(1) This Procedure provides the basis for Victoria University (VU) to comply with the requirement of the Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021 (Cth) (HESF) Standard 3.1 in the design of all Higher Education (HE) Award course offerings. (2) The Procedure provides direction for the overall design of HE Award courses, including prescribing course structure, duration and credit point expectations. (3) This Procedure covers course design rules and principles for all Higher Education (HE) Award courses. (4) This Procedure does not cover: (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) (11) (12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17) (18) (19) (20) (21) (22) (23) (24) (25) (26) (27) Refer to Courses Lifecycle Policy. (28) Award course design must be compliant with the requirements of the HESF. In particular: (29) Award courses must be designed so that each of the component units meaningfully contributes to the acquisition of course-level learning outcomes. (30) Teaching approaches and learning activities employed in units must be designed to contribute to students achieving the course-level outcomes and Graduate Capabilities. (31) Award Courses must: (32) Diplomas must: (33) Associate Degrees must: (34) Bachelor Award courses at VU are designed in accordance with Course Architecture. (35) The course architecture consists of three key aspects: (36) Bachelor degrees must: (37) General Bachelor degrees must: (38) Professional degrees must: (39) First year core modules are designed to provide an introductory course sequence whilst opening options for later studies. General Degrees have a first-year core of 96 credit points, while Professional Degrees have a first-year core of 48 credit points, shared with a General Degree. (40) There must be 48 credit points of study common to the General Degree and same or similar discipline Professional Degrees. (41) Professional core modules are only available in Professional Degrees. They progress from the first-year core and span the remainder of the degree. (42) They may consist of 96, 144, 192, 240, or 288 credit points in total, depending on accreditation/registration/practice requirements in the relevant profession and the length of the degree. (43) The design rules for professional core modules are as follows: (44) Bachelor Honours must: (45) Have 96 credit points. (46) Entry from Pass Degree in same or similar discipline. (47) Have 384 credit points. (48) Entry: (49) Graduate Certificates must: (50) Graduate Diplomas must: (51) Master Degrees: (52) VU offers 1, 1.5 and 2-year Master programs. No extended Master programs are offered. (53) 1-year Master courses: (54) 1.5-year Master courses: (55) 2-year Master courses: (56) Doctoral Degrees may be Doctor of Philosophy or Professional Doctorates. (57) Professional Doctorates: (58) Doctorate of Philosophy: (59) Majors must: (60) The first 48 credit points of a major also constitute a discipline minor. (61) Minors must: (62) There are 2 types of minors – Discipline Minors and Breadth Minors. (63) A HE Specialisation must: (64) Units are approved as part of a formal accreditation process within an award course. (65) Units are based on 12 credit points or multiple thereof with maximum credit points per unit being 48. (66) A 12-credit point unit corresponds to a student effort of 120 hours per unit (12 x 10) which includes scheduled classes, prescribed activities and/or independent work per week over one standard teaching period. (67) Zero credit points units may be permitted under special circumstances. (68) Principles of double degree course design: (69) Principles of double qualification course design: (70) All HE coursework courses are assigned a managing College, which has principal rights and responsibilities for the curriculum content, and design and quality assurance of the award course. (71) All HE Award courses and components will be coded according to the Coding Protocols as noted in guidelines. (72) Majors, minors and HE specialisations advertised as available when a cohort of students commences must remain available for the standard duration of the course. (73) Nil.Courses Lifecycle - Award Course Design (HE) Procedure
Section 1 - Summary
Section 2 - Scope
Top of PageSection 3 - Definitions
Section 4 - Policy Statement
Section 5 - Procedures
Part A - Principles of Course Design
Part B - Award Course Types
Diploma
Associate Degree
Bachelor
Design of General Degrees (288 credit points)
Design of Professional degrees (288 or 384 credit points)
First-Year Core Module
Professional Core Module
Bachelor Honours
Bachelor Honours Degree (Standalone) must:
Bachelor Honours Degree (Embedded) must:
Graduate Certificate
Graduate Diploma
Master
Master (1 year) (96 credit points)
Master (1.5-year) (144 credit points)
Master (2-year) (192 credit points)
Doctoral
Part C - Award Course Components and Arrangements
Majors
Minors
HE Specialisations
Units
Double Degrees
Double Qualifications
Part D - Course Management and Governance
Section 6 - Guidelines
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NB: Honours is an AQF qualification and is no longer given on meritorious outcomes.