Bachelor of Arts (Honours)
Course information for - 2025 entry
Offered at 2 locations
- Duration
- 1 year full-time or equivalent part-time
- CRICOS Code
- 061891K
- Fees (first year)*
- $28728
- Start dates
- February 2026, February 2027
Overview
Enhance your career opportunities with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) at ACU. Become part of a lively and engaging research community within ACU’s National School of Arts and Humanities. Develop and undertake your own research thesis, or creative project and exegesis/dissertation, to make an original contribution and positive impact to your selected area of study. Embedded in ACU’s vibrant arts, social sciences and humanities community - you will receive the support, guidance, and mentorship to succeed throughout your research journey.
ACU’s prestigious honours program provides the opportunity to gain a competitive edge in your career by engaging with industry, and to develop local and international experience, through an honours internship or a domestic or international fieldtrip. You will also improve your critical and innovative thinking, to build the credentials to apply for graduate research degrees (such as a research masters or PhD) in your discipline.
Careers
Our graduates have pursued careers in:
- Creative industries
- Public Sector
- Non-profit
- Education
- Research
- Academia
Course details
Course structure
To complete the Bachelor of Arts (Honours), a student must complete 80 credit points (cp)
Course map
Graduate statement
AQF framework
Additional course information
Students will have the opportunity to undertake an industry internship as part of this course. The placement will complement theoretical study by immersing students in project work at key cultural institutions, government agencies, local government or community organisations. Projects are developed in consultation with Course Coordinators.
Entry requirements
An applicant must comply with the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy.
To be eligible to apply for admission to the Bachelor of Arts (Honours), a student must have:
Completed an approved ACU undergraduate degree, or equivalent, normally within the last five years with a minimum GPA as stipulated in the University Guidelines for Honours Programs.
Students must have attained one of the following:
- a GPA of 5.50 on the ACU seven-point scale in their major, or field of study, in the relevant undergraduate degree; or
- for students who have completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts and Design degree, achieved a Distinction in at least one of any Art Theory unit AND a GPA of 5.50 on the ACU seven-point scale across the visual arts/design units in their final year of study; or
- for students who have completed a Bachelor degree in Media, achieved a Distinction in at least one of any Media Theory unit AND a GPA of 5.50 on the ACU seven-point scale across their final year in their media/digital journalism units;
Offers of admission to the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) require the approval of the National Head of School, or nominee, and will only be made where the student's proposed area of study aligns with a demonstrated capacity for Honours research and supervision within the School.
International applicants need to meet the English Language Proficiency requirements as defined in the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy.
In accordance with the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy, students who do not meet the standard requirements for entry to Bachelor of Arts (Honours) may be eligible for admission if they can demonstrate equivalent knowledge, skills and/or competencies. Particular equity groups, including students who are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, from low SES, regional or remote areas, may also be eligible for admission under equity pathways such as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Special Entry Scheme or the Special Consideration for Long Term Educational Disadvantage (Universities Admissions Centre) Education Access Scheme (EAS). In accordance with the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy, any such applications will be assessed by the National Head of the National School of Arts and Humanities.
Disclaimer: The course entry requirements above are for 2025 Admission.
View transparency admission information
International applicants
An applicant must also comply with the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy.
To be eligible to apply for admission to the Bachelor of Arts (Honours), a student must have:
1.1 Completed an approved ACU undergraduate degree, or equivalent, normally within the last five years with a minimum GPA as stipulated in the University Guidelines for Honours Programs.
1.2 Students must have attained one of the following:
- a GPA of 5.50 on the ACU seven-point scale in their major, or field of study, in the relevant undergraduate degree1; or
- for students who have completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts and Design degree, achieved a Distinction in at least one of any Art Theory unit AND a GPA of 5.50 on the ACU seven-point scale across the visual arts/design units in their final year of study; or
- for students who have completed a Bachelor degree in Media, achieved a Distinction in at least one of any Media Theory unit AND a GPA of 5.50 on the ACU seven-point scale across their final year in their media/digital journalism units;
Offers of admission to the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) require the approval of the National Head of School, or nominee, and will only be made where the student's proposed area of study aligns with a demonstrated capacity for Honours research and supervision within the School.
An applicant must also comply with the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy.
International applicants need to meet the English Language Proficiency requirements as defined in the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy.
In accordance with the Admissions to Coursework Programs Policy, students who do not meet the standard requirements for entry to Bachelor of Arts (Honours) may be eligible for admission if they can demonstrate equivalent knowledge, skills and/or competencies. Particular equity groups, including students who are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, from low SES, regional or remote areas, may also be eligible for admission under equity pathways such as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Special Entry Scheme or the Special Consideration for Long Term Educational Disadvantage (Universities Admissions Centre) Education Access Scheme (EAS). In accordance with the Admissions to Coursework Programs Policy, any such applications will be assessed by the National Head of the School of Arts.
- For students enrolled in double degrees, the GPA rule applies to majors within the relevant degree. For instance, for Bachelor of Teaching/Bachelor of Arts, it would only be based on the Bachelor of Arts units.
English language requirements
Overall score of 6.0. Individual score of 6.0 in writing and speaking, and 5.5 in listening and reading.
Pathways
Further study
Graduates from this course may be eligible to apply for a range of postgraduate coursework or higher degree research programs
Fees
Course costs
- Unit fee: $3591
- Average first year fee: $28728
- Estimate total cost: $28728
The Tuition fees quoted above are for commencing students in the current year who undertake a normal full-time load. The Unit Fee is based on a 10cp unit. Fees are reviewed annually.
Tuition fees for continuing students may increase by up to 3 percent each year for the minimum duration of the course as provided on your electronic Confirmation of Enrolment (eCOE). Students who continue to study beyond the minimum duration will have the relevant annual commencing rate applied to their fees for subsequent study periods.
Payment options
You should be able to concentrate on getting good marks instead of worrying about how you’ll pay your fees. We have a number of options that can help you ease the financial burden, including government assistance, scholarships and income support.
Scholarships
You could be eligible for one of the hundreds of scholarships we award each year to help students from across the university with the cost of studying, accommodation or overseas study opportunities. Some of our scholarships are awarded on the basis of merit, but these aren’t just for the academically gifted; ACU also recognises excellence in community engagement and leadership. We also offer a range of scholarships for those who may be struggling financially or who have faced other barriers to accessing education.
How to apply
International applicants
Deferment
No deferment available.
Students with a Student Visa will need to complete the program in minimum duration, study at least one subject on-campus each semester and must not undertake more than 33% of the program online.
Staff Profile
Dr Ellen Warne
National Coordinator, Programs and Quality Assurance, and Deputy Head of the National School of Arts and Humanities (Victoria)
Dr Warne is a Senior Lecturer in history and the National Coordinator, Programs & Quality Assurance, as well as Deputy Head of the National School of Arts and Humanities (Victoria) at the Australian Catholic University. She has worked as a research fellow investigating the long histories of 'working mothers' in Australia. Dr Warne's major research interest has focused on women in women-only organisations from the suffrage campaigns onwards, including the long-standing debates around 'family values' and contrasting dynamics that required women's political and economic engagement in Australia.
Assoc. Prof. Lisa O'Connell
Associate Professor (English Literature), Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences
Lisa O’Connell is Associate Professor of English at the Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences and a specialist in British Literature of the eighteenth century. Her research interests include the history and theory of the novel, women’s fiction, enlightenment, secularization and early global literatures. Lisa has published on a wide range of topics and genres including marriage, nationalism, libertinism, popular anthropology, travel writing, romance, courtesan memoirs, sermons and settler fiction. Her recent monograph The Origins of the English Marriage Plot: Literature, Politics and Religion in the Eighteenth Century (Cambridge 2019) offers a new account of why and how marriage became central to the realist novel. Another recent essay reveals the neglected links between Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and the fiction of Therese Huber, the little-known German author of the first novel set in the Australian penal colony.