Bachelor of Commerce

This section details the Bachelor of Commerce and the Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) that are offered by the University of Sydney Business School.

For details of the combined Bachelor of Commerce degrees, please refer to the individual combined Commerce degree sections.

Note: Part-time study is also available for these degrees.

The three-year Bachelor of Commerce program has been designed in consultation with industry leaders, graduate recruiters, current students and alumni to provide students with a highly relevant and professional program of study. This degree program places a strong emphasis on the key aspects of business and the practical knowledge you need to thrive in today's global market. The key features of the Bachelor of Commerce are as follows:

• Students receive a strong commercial grounding in the principle areas of business which will prepare you for a career in virtually any field.
• Students have the flexibility to combine specialist study in a wide range of disciplines, allowing you to tailor your degree to suit your career aspirations.
• Students are exposed to real-world business cases and experiences, exploiting the Business School's deep corporate connections, internationally renowned teaching, and global partnerships.

Degree structure

To be awarded the Bachelor of Commerce, students complete units of study with a total value of 144 credit points, comprising:

• seven core units of study (36 credit points), comprising six junior units of study - including a zero credit point unit (30 credit points) and one senior unit of study (six credit points)
• a major selected from the compulsory major subject areas listed under 'Majors and electives'
• either an optional second major and/or elective units of study selected from any of the subject areas under 'Majors and electives' or from any other faculty of the University of Sydney (subject to approval of the faculty offering the unit and degree requirements)
• a maximum of 60 credit points in junior (1000 level) units of study
• a minimum of 96 credit points in units of study from the University of Sydney Business School (a maximum of 48 credit points in units from any other faculty).

Requirements for the degree with honours

To be awarded the Bachelor of Commerce (Honours), meritorious students complete an additional honours year of study after the completion of the requirements for the Bachelor of Commerce. Honours study is offered in most of the subject areas available to students enrolled in the Bachelor of Commerce. For details of the requirements for the entry into and completion of the Honours Year in this program, please refer to sydney.edu.au/business/honours.

Core units of study

Students are required to complete their junior core units of study as follows:

• Full-time students: All junior core units must be completed within the first year of enrolment in the sequence set out in the 'Degree progression' table.
• Part-time students: All junior core units must be completed within the first two years of enrolment.

All students must complete BUSS1900 and BUSS1001 in their first semester of enrolment.

The senior capstone core unit should be completed during the final semester of enrolment. For further details, please refer to the degree progression example table.

(i) Junior units of study (30 credit points)

• BUSS1900 Managing Business Communication A (zero credit points)#
• BUSS1001 Understanding Business
• BUSS1002 The Business Environment
• BUSS1020 Quantitative Business Analysis
• BUSS1030 Accounting, Business and Society
• BUSS1040 Economics for Business Decision Making.

# The zero-credit point unit, BUSS1900, is designed to support students in developing their business communication skills at the very outset of their degree to ensure success in the semesters that follow. All commencing undergraduate students must enrol in BUSS1900 but have the option of withdrawing following a mandatory waiver test conducted during Orientation Week (O Week) preceding the start of each semester. For further details refer to the Business School website.

(ii) Senior (capstone) unit of study

• BUSS3500 Integrated Business Applications

Majors and electives

Compulsory major

In the Bachelor of Commerce students must select a least one compulsory major from the subject areas offered by the Business School and School of Economics to fulfil the requirements of their degree. A major consists of a minimum of 36 credit points in senior units of study (usually six units) in a single subject area. Senior units may only be counted towards the requirements of one major.

The available subject areas for the compulsory major are as follows:

(i) Subject areas from the University of Sydney Business School:

• Accounting
• Business Information Systems
• Commercial Law
• Finance
• Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management
• International Business
• Management
• Marketing
• Quantitative Business Analysis.

(ii) Subject areas from the School of Economics (Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences):

• Econometrics #
• Economics #

# Units of study from these subject areas count as non-Business School units. If a major in Econometrics or Economics is selected, students are still required to complete at least 96 credit points in units of study from the Business School.

For full details of the requirements for these majors, please refer to the 'Subject areas' section in this handbook.

Additional majors and electives

Students may select an additional major and/or elective units of study from any subject area offered by the Business School or they can choose a major and/or elective units from any other faculty of the University of Sydney (subject to approval of the faculty offering the unit).

Other faculty majors may differ in size, however in most cases; a minimum of 36 credit points in senior (or intermediate and senior) units of study must be completed in a single subject area. For this degree, a maximum of 48 credit points in units of study (both junior and senior) from outside the Business School may be completed. Students should refer to the other faculty's handbook or website for further information regarding their major requirements.

Professional accreditation requirements

Within the Bachelor of Commerce (and related combined programs), students may choose to pursue a program of study that would allow them to seek accreditation with particular professional bodies.

Professional accounting accreditation (ICAA or CPA Australia)

Completion of an accredited degree is a recognised pathway to a career in professional accounting. The Bachelor of Commerce has been accredited by CPA Australia and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA) and is currently undergoing its five year re-accreditation review at the end of 2012.

Subject to a successful re-accreditation review, students must complete the following units of study to meet the core knowledge areas required by the two professional accounting bodies:

• BUSS1030 Accounting, Business and Society
• ACCT1006 Accounting and Financial Management
• ACCT2011 Financial Accounting A
• ACCT2012 Management Accounting A
• ACCT3011 Financial Accounting B
• ACCT3012 Management Accounting B
• ACCT3014 Auditing and Assurance*
• BUSS1020 Quantitative Business Analysis
• BUSS1040 Economics for Business Decision Making
• CLAW1001 Foundations of Business Law
• CLAW2201 Corporations Law
• CLAW3201 Australian Taxation System*
• FINC2011 Corporate Finance I
• INFS2001 IS for Performance Improvement.

* Note: CPA Australia allows graduates the option of completing auditing and taxation units as part of their degree at university, or as electives in their professional level studies within the CPA program.

Students are advised to check the Business School website and the CPA Australia and the ICAA websites for the latest information regarding the 2013 requirements (sydney.edu.au/business/currentstudents/undergraduate/curriculum_information/majors/accounting_accreditation).

Accreditation variations for combined Law degree students

For students in the combined Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Laws program, the following 'LAWS' units of study may be substituted for the 'CLAW' units of study to meet CPA and ICAA accreditation requirements:

• For CLAW1001 Foundations of Business Law: LAWS1006 Foundations of Law AND LAWS1015 Contracts
• For CLAW2201 Corporations Law: LAWS2014 Corporations Law
• For CLAW3201 Australian Taxation System: LAWS3412 Australian Income Tax AND LAWS3409 Advanced Taxation Law.

For information detailing these 'LAWS' units of study, contact the Sydney Law School (sydney.edu.au/law/).

Australian Computer Society (ACS) accreditation

Students planning to satisfy the professional accreditation requirements for the ACS should include in their degree a prescribed set of units of study, including a major in Business Information Systems (at least 42 credit points in senior units of study). The required units of study are listed below:

• INFS1000 Digital Business Innovation
• INFS2001 IS for Performance Improvement
• INFS2020 Business Process Modelling and Improvement
• INFS3040 Enterprise Systems and Integrated Business; and
• four additional senior 'INFS' coded elective units of study including at least two 'INFS' units at 3000-level. (See listings under the Business Information Systems subject area for available units of study).

Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI) accreditation

All undergraduate degrees incorporating a major in Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management are AHRI-accredited. Students wishing to satisfy the requirements for professional membership of AHRI should complete an Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management major as part of their degree. The required units of study for the major are listed under the Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management subject area.

Progression guide

The following table illustrates a degree progression example for a student enrolled full-time in the Bachelor of Commerce undertaking units of study totalling 24 credit points per semester.

Note: In this example, core units of study are indicated in 'bold type'.

* This is a zero credit point unit.

Please note: The information listed in this example is based on the unit of study offerings for 2013 and is intended as a guide only. Students are usually able to complete the units of study for their course in different sequences to that which is listed (including enrolling in units in Summer or Winter School sessions when available). Students are advised to plan their course based upon their individual needs and to contact the Student Information Office if they need any assistance in planning their progression in their degree.

The University of Sydney Business School website illustrates units of study progression sequences for specific majors in this degree. This information can be accessed at sydney.edu.au/business/course/BCom/.