Course planning and unit selection

Unit selection

Precise details regarding the requirements for the faculty's undergraduate degrees are outlined in the faculty's regulations available at www.monash.edu.au/pubs/calendar/facultyregs/regs-law01.html and less formally in the 'Outline of undergraduate studies' section below.

Student Services officers of the faculty are available to advise students on their choice of units at the time of enrolment. This advice, however, will be most helpful if students have already made themselves familiar with all the units and considered what their fields of interest are likely to be. Similarly, when re-enrolling in later years of the course, students should discuss their choice of units with the faculty advisers. Details of unit structures, including the number of hours devoted to lectures/tutorials etc are included in the 'Unit information' section of this handbook (under 'Units - all faculties'), or on the Law faculty website at www.law.monash.edu.au/.

It is the responsibility of students to ascertain, from the regulations governing their courses, the units (including the number of points) required for their LLB degree. The approval of students' enrolment by the faculty does not relieve the students of this responsibility.

Credit for prior studies

The Faculty of Law awards credit towards the Bachelor of Laws for units passed in completed or incomplete tertiary studies, provided that it is satisfied that the units for which credit is sought were substantially the same in content, contact hours and standard of assessment as those units from which exemption is sought.

The onus is upon the student to complete the relevant 'Advanced standing' (credit) application form (obtained from www.law.monash.edu.au/undergraduate/forms/index.html) and provide supporting documentation concerning previous studies for which credit is sought together with an academic transcript of results. The documentation should be in the form of handbook unit entries and those sections of the handbook setting out course structure, unit outlines, reading lists etc. The documentation should be provided at the time of application or at the very latest, at the time of enrolment. The minimum information required is the number of years in the course, level of unit in the course, unit content and textbooks and other references referred to, number of contact hours per week, credit weighting of the unit and method of assessment (number and length of assignments, number and length of examinations etc).

Where a student is granted credit for previous studies, the total time allowed to complete their LLB or related double degree will be reduced accordingly. Students must be aware of the adjusted time and ensure they complete their degree requirements within the adjusted time limit.

Maximum credit allowed

Irrespective of what study applicants may have undertaken prior to admission to the Monash LLB or related double degree, or may be permitted to take during their course under cross-institutional arrangements, it is the policy of the faculty that a certain amount of work must be undertaken in the Bachelor of Laws at Monash University in order to be admitted to this degree. Students enrolled in a Bachelor of Laws course must complete at least 50 per cent of their total points of study towards that degree in the undergraduate program in the Faculty of Law at Monash University.

Time limit and intermission

For each undergraduate Bachelor of Laws degree (including all double degrees) there is a maximum time limit within which students must complete all of the requirements for the degree. The time limits are set out in the degree regulations and in the course information below.

Students may apply for a period of intermission not exceeding one year at any given time. By granting intermission, the faculty reserves a place in the course in the following year. However, the period of approved intermission will be counted in the time limit for completion of the course. Applications for intermission should be made by completing the 'Application for intermission' form (available from www.law.monash.edu.au/undergraduate/forms/index.html) and submitting it to the Student Services office in the faculty.

Part-time and external studies

Part-time studies

The faculty permits both full-time and part-time enrolment. Units to the value of 48 points per academic year constitute a standard annual full-time load (although most Bachelor of Laws programs require over load enrolments during the course of the degree).

Part-time enrolment is allowed, provided the student is aware of the maximum time limit for degree completion as stated in the regulations for the relevant course. Part-time students are expected to proceed at half the rate of full-time students and to complete their units for the degree in the same order as full-time students.

External studies

All Monash University LLB programs are taught on-campus and there are no arrangements for external studies. All students are expected to attend and participate in the classes in units for which they are enrolled.

Policy on the provision of online teaching materials in on-campus courses

This policy applies to all courses taught on campus by the Faculty of Law. The Bachelor of Laws program and all related double degrees are taught on campus face-to-face.

The following policy statement has been approved by the Executive Committee:

(a) the Monash University Codes of Practice for Teaching and Learning states: "Students of the university have the following responsibilities: for on-campus students, to attend lectures, tutorials and seminars for each unit in which they are enrolled.” Thus the provision of lecture tapes and other teaching materials online to on-campus (non-distance education) students is intended to supplement rather than substitute for regular class attendance. Unless otherwise indicated, law teaching materials made available to on-campus students online are not offered as a form of distance education

(b) the Law faculty's policy is to provide at least one stream of taped lectures in compulsory and quasi-compulsory units wherever possible

(c) the provision of taped lectures in units or particular unit streams is made available at the discretion of the lecturer

(d) the provision of taped lectures in units or particular unit streams is not guaranteed as this service may be affected by technical difficulties

(e) where lecturers provide teaching materials online, these materials will be made available as soon as practicable after the class, subject to faculty workload constraints. Students should refrain from asking lecturers to provide taping of lectures or additional teaching materials online.

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