Bachelor of Commerce BCom

Important information
General
Course objectives
Professional accreditation
Course structure

The Bachelor of Commerce degree provides coherent sequences of subjects in the areas of accounting, finance, business statistics or econometrics, management studies and economics. An introduction to all of these areas is compulsory in the first year of the degree. For details of the subjects available in each area see the relevant section of the handbook headed `Specialisation in ...'. There are also opportunities for combinations with economic history, marketing and with subjects offered outside the faculty, including languages, psychology, mathematics, computing, and any of the sciences, social sciences or humanities.

Course objectives

On completion of the Bachelor of Commerce degree students should:

have an understanding of the issues underlying major corporate, government and economic policies and an ability to appraise the implications of those major policy decisions in the context of the Australian and international environments;
have developed certified analytical and technical skills to assist with solving problems that may arise in their future careers in business, the public sector and the professions;
have a continuing commitment to and capacity for independent critical thought and further learning;
have a critical understanding of the operations of business, government and the economy, and the management of these for the benefit of society;
be able to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, in their areas of expertise;
have developed basic skills in economic analysis, quantitative and computer methods, accounting principles and management;
have a specialised level of skills and knowledge in one or more of the disciplines taught within the faculty - accounting, finance, econometrics, economic history, economics and management;
have had the opportunity to develop the skills, knowledge and motivation necessary for postgraduate study and research;
have satisfied the membership requirements of the Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants, The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, and the Australian Institute of Banking and Finance, provided the appropriate selections of subjects were chosen.

Professional accreditation

This degree is recognised by both the Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants and The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia as meeting academic requirements for membership. This is also true for senior associate membership of the Australian Institute of Banking and Finance. Graduates of this course are recognised for membership of the Australian Institute of Management (AIM), the Institute of Corporate Managers, Secretaries and Administrators and the Australian Human Resource Institute (AHRI). For all professional bodies membership is dependent upon the correct choice of subjects by students.

Course structure

The pass degree requires the satisfactory completion of twenty-four subjects, or subjects to the value of a total of 144 credit points, over a minimum of three full-time years or a maximum of eight years of study. Students may include in their degree subjects to the value of thirty-six credit points from disciplines outside the faculty, normally on the basis of twelve credit points at each year level. All first, second and third-year subjects offered by the Faculty of Business and Economics (Clayton) have a credit value of six points. Full-time students are expected to progress at the rate of eight subjects or forty-eight credit points per year. First-year students normally may not take a second-year subject until at least four first-year subjects have been completed successfully. It should be noted that subjects in the later years of the course have prerequisites and corequisites. In addition, students are expected to take subjects in a yearly sequence even if there are no prerequisite subjects specified. The course structure is shown in chart 2 in the section `Charts of degree structures'. Specialisations are available in accounting, finance, economics, business statistics and econometrics, and management.

First year

The first year of the degree will comprise eight semester subjects totalling forty-eight credit points, of which the following shall be compulsory:

ECO1000 and ECO1010 (Economics)
ECM1020 and ECM1031/2 (Business and economic statistics)
AAF1021/2 and AAF1031/2 (Accounting)
MGC1020 and MGC1030 (Introduction to management)

Students wishing to take first-year subjects from another faculty or first-year economic history subjects can defer one pair of the above subjects until second year where they will count as second-year category B subjects. This allows students to complete substantial work in related fields such as languages, computing, psychology, or mathematics.

Second year

The structure of the second and third years of the degree is identical. Each year comprises eight semester-length subjects, or the equivalent of forty-eight credit points.

To maintain a coherent course structure, subjects may be selected from three categories: major specialisation (category A), supporting studies (category B) and electives (category C). Category A subjects represent a specialised sequence of study; students must select a specialisation from the subjects taught on the Clayton campus by one of the departments of Accounting and Finance (AAF prefix), Econometrics (ECM prefix), Economics (ECO prefix), or Business Management (MGC prefix) for this category. This specialisation will then be followed throughout the second and third years of the course. For the area of specialisation (category A), students are required to choose between three and five second-year subjects, or subjects with a total credit value between eighteen and thirty points.

Supporting studies (category B) subjects comprise subjects offered by the faculty's departments on the Clayton campus from areas other than category A. Depending on the selection of the specialisation, supporting studies subjects might be accounting, finance, management studies, marketing, economics, or quantitative studies. Between two and four second-year subjects, or subjects with a credit value of between twelve and twenty-four points, must be selected from this category, any two of which may be from first-year subjects.

Elective subjects (category C) comprise subjects from other faculties or from a limited list of faculty subjects from other campuses and students may include up to two subjects, or subjects with a credit value of a maximum of twelve points, in this category. (Whilst each subject offered by the Faculty of Business and Economics (Clayton) has a points value of six, the points value of subjects taken from other faculties may vary, and where this occurs, students must complete the minimum number of points rather than the number of subjects recommended). If desired, it is possible to substitute up to two first-year subjects for second-year subjects in this category, although students may only include a total of two first-year subjects to the value of twelve points in the second-year program overall.

In summary form the structure of second year is:

Major specialisation (Category A): Three to five second-year level subjects, to the value of eighteen to thirty credit points. One specialisation can be chosen from the subjects taught on the Clayton campus by the departments of Accounting and Finance, Economics, Econometrics or Business Management.
Supporting studies (Category B): Two to four second-year level subjects, to the value of twelve to twenty-four points. Subject areas from those listed above but not from the area chosen for specialisation.
Electives (Category C): Up to two second-year level subjects, to the value of a maximum of twelve points, in subject areas from those offered by other faculties or from a limited list of faculty subjects offered on other campuses.

In the case of supporting studies or electives, either category B or C, two first-year subjects to the value of twelve credit points can be substituted for two second-year subjects.

An absolute limit of five subjects from the same year level is placed upon subjects selected from the following groupings of departments/subjects within the faculty:

Department of Accounting and Finance, Syme Department of Accounting, Syme Department of Banking and Finance, and accounting, banking or finance-oriented subjects from the Gippsland campus.
Department of Econometrics subjects at Clayton, Department of Econometrics subjects at Caulfield/Peninsula, and business statistics-oriented subjects from other departments.
Department of Economics subjects at Clayton, and economics-oriented subjects from other departments.
Department of Business Management subjects at Clayton, Department of Business Management subjects at Caulfield/ Peninsula, Department of Marketing subjects, and management and marketing subjects from the Gippsland campus.

Students must have their program of study approved by the course director or the course director's nominee.

Third year

The same structure as in second year will apply in third year. For the major specialisation subjects, students will select third-year subjects valued between eighteen and thirty points (normally three to five subjects) from the area of specialisation chosen in second year. Supporting studies subjects are to be chosen from third-year subjects offered on the Clayton campus by the departments of Accounting and Finance, Economics, Econometrics and Business Management, but excluding the area of specialisation. Students may select third-year subjects up to the value of twelve points from subjects offered by other faculties or from a limited list of faculty subjects offered on other campuses for their electives. Students should refer to the summary structure for second year for further detail.

In the case of supporting studies or electives, either category B or C, two second-year subjects to the value of twelve credit points can be substituted for two third-year subjects.

The same absolute limit of five subjects from the department/subject groupings listed for second year also applies to third year.

As in first and second year, students must have their program of study approved by the course director or the course director's nominee prior to commencement of the relevant year.

Handbook Contents | Faculty Handbooks | Monash University