Glossary

• Adding a Unit of Study
• Arts Handbook
• Credit Points
• Cross-listing
• Discontinuing without Failure (DNF)
• Discontinuing with Failure (DF)
• Full-time Study
• Junior Credit Points
• Major in the Faculty of Arts
• 'Part A' Units of Study
• 'Part B' Units of Study
• Part-time Study
• Prerequisites
• Senior Credit Points
• Subject Areas
• Table of Units of Study
• Units of Study (UoS)
• Withdrawing from a Unit of Study

The requirements for each degree program in the Faculty of Arts consist of some rules and regulations to make sure your degree is well structured, while at the same time giving you as much freedom of choice as possible regarding the order in which you take your subjects and the subject areas in which you will study.

To understand the regulations and the choices available to you in your degree program, it will be helpful to become familiar with some common terms that you will encounter.

Students enrolled in an Arts degree, or combined Arts degree, are able to study units from a wide range of 'subject areas' for example, History, Japanese, Music and Linguistics.

Each subject area offers a range of 'units of study'.

A semester long component in a particular subject area, generally requiring between two and six hours of class attendance, is called a 'unit of study'.

Each unit of study is worth a certain number of 'credit points'.

A credit point value is assigned to a unit of study, depending on the level at which it is taught and the amount of work required. From 2006 most units of study are worth 6 credit points each.

When you begin your degree, you will take 'junior' credit points.

You start your degree by taking 'junior' units of study. They form a foundation for more advanced 'senior' units.

Junior units of study are worth 6 junior credit points. They are sometimes called 1000 level units because their unit of study codes all take the form 1XXX, e.g. CHNS1101, LNGS1005 etc.

Once you have completed the appropriate junior units, you can start to earn 'senior' credit points.

Senior units of study build on the foundation of learning established by junior units. All senior units in the Faculty of Arts are worth 6 senior credit points.

Senior units are sometimes called 2000 and 3000 level units because their study codes all take the form 2XXX or 3XXX, e.g. SPAN2601, JCTC3606 etc.

In each degree program in the Faculty of Arts, you need to have at least one subject area of expertise - your major.

To earn a major in a subject area (from Part A of the Table of Units of Study) in the Faculty of Arts, students need to complete a minimum of 36 senior credit points in that subject area. Senior units of study in Arts have 2XXX or 3XXX codes.

There are some units of study you can't take until you have an appropriate foundation of other units in place. For example, you might have to take junior units in a certain subject area as prerequisites for your senior units.

You'll need to check the Faculty of Arts Handbook, in print or online, to find out if there are any prerequisites for units in the subject areas that interest you.

The Arts Handbook contains all the course information you need to make informed choices about your degree. Get your Handbook from the Student Centre, Carslaw Building. You may also view the Handbook online.

In some subject areas, the Faculty allows a unit of study from one subject to be counted (cross-listed) towards another, related subject area. For example, certain senior Ancient History units of study may be counted towards the requirements of a History major.

The maximum number of credit points allowed to be cross-listed and counted towards a major in a particular subject area is 18 senior credit points. Exemptions can be made for European Studies, Medieval Studies and Film Studies.

To find out which units of study are cross-listed, and so can count towards a major in a particular subject area, check the Master Cross-Listing Schedule.

To find out what subject areas you can study, and what units of study are offered within them, check the requirements for your degree. These will specify any compulsory subject areas or units of study you will need to take, and will indicate how much freedom you have to take units of study of your choice.

The Table, published in the Arts Handbook, lists all the units of study which can be counted to your degree, including their enrolment code, official title, credit point value, entry requirements and the semester in which they are offered.

Please see the Table of Units of Study.

Part A Units of Study

Part A refers to the units of study that are listed in the Faculty of Arts Undergraduate Handbook, Section 5 'Table of Units of Study: Part A'. These all come from subject areas taught within the Faculty of Arts. Most Arts degrees require you to complete at least one major from Part A of the table, and may also specify the number of junior or senior credit points required from Part A.

Part B Units of Study

Part B subjects come from the Faculties of Science, Economics & Business, and Education & Social Work.

To meet the requirements for a Part B major, you must follow the regulations set by the relevant faculty. For example, to do a Psychology major, you must follow the guidelines set by the Faculty of Science.

Information on regulations for Part B majors can be found in the relevant faculty handbook.

Yes you can! However, it is important to be aware of the time frames within which these changes must be made. For a complete list of the relevant dates, please see the Timeline.

Variations of enrolment include adding, withdrawing or discontinuing from units of study.

To add a unit of study, log on to Student Administration Services and select 'Web Enrolment Variations.' If for any reason, you have a problem varying your enrolment through this website, you'll need to do it on paper at the Faculty of Arts Office or via email from your university email account to:
In this email you must include all of the following so that your variation can be processed: your full name, the unit of study code and title to be added or withdrawn, your 9-digit student number.

Remember that the maximum number of credit points you can take in your first year is 48 (that is, 24 in each semester of your first year). In later years you can take up to 30 credit points in each semester.

So...if you add one unit of study, you MAY need to withdraw from another one, to make sure that you don't go over the maximum number of credit points allowed.

The Commonwealth Assistance (HECS) census date is the last day on which you can withdraw from a unit of study that you've enrolled in for a given semester. The census date for semester 1 is March 31st. The census date for semester 2 is August 31st. It is important to remember that this date sometimes falls on a weekend so it is advisable not to leave any withdrawals to the last minute.

If you are enrolled in a unit of study after the census date, you will incur a debt for that unit. You will be liable for that debt EVEN if you discontinue the unit later, or fail the unit, or EVEN if you never actually attend any classes in that unit at all.

If you withdraw from a unit before or on the census date, it's as if you had never enrolled in the unit: no result appears on your academic transcript, and there's no Commonwealth Assistance liability.

To withdraw from a unit of study, log on to myUni and select 'Web Enrolment Variations'. If for any reason you have a problem varying your enrolment through this website, then you'll need to do it on paper through the Faculty of Arts Office or via email from your university email account, including your full name, unit/s of study code/s and title/s to be withdrawn, and student number in your request to:

Unfortunately, once the census date has passed, it is no longer possible to withdraw from a unit of study. Instead, if you no longer with to complete the unit of study you will need to discontinue.

Discontinuation from a unit of study is not the same as withdrawal. If you discontinue a unit before the last date for discontinuation without failure, the unit appears on your transcript with the result of DNF (Discontinued Not Fail) and you do still incur a debt (i.e. Commonwealth Assistance or Fee debt) for that unit.
(For semester deadlines see: http://www.usyd.edu.au/handbooks/university_information/dates.shtml)

Even though discontinuation is not ideal, if you are really not coping with a particular unit for some reason, it could be a better alternative that to continue your enrolment for that unit but fail to complete the assessment requirements satisfactorily, and end up with a grade of Absent Fail (AF) or Fail (F) on your transcript.

To discontinue a unit of study, go to the Faculty of Arts Office on or before the last day to discontinue without failure and complete a Variation of Enrolment form, or email a request from your university email account to arts.ug@usyd.edu.au

You can discontinue a unit of study after the last date to discontinue without failure. In this case, the result will be recorded on your transcript as Discontinued - Fail (DF). You will still incur a debt (i.e. Commonwealth Assistance or Fee debt) for that unit.

You may be considered for a Discontinued - Not Fail (DNF) grade after the deadline if you show evidence of serious illness or misadventure. For more information on applying for a DNF after the deadline, including the application form, see the How To and Forms page.

Full-Time Study

To be considered full-time a student must have a Commonwealth Assistance liability of at least 0.375 in a semester. In the Faculty of Arts, this means a student must be enrolled in at least 18 credit points in the semester.

Part-Time Study

To be part-time a student must have a Commonwealth Assistance liability of 0.374 or below. Part-time status is not defined by when you attend classes, but how many credit points you enrol in. Enrolment in less than 18 credit points in a semester is a part-time load.