Faculty of Arts Bachelor of Public Policy and Management (BPPM)

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Faculty of Arts

Table of Contents

1. BPPM course objectives
2. Entry requirements
3. BPPM course structure
4. Third year
5. Fourth year (pass degree)
6. Other BPPM course requirements
    6.1. Credit towards the BPPM degree
        6.1.1. Credit for previous tertiary studies
        6.1.2. Community Access Program subjects for credit
7. BPPM Honours
    7.1. Honours entry
    7.2. Honours requirements
    7.3. Honours grade requirement
    7.4. Workload
    7.5. Leave of absence
    7.6. Extensions of time
8. Further study
9. Career opportunities
10. Further information
Subject Lists
    Third-year core subjects
    Third-year elective subjects
    Fourth-year subjects

The Bachelor of Public Policy and Management (BPPM) is a professional degree for those aspiring to careers in Commonwealth, State and local government or community sectors. The program combines a strong theoretical focus with professional skills acquisition and practical knowledge.

The program is specifically designed to provide professional training for future generations of leaders in public policy and management. A variety of career pathways are available that draw on analytical, research and practical knowledge gained in this degree. Students interested in expanding their interests and knowledge in this area of expertise can go on to further postgraduate degree study at the University of Melbourne.

Students entering this course will have completed at least two years of a bachelors degree or its equivalent. You will then complete your third and fourth years in the public policy and management course for a Bachelor of Public Policy and Management, or undertake combined study for the completion of both degrees.

1. BPPM course objectives

The Bachelor of Public Policy and Management has as its objectives that graduates will be equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary for successful managerial careers in the public service or the community sector. In particular, graduates should be able to:

• design, evaluate and provide professional advice on government policy;

• use appropriate analytical and practical skills in the management of personnel and resources, public sector change and the use of policy research methods and tools;

• understand how government works and how policy is made and implemented.

2. Entry requirements

You may apply to enrol in the Bachelor of Public Policy and Management after the completion of at least two years of a bachelors degree or its equivalent. Selection will be based foremost on academic merit, however, professional work experience and work-based education and training may also be taken into account.

Please note that BPPM core subjects (except 166-022 Public Policy Making) are not available to students in the Bachelor of Arts, combined BA degree courses or the Bachelor of Letters.

3. BPPM course structure

In each of the third and fourth years, students complete eight subjects (totalling 100 points at each year level). These points are made up of a series of core subjects and elective subjects. See the course structure below.

4. Third year

Students must complete:

• two core subjects; and

• five List A elective subjects.

  or

• two core subjects; and

• four List A elective subjects; and

• one List B elective subject.

5. Fourth year (pass degree)

Students must complete:

• three core subjects; and

• four elective subjects.

6. Other BPPM course requirements

Please see the entries in the BA sections Taking more than 50 points in a semester (overloading) to Resumption of course for information about other requirements of the degree (for example leave of absence, workload, study progress etc.). Unless stated otherwise above, all course requirements are the same for the BA and the BPPM.

6.1. Credit towards the BPPM degree

Applicants for the Bachelor of Public Policy and Management degree will be awarded such credit as the Faculty considers appropriate at the time of their first enrolment in the degree. Credit will not normally be granted for any complete or incomplete undergraduate studies undertaken 10 or more years prior to admission to the degree.

No student is obliged to accept the credit that is awarded, but must notify the Faculty in writing of their intention to decline such credit within the year (full or part time) of credit being granted.

6.1.1. Credit for previous tertiary studies

Students entering the degree (or transferring from other faculties or tertiary institutions) who have completed additional subjects which are considered to be equivalent to those available to students in the Bachelor of Public Policy and Management may be granted specified credit for those subjects. It may also be necessary for the relevant department to recommend such credit. The maximum amount of credit granted to a transferring student will be 100 points (ie. you must complete at least 100 points as an enrolled student in the BPPM degree). No subject may be credited to more than one qualification.

For more information on credit, you should refer to the credit guidelines available from the Faculty of Arts Office.

6.1.2. Community Access Program subjects for credit

Students who have completed subjects through the Community Access Program (CAP) to gain admission to the Bachelor of Public Policy and Management degree may be eligible for credit.

Where the subjects are used because academic performance in subsequent tertiary study was insufficient, or to demonstrate academic rehabilitation after suspension or termination, credit will only be given for BPPM subjects or approved optional subjects where a grade of H2B or higher is achieved.

7. BPPM Honours

The Bachelor of Public Policy and Management (Honours) degree requires a higher standard of performance in the final year of the BPPM program, and the completion of a thesis of 12 000 words. Entry into the honours degree must be approved by the BPPM coordinator and the Faculty of Arts honours course adviser.

7.1. Honours entry

The prerequisites for entry to fourth-year honours in public policy and management are:

• completion of all subjects for BPPM third year; and

• an average grade of H2A or higher in the BPPM third year.

7.2. Honours requirements

Students undertaking BPPM Honours must complete 100 points of study including the Public Policy and Management Thesis.

7.3. Honours grade requirement

A student's final examination grade will be calculated over the weighted average mark of the thesis and the final-year subjects. As in the Bachelor of Arts (Honours), students will be required to obtain an honours grade in each component of assessment, and an overall grade of at least H3, to be eligible for an honours degree.

7.4. Workload

The honours degree is usually taken full time. In some circumstances (such as work commitments), and with the approval of the BPPM coordinator and the Faculty of Arts, you may be permitted to take honours part time over two years.

If you commence fourth year as a full-time student, you will usually be required to continue full time. You need permission from the Faculty to withdraw from fourth-year subjects after the first two weeks of each semester.

In all cases, your thesis must be completed over two consecutive semesters within a 12-month period of enrolment. Withdrawal from the thesis will only be permitted in very exceptional circumstances.

7.5. Leave of absence

It is possible for students accepted into honours to take leave of absence for 12 months before starting their fourth year.

Once you have commenced honours, leave of absence will only be approved with the support of the BPPM coordinator in exceptional circumstances. The maximum leave that will be granted is two semesters (12 months).

7.6. Extensions of time

Extensions of time for outstanding work during fourth-year studies (ie. as a result of illness) may be granted up to 31 December (or 30 June for work due at the end of semester one) by the BPPM honours coordinator. For all other extensions, you will require the prior written approval of the Associate Dean (Academic Programs) as well as the written support of the BPPM coordinator.

8. Further study

Masters and PhD options exist for BPPM graduates; both require an H2B average or higher in fourth-year honours.

9. Career opportunities

The department has extensive contacts in the Commonwealth, State and local governments and the community sector. It offers career guidance and planning for its students and graduates.

10. Further information

Contact the Faculty of Arts Office on +61 3 8344 5235, or:

Department of Political Science
University of Melbourne
Victoria 3010
Tel: +61 3 8344 6565
Fax: +61 3 8344 7906
Email: pubpol@arts.unimelb.edu.au
Web: http://www.public-policy.unimelb.edu.au

Third-year core subjects

166-022 Public Policy Making
166-310 Special Projects Taskforce

Third-year elective subjects

166-023 Issues in American Foreign Policy
166-027 Australia in the World Political Economy
166-035 Australian Foreign Relations
166-038 Indigenous Rights: Land and Heritage
166-040 Constitutional Design and Change
166-043 Public Affairs Internship
166-082 Work, Management & Globalisation
166-091 Medicine, Health and Illness
166-210 Political Communication
166-212 Global Environmental Politics
166-213 Using Computers in Social Research
166-214 US Scandals from Watergate to Whitewater

Fourth-year subjects

166-513 Public Policy & Management Thesis
166-514 Public Policy & Management Thesis (MYE)
166-410 Approaches to Political & Social Inquiry
166-423 Public Sector Management
166-453 Executive Internship
166-470 Governance and Policy in the Global Era
166-411 Australian Politics:Democracy & Justice
166-416 Justice, Democracy and Difference
166-417 Human Rights Theory & Practice: S.E.Asia
166-421 Politics 4A
166-427 Global Economic Governance
166-442 Law, Ethics and Public Policy
166-455 Managing Communications & the Media
166-539 Governance and Sustainable Development
100-418 Media Policy and Regulation
191-415 Youth Crime and Society
191-417 Corporate and White Collar Crime
191-422 Women, Gender and Crime

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