B Economic & Social Sciences (1 Viewer)

[WTF!bbq]

So I'm totally in love with the idea of this course. I wanted to hear from people who have taken/are undertaking it, in particular majoring in Government & International Relations or Political Economy. How much time do you spend at uni every week? What are you hoping to do in the future? Do you reckon this course would go down well with postgrad journalism? What else, if anything, are you majoring in? I'm going for Sociology I think, with a few other units which sound awesome, and I'm interested in knowing what ties in well with Govt. Is anyone currently doing the GOVT3558 internship?

A generic sort of question, would *not* doing the full 48 junior credit points be a bad idea if I did intemediate or adv spanish 1 and 2 in my first year instead? (I'm not sure how far ahead you can jump in language levels, I'm a native speaker and interested in doing translation as well but I probably should brush up first.) I know it's generally not recommended to do senior level classes first year, but I can't find that many that appeal to me and I want to look for work at the Uruguayan consulate in the next few years anyway.

Oh and can anyone recommend any particularly awesome classes they did? Looking at the descriptions for the units of study, a couple of them sound just like what I did in S+C this year - GOVT2774 and ARIN2620, for instance - and I'm getting a bit hyperactive about this whole uni thing now cause I didn't even think I'd get the UAI I'd need ^____^ Heh anyway yeah just looking for a sharing of experiences

Thanks in regard
Danzig

 

[Triangulum]

I'm not doing this course, but I can answer a few of the questions.

How much time do you spend at uni every week?

You'll probably end up with about 12 contact hours per week, although depending on your subjects it could be higher.

A generic sort of question, would *not* doing the full 48 junior credit points be a bad idea if I did intemediate or adv spanish 1 and 2 in my first year instead?

If you're capable enough with the language to skip straight to senior level, there's no reason not to. You would need to apply for advanced standing, details here.

 

[DeepDarkRose]

my friend does this course, she likes it a lot. i think she's majoring in political economy, japanese and government.
i think she really likes political economy cause it's the social side of economics and not just graphs and numbers.

and yes it's 12 contact hours (though some subjects can be more or less, though it's less common, eg. if u do beginners languages, it might be slightly more - it depends on the department)

 

[WTF!bbq]

Sweet, thanks dudes. DeepDarkRose, do you know what your friend's intended career path might be?

 

[WTF!bbq]

Question: Can I do a History unit as well as my ECON, ECMT and GOVT units in my first year? I wish they'd be a bit more clear (over the internet) on how the whole subject selection goes.

According to this, yes (diagrams under Requirement 2 onwards). I was originally going to do History too and yes, you may very well be the only person majoring in Economics, maths = evil!! See you there dude

 

[KarmaKitten]

I am doing this course and I will be a majoring in Government and History

History is so far my favourite, I highly recommend it

 

[DeepDarkRose]

here's a pretty good site with all the subjects in a list http://edutech.arts.usyd.edu.au/Artsonline/v2_1_UOST/dsp_uosList.cfm?AY=2008&WG=UG

 

[bustinjustin]

Random tip: Do two junior GOVT units in the first semester to get started on senior units straight away in semester 2. You'll wanna get junior GOVT out of the away asap, believe us...

Edit: Doesn't matter which ones you do, they're all mostly awful, but some of the worse ones are World Politics and Geopolitics. Don't fall for the handbook descriptions. But this way, you'll have enough time and space to do extra electives and maybe even do a third major

 

[WTF!bbq]

Haha, I kept searching through the subject reviews thread hoping - wishing - that I could find at least some words in praise of the junior govt subjects. I guess not eh Australian politics seems like it'd be pretty simple-ish, am I close to right by any chance?
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[pablito]

Random tip: Do two junior GOVT units in the first semester to get started on senior units straight away in semester 2. You'll wanna get junior GOVT out of the away asap, believe us...

Edit: Doesn't matter which ones you do, they're all mostly awful, but some of the worse ones are World Politics and Geopolitics. Don't fall for the handbook descriptions. But this way, you'll have enough time and space to do extra electives and maybe even do a third major

dam, thats pritt much the only thing i was looking forward to.

edit: do you recomend i dont major in Gov + int relations?

plus wtf are these 'gov exchange' units.."departmental permission required"

 

[bustinjustin]

By all means major in Government if you plan to and want to. As many on these boards have reassured first year GOVT students, don't despair, the best is yet to come. That said, it may be the only thing you end up being able to major in - you might be too mathematically inept for economics, too conservative for political economy, and too... I dunno, bored by industrial relations/human resorce management. Just try different things out, see where your strengths and interests really lie, and go into first year GOVT with lower expectations (though it's a handy approach for most things), you just might be surprised.

Australian Politics sounds dry compared to the faux glamour of 'World' and 'Geo' Politics, but the reading and assessment tasks are simpler in Aus Pol, topics straightforward, tutes usually interesting, and lecturer comprehensible. Don't know much about Power and Society or whatever it's called, but search around the site it's been discussed before.

World Politics is meant to be a useful intro to Int. Relations, but it's poorly taught, and its content is better synthesised and (re)learned in a few weeks in later senior courses like GOVT2221 (which I've done, and thoroughly recommend), and most others cover it for sure (or any basic International Relations textbook, it's not rocket science).

'Exchange units' are what you enter into your enrolment when you of course, go on exchange. Cross that bridge when, and if you get there, no need to worry about them.

 

[Triangulum]

plus wtf are these 'gov exchange' units.."departmental permission required"

Exchange units are for people who go on exchange to a foreign university. They're used as placeholder units to represent the study you do overseas.

Don't know much about Power and Society or whatever it's called, but search around the site it's been discussed before.

Power and society isn't running this year, they've replaced it with international business + politics.

Australian Politics sounds dry compared to the faux glamour of 'World' and 'Geo' Politics, but the reading and assessment tasks are simpler in Aus Pol, topics straightforward, tutes usually interesting, and lecturer comprehensible.

I agree with all of that. (And I've just found out that Diarmuid is teaching the govt pre-honours course this year. Somebody hold me.)

 

[pablito]

cheers guys.

That said, it may be the only thing you end up being able to major in - you might be too mathematically inept for economics, too conservative for political economy

you read me like a book!

 

[bshoc]

Am I the only one who is going to major in Economics instead of Political Economy?

No, I'm a Government/Economics student =D . Good decision too, political economy is generally a waste of time with little employment potential, although some of the ECOP3xxx units are a good complement for an economics major, you can count one or two as well.

 

[brigittaaa]

Im thinkin of doin this course for HR or goin 2 uts
would anyone recommend it?

 

[bustinjustin]

If you're focussing on HR, perhaps try and decide what uni you'd prefer for HR rather than the course itself. I've only done one IR/HR subject so I can't really comment.
Compare the subjects offered by each Uni (Sydney seems to have more than uts).

As for B. Ec. Soc. Sci, now that it's in the Arts Faculty, you can essentially turn it into a glorified Arts degree depending on your majors. At the same time you can still major in Economics, or IR/HR. IF you're interested in the core subjects anyway, the course is pretty flexible.