Bachelor of Business, Bachelor of Arts

This is a four-year double degree that pairs the Bachelor of Business with the Bachelor of Arts. You graduate with two awards, which means you can build a career on either side of the divide, or on the seam between them, where a lot of interesting work actually sits. On the business side you cover the core disciplines: accounting, economics, management, marketing, and the legal and ethical frameworks organisations operate inside. On the arts side you choose a major from the humanities and social sciences and learn to read closely, argue clearly, and write for an audience that isn't already convinced.

How the degree is structured

Australian bachelor degrees are built from units of study, each worth a set number of credit points, and you accumulate them across semesters or trimesters until you hit the total the degree requires. A double degree like this runs longer than a single three-year bachelor because you're completing the requirements of two awards, but it's shorter than doing them back to back, the two share some core units, and that overlap is the point. Expect to study full time, with sessions running across the year and a break over summer. Southern Cross University publishes the unit list, the credit point values, and the majors available for each award on its course page, and you should check those before you apply, because the arts major you pick shapes a good deal of what your four years look like.

What you'll actually learn

Business units give you the vocabulary and mechanics of organisations: how a budget is built, how a market is analysed, how a team is managed, how a decision gets justified when the data is incomplete. Arts units push in a different direction, you work with primary sources, weigh competing interpretations, and produce extended written work under deadlines. Put together, the combination tends to produce people who can do the analysis and then explain it to someone who doesn't share their background. That's a skill employers say they want and often struggle to find.

Placement and practical work

Business degrees in Australia commonly include work-integrated learning, and Southern Cross builds industry engagement into its business courses, internships, industry projects, or placement units where you spend time inside an organisation and get assessed on it. Arts degrees may offer community or research-based projects instead. Availability varies by major and by session, so confirm what's on offer for your chosen combination on the official course page rather than assuming.

Who this suits

It suits school leavers who can't decide between commerce and the humanities, and mature-age students who want a qualification that reflects the fact they've already got range. It also suits anyone aiming at roles where you have to move between numbers and narrative: policy, communications, management, advocacy, publishing, public sector work. If you want a straight accounting pathway to professional registration, a single business degree may be a cleaner route. If you want to write, think, and still understand how an organisation runs, this is a sensible fit.

English proficiency is required for international applicants. IELTS Academic 6.0–6.5 overall is the usual undergraduate standard, with higher scores for teaching, nursing, medicine, law and social work. TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic, Cambridge C1 Advanced and the university's own English programmes are accepted as equivalents, and the Department of Home Affairs sets a separate English threshold for the Student visa itself. Tuition is published on the CRICOS register under course code 117743M. International students on a Student visa can work up to 48 hours per fortnight while studying, and may be eligible for the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream after graduating. Check the official course page for current unit lists, entry requirements and intake dates before you apply.

• Business analyst, banks, insurers, consultancies and government agencies across Australia.
• Marketing and communications officer, consumer brands, not-for-profits, arts organisations and tourism operators.
• Policy officer, federal, state and local government, plus peak bodies and advocacy groups.
• Human resources adviser, professional services firms, healthcare providers and large employers.
• Project officer or coordinator, construction, infrastructure, events and community programs.
• Journalist, editor or content producer, media outlets, publishers and in-house communications teams.
• Small business owner or manager, retail, hospitality, creative industries and professional services.
• Account manager or client services roles, advertising, media agencies and financial services.
• Further study, honours in business or arts, or a master's such as an MBA, after completing the bachelor degree.