Personal Background: I did a Bachelor of Science at Monash (2015-2017), with an extended major in genetics (including a molecular biology minor) and minors in chemistry and Japanese.
How science is and what you do:
The Bachelor of Science is a generalist course, which means it usually has a lot of flexibility, a larger cohort and more majors/ minors to pick from, but doesn’t necessarily incorporate any industry experience unless you seek them out yourself. Typically, those who do a BSci often do further study, but it’s also common to find people who just go straight into the workforce after (but not necessarily a job in their major). I’d recommend a science degree if you’re not sure what career you want but know it’ll definitely be in STEMM (last M is medicine) and have a general gist of which science field(s) you prefer.
Experiences will differ between unis and the majors, but the common class types you’ll find are lectures, labs (depending on major), and a few more subtypes e.g. tutorials. The content will depend heavily on your subjects and your major; in genetics, I studied first year biology (which was akin to VCE biology) and on general topics, then went in a lot deeper into genetics-related topics e.g. genomics in each second/ third year subject.
At some unis, Bachelor of Science students will have to do some of the following eventually:
- maths and/or stats
- data analysis
- scientific writing
Assessments were in the form of tests, exams, assessed labs, orals and so forth, which is probably not unlike Year 12.
Since science is so broad, it’s hard to describe how it is or what it’s like, but I hope that is helpful. If you have more details as to which area(s) you’re interested in or more specific questions, I can give more specific advice.
For now, I’d highly recommend doing your own research so you can find the best fit for you. Here’s some great resources to start you off:
- VTAC CourseSearch - tertiary course search function from the official guys who will bridge high school to uni.
- course and subject reviews from the archives by ANers (I’ve used UoM subject reviews based on your previous posts, but we also have other unis)
- General Uni Board form the archives, particularly the mega thread, which might help you search a bit more of what you’re after
- Google searching “bachelor of science [insert interested uni]” (and ditto with law) should bring up their course page.
Note: You can also add both BSci and BLaw as separate preferences when you get to VTAC applications, so you don’t necessarily have to choose one or the other.
