BEc(Hons)

In some of the more specialised careers open to the faculty's graduates, employers may be looking for a higher level of specialisation that is not provided in a three-year pass degree. Similarly, if students want to qualify for specialist postgraduate research study, a pass degree is not normally sufficient. For all graduates, a four-year honours degree considerably enhances the quality of a qualification which singles out students to an employer as having exceptional ability.

Honours involves the completion of an additional year of study after the completion of the the Bachelor of Economics pass degree

The honours year is available in most of the subject areas in the respective degrees. Honours may involve extra work at second and third year level in the chosen subject area (prerequisite honours preparation units of study) and, in all cases, an additional year of study spent entirely on that subject area. After completing the requirements for the pass degree (and attaining results which satisfy the entry requirements for the award of honours), students may commence their honours year specialising in one of the following areas:

• Accounting
• Business Information Systems
• Commercial Law
• Econometrics
• Economics
• Finance
• Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management
• International Business
• Management
• Management Decision Sciences
• Marketing; or
• Other areas of study from other faculties (as approved by the Faculty of Economics and Business)

It may be possible to complete either double honours or joint honours. Double honours involves the student completing all the honours work in two subject areas, and thus normally takes an extra year. In joint honours the two subject areas which are more closely related to each other are studied concurrently through a special program of study designed for the student. For example, each year a number of students take joint honours in economics and econometrics.

Normally students will not make any decisions about honours courses until the end of their first year of study in the faculty. In order to enter and remain in an honours stream, students must perform at a credit level or better in the chosen subject area. A bare pass level of performance in a first year subject will not be sufficient to secure entry into honours courses.

For further details regarding completing the honours year in a specific subject area students should contact the honours coordinator in the particular discipline area concerned (www.econ.usyd.edu.au/honours/).