Undergraduate: Course rule and topic information

All course rules are currently under review and new course rules will apply from 2011.
As a result topic details may change. Further information on the new course structures will be made available by mid-2010.

Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science

(BScEnvSc)

Program of study
Honours program | Combined degrees program

INTRODUCTION

The Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science requires three years of full-time study (or the equivalent part-time) and the honours program an additional year (or the equivalent part-time).

The course is offered by the Faculty of Science and Engineering.

Enrolment in the honours program may be offered to a student who meets certain academic criteria and subject to the school/department being able to supervise the program of study.

The Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science may also be studied in a combined degrees program with the Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice (six years of full-time study or the equivalent part-time) or the Bachelor of Laws (five-and-a-half years of full-time study or the equivalent part-time).

COURSE AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course has been designed to produce graduates who, as environmental scientists, are specialists in a major area of applied science and possess well developed skills to liaise with other groups of scientific and environmental specialists to arrive at solutions to environmental problems. It aims:

• to promote a project and problem-oriented and transdisciplinary approach to the application of science to environmental issues;
• to produce environmental professionals who are specialists in a major area of environmental concern and who are experienced in working in teams which draw on and communicate a variety of expertise;
• to develop the role of basic science in the identification, assessment, monitoring and treatment of environmental problems;
• to promote an understanding of the public policy contexts and social organisations within which environmental issues arise and are dealt with.

Learning outcomes

On completion of their degree, students will have developed a comprehensive and well-founded knowledge in their science discipline and a range of transferable professional skills.

Subject knowledge

Graduates of the course are expected to be able to:

• demonstrate specialist skills in a major area of environmental concern;
• organise environmental projects using problem-based and transdisciplinary approaches;
• employ scientific method to identify, assess, monitor and treat environmental problems;
• recognise the public policy contexts and social organisations within which environmental issues arise and are dealt with.

Transferable professional skills

Graduates of the course are expected to be able to:

• employ scientific methodologies such as experimental design, and the critical analysis of data;
• communicate and present information clearly and fluently in both written and spoken forms;
• interact effectively as part of a team in order to work towards a common outcome;
• work and learn independently;
• reason critically and logically and make independent judgements;
• engage effectively with information and communication technologies;
• demonstrate research skills appropriate for further study and employment; and
• appreciate the need for continuing professional development.

COURSE RULE

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

The minimum requirements for consideration for entry to all undergraduate courses are specified in detail in the University Entry Requirements.

There are no formal prerequisites for the Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science, but a knowledge of Chemistry, Mathematics and Physics at Year 12 level is desirable.

PROGRAM OF STUDY [November, 2009]

To qualify for the Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science, a student must complete 108 units with a grade of P or NGP or better in each topic, according to the program of study for one of the three major sequences below:

• Coasts and Catchments
• Environmental Forensics
• Global Water Resources

Except with the permission of the Faculty Board, students may not enrol in Second Year topics until they have completed the 18 units of First Year topics required for their designated major and may not enrol in Third Year topics until they have completed all First Year requirements.

Not all topics are necessarily available in a given year.

FIRST YEAR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE CORE

36 units comprising:

BIOL1102	Molecular Basis of Life	4.5
BIOL1101	Evolution of Biological Diversity	4.5
EASC1101	Earth and Environment 1	4.5
EASC1102	Marine Sciences 1	4.5
ENVR1101	Environmental Science 1	4.5
STAT1512	Quantitative Methods for Earth and Environmental Science, or	4.5
CPES1102	Science and Society	4.5
	and either
CHEM1101	Chemistry 1A, and	4.5
CHEM1102	Chemistry 1B	4.5
	or
CHEM1201	Introduction to Chemistry A, and	4.5
CHEM1202	Introduction to Chemistry B	4.5

SECOND YEAR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE CORE

CPES2131	Coasts and Oceans	6
CPES2152	Global Climate Change and Natural Hazards	6
ENVR2100	Environmental Science 2	3
STAT2306	Statistics for Earth and Environmental Science	3
	and either
CPES2020	Geological Processes^, or	6
CPES2023	Sedimentary Processes^^	6

THIRD YEAR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE CORE

ENVR3100	Environmental Science 3	6
GEOG3013	Geographical Information Systems	6

^ = Offered in odd years only  |  ^^ = Offered in even years only.

In order to meet the requirements of one of the streams, students must follow one of the following programs over their Second and Third Years. Not all topics will be offered every year.

COASTS AND CATCHMENTS

30 units selected from the following list:

BIOL2112	Aquatic Life Histories	3
BIOL2161	Plant and Algal Biology: From Environment to Biotechnology	6
BIOL2171	Behaviour and Ecology	6
BIOL2271	Marine and Terrestrial Animal Diversity, or	3
BIOL2172	Animal Diversity	6
BIOL2272	Marine Biology and Ecology	3
BIOL2330	Basic Microbiology	3
BIOL2341	Animal Disease and Defence	3
BIOL3101	Marine Ecological Processes	6
BIOL3102	Marine Vertebrates	6
BIOL3152	Conservation Biology and Restoration Ecology	6
BIOL3380	Animal Behaviour	3
BIOL3390	Vertebrate Palaeontology	6
CPES2019	Earth Sciences Field Camp 1^^, or	(6)
CPES3023	Earth Sciences Field Camp 2^	(6)
CPES3131	Surface Water Hydrology	6
CPES3151	Groundwater and Soil Hydrology	6
CPES3152	Hydrochemistry	6
MATH1201	Introductory Mathematics 1A, or	4.5
MATH1121	Mathematics 1A	4.5
MATH1202	Introductory Mathematics 1B, or	4.5
MATH1122	Mathematics 1B	4.5
	and a further 6 units selected from below
ENVS2704	Environmental Systems	6
ENVS3708	Coastal Studies	6
ENVS3722	Environmental Impact Assessment	6
GEOG2006	Australian Environmental Change	6
GEOG3014	Introduction to Remote Sensing	6
GEOG3017	Advanced GIS	6

Some topics not available every year.

^ = Offered in odd years only  |  ^^ = Offered in even years only.

ENVIRONMENTAL FORENSICS

30 units selected from the following list:

BIOL2122	Comparative Physiology, or	6
BIOL2424	Physiological Systems	3
BIOL2341	Animal Disease and Defence, or	3
BIOL2142	Disease and Immunology	6
BIOL3390	Vertebrate Palaeontology	6
CPES2019	Earth Sciences Field Camp 1^^, or	(6)
CPES3023	Earth Sciences Field Camp 2^	(6)
CPES3131	Surface Water Hydrology	6
CPES3151	Groundwater and Soil Hydrology	6
CPES3152	Hydrochemistry	6
ENVH2004	Biological Chemistry	3
ENVH2009	Legal Studies	3
LEGL3027	Law, Public Health and the Environment	6
MMED3928	Toxicology for Environmental Health*	3
MATH1201	Introductory Mathematics 1A, or	4.5
MATH1121	Mathematics 1A	4.5
MATH1202	Introductory Mathematics 1B, or	4.5
MATH1122	Mathematics 1B	4.5
	and a further 6 units selected from below
ENVS2704	Environmental Systems	6
ENVS3708	Coastal Studies	6
ENVS3722	Environmental Impact Assessment	6
GEOG2006	Australian Environmental Change	6
GEOG3014	Introduction to Remote Sensing	6
GEOG3017	Advanced GIS	6

Some topics not available every year.

^ = Offered in odd years only  |  ^^ = Offered in even years only.

* Students wishing to undertake this topic must complete the prerequisite topics ENVH2004 and (BIOL2260 or BIOL2424).

GLOBAL WATER RESOURCES

Core topics

MATH1201	Introductory Mathematics 1A, or	4.5
MATH1121	Mathematics 1A, AND	4.5
MATH1202	Introductory Mathematics 1B, or	4.5
MATH1122	Mathematics 1B	4.5
	24 units selected from the following list:
BIOL2232	Foundations in Microbiology	6
CPES2019	Earth Sciences Field Camp 1^^, or	(6)
CPES3023	Earth Sciences Field Camp 2^	(6)
CPES3131	Surface Water Hydrology	6
CPES3151	Groundwater and Soil Hydrology	6
CPES3152	Hydrochemistry	6
CPES3172	Earth Fluid Dynamics and Modelling	6
	and a further 3 units selected below
BIOL2112	Aquatic Life Histories	3
BIOL2271	Marine and Terrestrial Animal Diversity	3
BIOL2272	Marine Biology and Ecology	3
BIOL2330	Basic Microbiology	3
GEOG3015	Digital Image Analysis	3

HONOURS DEGREE

To qualify for the honours degree a student must complete the following program:

36 units comprising:

CPES7005 Honours Research Project in Environmental Science (24 units). Students should enrol in a combination of sub-topics chosen from the following, ensuring that they enrol in 24 units overall.

CPES7005A	Honours Research Project in Environmental Science (6/24 units)	6
CPES7005B	Honours Research Project in Environmental Science (9/24 units)	9
CPES7005C	Honours Research Project in Environmental Science (18/24 units)	18
CPES7005D	Honours Research Project in Environmental Science (12/24 units)	12
CPES7005E	Honours Research Project in Environmental Science (15/24 units)	15

plus two of the following topics:

CPES7030	Professional Practice in Hydrology	6
CPES7106	Advanced Topics in Hydrology	6
CPES7105	Advanced Computational Fluid Modelling	6
CPES7107	Advanced Ocean and Climate Sciences	6

Students may also choose 6 units from other honours level topics approved by the Honours Committee of the School of Chemistry, Physics and Earth Sciences. In special cases 6 units may be a Third Year level topic if the topic deals with subject matter particularly relevant to the student's research project. This option is subject to approval by the above committee.