Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Commerce for 2013

Major study areas

ACCOUNTING

Accounting is the systematic recording, reporting, and analysis of financial transactions. It can be done on a large scale - for international corporations - or for individuals or for any sized business in-between. There are agreed national and international rules and regulations that govern the work of accountants. Accounting allows a company to analyse its financial performance, and report important statistics such as profit and loss to managers and shareholders.

ACTUARIAL STUDIES

Actuaries identify, analyse and assess risk. They determine the likelihood of economic or property losses such as those that occur during natural disasters and calculate insurance premiums that allow individuals, business and governments to insure against these risks. Actuaries do this by applying the concepts of mathematics and statistics to real life scenarios.

BUSINESS LAW AND TAXATION

A major in business law and taxation provides an understanding of the legal environment of business. Employment prospects include working in legal compliance in areas such as marketing, trade practices, corporations law, employment and taxation. The taxation units offered provide the basis for a career as a tax agent and tax adviser.

BUSINESS MODELLING

Business modellers use data to identify and analyse business opportunities. They also use data to simulate the performance of a business using a range of different assumptions. These simulations are sometimes known as scenario or what-if models and they enable managers to refine strategies and optimise resource allocation to achieve the best possible outcomes.

ECONOMETRICS AND BUSINESS STATISTICS

Careers in the business world that use quantitative skills include the financial sector (stockbrokers, the insurance industry, finance companies, banks - e.g. developing models for investment opportunities), the manufacturing sector (e.g. providing quality control), and market research. Opportunities in the public sector include economic modelling, policy evaluation, and research into industry development.

ECONOMICS

Economists analyse the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. They focus on how individuals, households, firms and governments interact and how economies work. Microeconomics examines the behaviour of buyers and sellers in the economy while macroeconomics analyses the entire economy and issues affecting it, including unemployment, inflation, economic growth, and monetary and fiscal policy.

FINANCE

Financial institutions work with individual and institutional investors. They develop, negotiate, sell and trade financial products (assets and liabilities) and provide financial advice to assist their clients to obtain the financial products most suitable for their needs.

FINANCE AND INSURANCE MATHEMATICS

Experts in the area of financial and insurance mathematics apply mathematical and statistical techniques to the understanding of financial markets. Like actuaries they determine the likelihood of specific outcomes and develop strategies that allow businesses and governments to either pursue new business opportunities or insure against risks.

INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE

International Commerce is similar to International Business but it has a broader focus. While international business generally refers to the activities of a single organisation, international commerce refers to the factors making up the economic environment that the business is operating in. These factors might be legal, political, social, cultural or technological.

MANAGEMENT STUDIES

Management Studies is designed to complement and enhance discipline studies in areas such as human resources and international business. It develops management skills of changing and dynamic organisational environments both in Australia and internationally. It equips students to pursue leadership roles within their discipline specialisations.

MARKETING

Identifying and satisfying customer needs profitably form the basis of marketing. It includes creating, communicating, delivering and exchanging goods and services that have value to potential customers and, often, building strong relationships between an organisation and its customers. It can include market research, product development and communication strategies as well as product delivery logistics.

SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainability is about living - and doing business - in a way that does not jeopardise future generations. This means acting in a way that does not pollute or deplete resources like water, air, land or forests. Sustainability professionals help businesses operate in sustainable ways.

ARTS

For information on arts majors and minors refer to 'Areas of study' entries in this Handbook at http://www.monash.edu.au/pubs/2013handbooks/aos/index-byfaculty-arts.html.