ Bachelor of Psychological Studies degree. In the Psychology Honours year of study students must complete an additional six units of study (96 credit points).

Units

Fees & scholarships

University fees vary, depending on how much the government contributes towards course costs (if anything).

Read below to find out about the fee ‘type’, the estimated yearly tuition costs for this course, and the financial support on offer (including our generous scholarship program).

Commonwealth supported place

A Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) is subsidised by the government, reducing it to the amount listed here. Australian citizens, permanent residents and New Zealand citizens will qualify for a CSP place. If your course is not Commonwealth supported, or you don't qualify, you'll pay full fees.

Learn more about Commonwealth Supported Places

Fees

Scholarships

Careers

Upon graduation from the Bachelor of Laws (Honours)/Bachelor of Psychology (Honours), you’ll 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 also provides a pathway towards a profession in psychology, in fields such as clinical psychology, clinical neuropsychology or organisational psychology. You’ll be eligible to apply for Provisional Registration as a psychologist by the Psychology Board of Australia.

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.

Salary

Visit Jobs and Skills Australia see the average salaries for various law/psychology professions in Australia.

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