Area of study
A group of subjects which comprise the courses of study offered by the University Departments/Divisions (eg accounting, biology).
Assumed Knowledge
This is a level of achievement at the Senior High School level considered desirable for successful study in a first-year unit.
Coherent study
A coherent study represents a particular stream of study, and consists of a specific set of units you have to complete at 300 level or higher (generally speaking, in your final year). It will have to be preceded by other units at 100 level and 200 level, but these are generally not listed as part of the coherent study – they are either prerequisites for your 300-level units or part of the general requirements for your degree, given in the section of the Handbook entitled General Requirements for Bachelor Degree Awards. A small number of coherent studies have some prescribed units also listed.
Corequisite
A corequisite is a unit of study, which has to be completed prior to or concurrently with another. Prerequisites and corequisites are listed in the Schedule of Undergraduate Units in the Handbook of Undergraduate Studies.
Credit
You are doing units for credit if you are doing them to count towards an award, such as a degree or diploma. This is normally the case unless you are a non-award student or unless the unit cannot be taken for credit with (NCCW) one that you have previously passed either at Macquarie or elsewhere.
Credit for Previous Studies
If you have studied at another academic institution, you may be eligible for credit towards your degree at Macquarie. This credit is called credit for previous studies and is expressed in the form of Macquarie credit points. If you are eligible for credit for previous studies you should request advice about credit when accepting the offer of admission. Students who receive some credit will also be advised of any areas in which exemptions may apply.
(see also Exemptions)
Credit Point
Each unit of study is worth a specified number of credit points. The credit point value of a unit reflects the amount of work required in the unit. Each credit point in a half-year unit would indicate that you should expect to spend about 3 hours each week on that unit (including class contact hours).
Degree
A degree is the major kind of qualification awarded by a university. It is awarded either for successful work at undergraduate (bachelor degree) or postgraduate (higher degree) level, or as an honorary recognition (honorary degree) of achievement.
Department
Each of the Divisions of the University is divided into Departments, the name of which usually, but not always, reflects the discipline being studied, eg the subject of Accounting is in the College of Commerce, Division of Economics and Financial Studies, Department of Accounting.
Discontinue
If you decide to discontinue, or abandon, your enrolment in a unit, you must notify the partner. The date by which you do this is important. You must discontinue by the census date in order to be "not effectively enrolled" (NE). If you withdraw after the census date, your official transcript will show a Fail grade for the unit.
Distance Education
Certain units of study are offered on a distance education (or external) basis; these units are identified with an X code in the Schedule of Undergraduate Units.
Division
There are eight Divisions in the University, within the three Colleges. All undergraduate students will be registered in a Division.
Exclusion
Exclusion from the University means that you are barred from re-enrolling for a set period. You may be excluded for taking an unduly long time to complete your degree, for failing to pay fees or charges by the due date, or for disciplinary reasons.
Exemptions
An exemption is a decision made by a member of the academic staff that you may not take a particular unit at Macquarie University because you have studied and passed a similar unit at another institution. These exemptions are determined on the basis of overlap of content, and only apply to students who have been granted credit from previous studies. The number of credit points from which a student is exempted is related to the amount of credit for previous studies given. You will be advised of the areas in which exemptions may apply at the same time as credit is notified. If you are exempt from a unit, which is a prerequisite for another unit, you are considered to have satisfied that prerequisite.
(See also Credit for Previous Studies)
Full-time
You are classified as a full-time undergraduate student if you are enrolled for the year in 17 or more credit points for the full year or 9 credit points for the half year, or if, as a postgraduate student, the total of your unit weights is 0.75 or more.
Grade Point Average
Your grade point average (GPA) is a calculation, which reflects the overall quality of your grades throughout your course. It is printed on your academic record; a grade point average of 4, for example, would indicate that all your grades have been D or HD grades.
Graduand
A graduand is someone who has completed all the requirements for a degree but who has not yet had the degree conferred.
Graduate
A graduate is someone who has been awarded a degree.
Graduate diploma
Graduate diplomas are available to students who have already completed a bachelor degree in any field and who now wish to complete the equivalent of a major study in another field without attempting a second undergraduate degree. Graduate diplomas consist wholly of undergraduate units in a particular discipline.
Level
The level at which a unit is taught indicates the amount of prior knowledge required to study it successfully. For example, 100-level units may be entered in the first year of study and often do not have any prerequisite units, while at 200 level, units generally have 100-level prerequisites.
Major
A major is a structured sequence of units, represented by a particular study pattern. Some majors are represented by only one study pattern, others by several. Study patterns are not intended to prescribe every unit that is to be taken in a degree, but unlike coherent studies they do include units below 300 level.
Misconduct
Misconduct occurs when a student does not follow the bylaws or rules set down by the University. A student may be punished for misconduct or breach of discipline by suspension from classes, payment of fines, or exclusion from the University.
Not effectively enrolled
You are not effectively enrolled if you withdraw from a unit before the census date. Your enrolment in that unit will not be permanently recorded and you will not be liable for student contribution charges or tuition fees for that unit or consume any SLE.
Part-time
You are regarded as a part-time undergraduate student if you are enrolled in fewer than 17 credit points in a year or less than 9 credit points in a half year, or, as a postgraduate student, in units with a total weight of less than 0.75.
Pass degree
A pass degree is the normal form of a bachelor degree or a master degree, when an honours program has not been undertaken.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism involves using the work of another person and presenting it as one’s own. Any of the following acts constitutes plagiarism unless the source of each quotation or piece of borrowed material is clearly acknowledged:
Practical
Practical work or practical sessions are usually a compulsory component in the scientific subjects of the University. They are often carried out in a laboratory or in the field and involve "hands-on" techniques.
Prerequisite
A prerequisite is a unit of study, which must be completed or a requirement which must be satisfied before you enrol in a particular unit. Prerequisites and corequisites are listed in the Schedule of Undergraduate Units.
Program of study
Your program of study is the combination of units or research work required to enable you to qualify for the degree for which you are enrolled.
Study pattern
A study pattern is a particular way of representing a major, which is a structured sequence of units taken to satisfy the relevant degree requirements. It consists of core units at each level and usually a number of elective units to make up the total number of credit points required for the degree.
Testamur
Your testamur is the official document with the University’s seal on it, which certifies that you have been awarded your degree or diploma.
Unavoidable disruption
Unavoidable disruption is the result of a set of circumstances beyond normal expectation and over which you have no control. Documentary evidence of such disruption or illness may be accepted as reason for withdrawal from a unit or for the award of a special examination.
Unit code
An individual code has been allotted to each unit of study. The code is three or four letters to represent the subject area followed by one digit to represent the level of the unit: 1 = 100 level, 2 = 200 level, 3 = 300 level etc followed by two further digits to distinguish the particular unit. For example, the unit code for Medicinal Chemistry is CHEM342, indicating that it is a Chemistry unit and 300 level.
Unit of study
A course, whether it is for a degree or diploma, is made up of a number of units of study (sometimes informally called subjects), each worth a fixed number of credit points. For instance, if studying for the Bachelor of Business Administration, the student must complete units totalling at least 72 credit points. A unit of study may be a half-year or full-year unit of instruction, involving lectures, assignments, practical sessions and tutorials or on-campus sessions.