Course abbreviation: BBNSc + Course code: 2341 + Clayton on- campus study only
The Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience degree will provide several possible outcomes for its graduates. These are:
Students will, by the selection of elective units in second and third year, and their subsequent performance in these units, determine which of these outcomes is to be achieved.
In 2003, it is expected that the first-year intake into the course will be 45 students. In addition to these places, the faculty will offer a number of first- year places to suitably qualified local and international students on a full- fee-paying basis.
To be eligible for selection into the course, an applicant must apply through the VTAC system. Internal applicants who are currently enrolled in another Monash course must apply for a transfer and thus will be required to complete a Monash Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience application form.
The prerequisites for entry into the Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience include the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) or its equivalent, with a grade average of at least 25 in the following VCE units 3 and 4:
Selection will be made on the basis of the ENTER score. Applicants should consult the latest VTAC guide for further details. Current Monash University students must complete a Monash behavioural neuroscience application form, which is to be returned to the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences by 1 December.
Students who have not achieved their entrance qualifications in Victoria must hold qualifications which, in the faculty's opinion, are equivalent to those held by local candidates. The qualifications must include the same prerequisite units as those for local candidates outlined above. Such applicants must demonstrate at least the same level of academic merit as that which is required for local applicants.
Applicants presenting with either partially complete or completed tertiary qualifications will be considered for entry to the Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience course. In considering such applications, the selection committee will take account of an applicant's entire academic record.
Application for entry to the Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience is through
the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC), 40 Park Street, South
Melbourne, Victoria 3205, telephone 1300 364 133 or on the internet at
http://www.vtac.edu.au.
Applicants for later-year entry must clearly demonstrate to the selection
committee that the content of their previous studies is at least equivalent to
the Monash Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience course components for which
they are seeking exemption.
Current Monash University students applying solely for a transfer to the Monash
Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience course must complete the Monash Bachelor
of Behavioural Neuroscience application form. A VTAC application is not
necessary.
Current Monash University students applying solely for a transfer to the Monash Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience course must complete the Monash Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience application form. A VTAC application is not necessary. First-year BSc students must have a credit average overall and have completed the following units with at least a distinction average:
Students who have not met the above criteria will be required to apply for enrolment in first-year BBNSc. Transfer into BBNSc degree will require at least a distinction average across all first-year units, and places will be competitive with VCE students.
Students who have met the above criteria must undertake PHY2011 in first semester of second year in order to gain credit for BMS1052. In this case, students will be required to complete PSY2051 by off-campus learning in second semester.
Students will also be required to undertake BMS1062 during second semester in second year.
To be eligible to transfer, students will be required to have a credit average overall in first year and at least a distinction average in the following BMS units: BMS1011, BMS1021, BMS1052, BMS1062.
Students who have not completed PSY1011 and PSY1022 will be required to apply for enrolment in first-year BBNSc, but they will receive credit for BMS1011, BMS1021, BMS1052 and BMS1062.
Students who apply to transfer from Medicine to BBNSc will be considered on a case by case basis.
If students enrolled in other degrees wish to enrol in individual BNS units, in either second or third year, they must normally have gained at least a credit in either BMS1052 or PHY2011. International students wishing to enrol in individual BNS units must first demonstrate successful completion of BMS1052, PHY2011 or an equivalent unit. At this point in time BNS1072 (Foundations of Behavioural Neuroscience) is considered a specialist unit and is not open to students outside of the BBNSc degree..
Places are available in the first year of the Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience course for international students. These students come from overseas to study in Australia under student visas and return overseas upon completion of their degree.
Selection of international students is determined on the basis of each
applicant's academic qualifications.
Prospective applicants should be aware that the fee charged for the course will
be set annually, taking into account inflation and other factors.
The course is designed as a series of interlinked and consecutive sequences of units aimed to permit students to readily acquire fluency and proficiency in the concepts, language and fundamentals of Behavioural Neuroscience. The development of such a flexible curriculum may be achieved as part of one or more orderly course sequences or knowledge streams. The distinctive feature of this educational approach is that students are allowed some flexibility in their choice of units so that they are able to construct a sequence of studies suitable to their own requirements. In this way, students choose the most appropriate studies for their own particular career aspirations.
All students in the Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience course will complete a program which is a combination of core and elective units. The degree involves successful completion of seven compulsory behavioural neuroscience units (one at first year, two at second year and four at third-year level), seven compulsory biomedical units (four at first year and two at second-year level), five compulsory psychology units (two at first year and three at second year level) and six elective units (one at first year, one at second year and four at third-year level).
In third year, students will major in behavioural neuroscience plus
psychology, physiology, anatomy, biochemistry, genetics, immunology, or
pharmacology. Successful completion of the degree plus appropriate choice of
major at the third-year level will provide an opportunity of gaining entry into
a fourth-year honours program.
Undergraduate students enrolled in the Behavioural Neuroscience course will
receive a handbook for the degree outlining policies regarding teaching,
assessment and acceptable conduct. In addition, students will receive more
detailed information about core units from unit convenors and individual unit
manuals. These manuals contain detailed information on teaching staff, contact
persons, timetables, textbooks, reading guides, supplementary lecture material,
details and weighting of assessment methods and procedures including some
specific assessment dates. Manuals are available at the commencement of each
semester.
The undergraduate course is normally taken in three years of full-time study.
Students will be required to study seven core units and one elective unit in first year.
Students will be required to study seven core units and one elective unit in second year.
Students will be required to study two core units and two elective units in each semester of third year.
Elective units in third year must be chosen from the following disciplines: psychology, anatomy, biochemistry and molecular biology, biological sciences, pharmacology, immunology. Note: students should select third- year electives carefully as choice of major will determine eligibility for entry into the various units being offered at honours level.
The fourth year level of study in the Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience aims to extend research training in specialised areas and help students acquire sophisticated research skills. Students may undertake this fourth year of study in the discipline of their course major (ie behavioural neuroscience) or, should they undertake a second major, they may undertake such study in that discipline.
Honours in the discipline of behavioural neuroscience is a new fourth- year
unit (BNS4000 Advanced
behavioural neuroscience), which was first offered by the Department of Psychology
in 2002. To be eligible for entry, students will be required to achieve a distinction
average or better in the four core third-year Behavioural Neuroscience (BNS)
units.
If a student takes their second course major in the discipline of psychology,
they may be eligible to enter the psychology honours program, which is mandatory
for students intending to gain registration as a practicing psychologist. To
be eligible for entry into PSY4000, students will need to have successfully
completed the appropriate undergraduate accredited sequence in psychology (PSY1011
and PSY1022, in first year;
PSY2031, PSY2051
and PSY2042 in second year;
PSY3041, PSY3051,
PSY3032 and PSY3062
in third year), with a 70 per cent minimum average in psychology at the third-year
level.
Students who do not wish to undertake honours in either advanced behavioural
neuroscience or psychology may be eligible to obtain an honours degree in the
Bachelor of Behavioural Neuroscience by successfully undertaking honours in
one of the following disciplines: anatomy (ANT4000), immunology (IMM4000), biochemistry
(BCH4000), genetics (GEN4000), pharmacology (PHA4000) or physiology (PHY4000).
In order to be considered for entry into these units, students would have to
meet the prescribed selection criteria for the unit. In addition, students would
need to undertake a research project on a topic that is relevant to behavioural
neuroscience.
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