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Programme list > Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Science

Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Science

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Overview

Take your study to the next level

With a Massey conjoint Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science you can complete two different degrees simultaneously and enjoy the benefits of both.

  • Level

  • Undergraduate, NZQF Level 7

  • Campus

  • Auckland, Manawatū

  • Distance learning

  • Available

  • Credits

  • 510

  • Duration

  • 4 years full-time. Available part-time.

  • International

  • Available for international students studying in NZ

The Bachelor of Arts will make you a responsible, world-conscious citizen. You’ll apply your knowledge and transferable skills to real-life scenarios. Prepare to become a free and original thinker who will lead Aotearoa New Zealand into the future and help solve some of the world’s big problems.

With the Bachelor of Science you’ll learn the quantitative skills that employers are looking for across a wide range of industries and science-related organisations. You’ll gain a broad scientific education while also studying one or more specialist areas in depth.

Get two degrees – more quickly

Full-time students can complete the conjoint Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Sciences in four years, instead of the six years it would normally take for two separate degrees. Part-time students are allowed 10 years to complete.

Learn from the best

You’ll learn from some of the top science researchers and arts practitioners in the world, and get to use some of the best facilities in New Zealand.

Choice and flexibility

With loads of majors to choose from in both the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science, you’ll have many choices to create your ideal undergraduate qualification. With this choice and flexibility you can follow your interests and delve deeply into multiple subjects. You’ll also develop amazing time management skills!

Take on the challenge

With a conjoint Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Sciences you’ll take on a rewarding but challenging four-year degree, studying for two degrees concurrently. You’ll have to work harder than your peers but you’ll walk away with double the benefits.

Careers and further study

Careers

Your conjoint bachelor’s degree will give you far greater opportunities than a single degree. Combining two degrees will enhance your employability and give you a competitive edge in the job market. You’ll gain the knowledge and skills necessary for success in science, local and central government, horticulture, education, agriculture, psychology and many more areas.

Entry requirements

University admission

All students must meet university entrance requirements to be admitted to the University.

Programme admission

Required

There are no specific entry requirements for this programme, outside of university admission regulations.

Transferring into the Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Science

If you have already started the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree, in order to transfer into this conjoint programme, you must meet the following requirements:

  • a minimum B average in relevant prior study, and have passed all courses. Only Massey grades will be used for GPA calculation
  • you must not have already completed the requirements of one of the component degrees (e.g. BA or BBus or BSc component).

You will submit verified copies of all academic transcripts for studies taken at all universities other than Massey. 

English language requirements

To study this programme you must meet Massey University's English language standards.

Recommended

It is recommended students studying science will have a good background in at least one of mathematics, biology, physics or chemistry depending on your major choice in the BSc component.

Prior learning, credit and exemptions

For information on prior learning, exemptions and transfer of credit or other questions:

If you do not have the entry requirements

English language and foundation courses

If you need help with your English language skills before you start university, we have courses and programmes that may help.

Courses and planning

Credit summary

510 credits

255 credits from the Schedule to the Bachelor of Arts including:

  • BA core courses – 75 credits
  • BA major courses – 120 credits
  • Electives selected from the BA Schedule – 60 credits

255 credits from the Schedule to the Bachelor of Science including:

  • BSc core courses – 90 credits
  • BSc major courses – 120 credits
  • Electives selected from the BSc Schedule – 45 credits

This is an achievement-based qualification. This means there are regulations around your completion of courses before progressing your enrolment in the qualification.

Majors and minors

About specialisations

For information about each of the majors/specialisations and their courses, see the major web page linked from the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science programme pages.

Planning your programme

Planning overview

You should normally choose about half your credits for each year from each degree.

If you are full-time in your first year you should enrol for a total of eight courses (120 credits), including the 100-level courses required for the BA and BSc subjects they intend to study at 200-level. Generally, your eight courses should include four courses from each of the BA and BSc degrees. Be careful to select the conjoint degree from the list rather than the Bachelor of Arts or the Bachelor of Science.

In your second year you will need to take nine courses, so that by the end of the year you have passed at least 255 credits.

In your third year you will normally take a combination of 200- and 300-level courses which will allow you to complete your 300-level requirements in your fourth year.

Please note, once you are enrolled in the conjoint programme, you must:

  • pass all courses
  • maintain a B average
  • pass courses in both the BA and BSc components each year of study
  • complete the programme within 10 years of first enrolling.

The BA part of the qualification consists of 255 credits (17 courses) to be made up of:

  • the majoring requirements of at least one subject as specified for the BA with the exception of Business Psychology. You must choose courses from the BA Schedule
  • the five compulsory BA courses: 230.110, 230.111, 230.112, 230.210, and 230.310
  • courses 230.110, 230.111 and 230.112 must be completed within the first 120 credits of the BA component. Course 230.210 must be completed within the first 195 credits of the BA component.

You must obtain at least 60 additional credits (four courses) from courses in the BA Schedule B or C excluding courses with a prefix of 121, 160, 161.You may include courses with prefixes 121, 160, and 161 in the BA component only if they are listed on the schedule for a major in Environmental Studies, Mathematics or Statistics, and only if you are enrolled in that major.

The BSc component must be completed with a major and consists of 255 credits (17 courses) from Schedule A and B of the BSc Schedule as follows:

  • you must pass the core courses as listed in Schedule A
  • you must meet the requirements of at least one BSc major in Schedule B
  • the remaining credits must be made up from courses in Schedule B of the BSc. You may include courses with prefix 175 in the BSc component only if they are needed to meet the majoring requirements for the Psychology major in that component.

A recommended structure for the conjoint degree is shown below:

Year 1

  • 230.110 Tūrangawaewae Identity and Belonging in Aotearoa (15 credits)
  • 230.111 Tū Kupu Writing & Inquiry or 230.112 Tū Arohae Critical Thinking (15 credits)
  • BA major courses (30 credits)
  • BSc core courses (60 credits).

Year 2

  • 230.111 Tū Kupu Writing & Inquiry or 230.112 Tū Arohae Critical Thinking (15 credits)
  • BA major courses (60 credits)
  • BSc core and major courses (60 credits).

Year 3

  • 230.210 Tū Rangaranga Global Encounters (15 credits)
  • BA major courses (30 credits)
  • BSc major courses (75 credits)
  • BA course (15 credits).

Year 4

  • 230.310 Tū Tira Mai Practising Engagement (15 credits)
  • BA courses (45 credits)
  • BSc courses (60 credits).

Fees and scholarships

Fees and finance

Fees, student loans and free fees scheme

Your tuition fees may be different depending on the courses you choose. Your exact fees will show once you have chosen your courses.

There will also be some compulsory non-tuition fees and for some courses, there may also be charges for things such as study resources, software, trips and contact workshops.

Already know which courses you're going to choose?

If you already know which courses you are going to take, you can use our fees calculator to get an estimate of your fees.

Student loans (StudyLink) and Fees Free scheme

You may be eligible for a student loan to help towards paying your fees.

The New Zealand Government offers fees-free tertiary study for eligible domestic students. Find out more about the scheme and your eligibility on the Fees Free website. To use the site's eligibility checking tool, you will need your National Student Number.

Current and returning Massey students will find their National Student Number on their student homepage.


A good fit if you:

  • have wide-ranging interests and want the flexibility to follow your passions
  • enjoy thinking analytically and creatively
  • want to challenge yourself.

Key information for students

button for easy access to information about this qualification

Compare qualifications and academic information across different New Zealand institutions.

Regulations

Review this important information before you apply for this programme. This gives you full details of the rules and regulations about what you need to study and what you must achieve in order to graduate with this qualification. That includes structure, courses and requirements. These regulations should be read in conjunction with all other Statutes and Regulations of the University including the below.

Undergraduate programmes

General Regulations for Undergraduate Degrees, Undergraduate Diplomas, Undergraduate Certificates, Graduate Diplomas and Graduate Certificates.

Regulations for this programme

Applying and enrolling

Applying for the programme

Check you are ready

If you are ready to apply, have a look at our application checklist. It will help you get prepared with what you need. Please also check the entry requirements carefully before you apply.

Choose your programme and click on Apply now

You will apply for the programme using the Apply now button on this page. You’ll also choose your specialisation (major, subject or endorsement) if applicable.

Some programmes have additional requirements such as the submission of a portfolio or CV. Click on Apply now and you will be able to submit those documents as part of the application process.

Receive and accept an Admission Offer of Place

You will receive an Admission Offer of Place when you have been accepted into the programme. You need to accept this before you can enrol in your courses. International students also need to pay their fees at this point.

Enrolling in courses

You’ll then get access to your own student homepage (also known as the student portal). This is where you can enrol in courses. Any updates on your application or enrolments will also be on your student homepage. Make sure you check this regularly.

When you choose courses, ensure you check for any requirements that apply including:

  • prerequisites (courses you have to do before the one you are enrolling in)
  • corequisites (courses you have to do at the same time as the one you are enrolling in)
  • restrictions (courses that you cannot enrol in if you are completing or have completed another identified similar course)
  • location – for instance some distance-based courses still have an on-campus element, so double check that the way the course is taught is suitable for your situation.

Each of our courses has its own webpage where you can find this information. You can use our course search to find course pages.

More information on courses is in the ‘Courses for this programme’ section on this page.

You can find information on application due dates and semester dates on the key dates page.

We look forward to welcoming you to Massey!

If you have any questions, contact us through the Enquire button on this page.

What are courses and credits?

What are courses and credits?

Each Massey programme is made up of courses (in some tertiary institutions they are called ‘papers’).

You will have some compulsory courses and some you can choose from.

Each course is worth a certain amount of credits (often 15 credits, but this does vary). You must gain a set number of credits to be able to graduate from this programme.

There may also be some rules about which courses you need to pass to progress to the next year, or stage, of your study (known as progression). There are also courses you must pass to graduate with a specialisation.

  • See the ‘Courses for this programme’ section for the list of courses.
  • Courses search

Understanding course numbers

The first three digits of our course numbers show you which subject the course is about.

The second three digits show you the level and course ID number. For instance:

  • sub-degree courses are '0' (i.e. xxx.0xx)
  • undergraduate study begins at 100-level, (i.e. xxx.1xx)
  • as you progress through 200- and 300-level courses this number changes to 2 and 3 respectively. The higher the number that starts the second three digits, the higher the level of study.
1 6 2 . 3   0 1
Subject area   Level   Course ID number

About electives

Electives are courses that are not compulsory. Certain guidelines are usually provided on courses you may take. Elective courses contribute to the programme, but not to your major or specialisation.

Workload and time management

Use this tool to help determine how much time you will need each week to complete your studies.

Estimate workload

Returning students

For returning students, there may be changes to the majors and minors available and the courses you need to take. Go to the section called ‘Transitional Provisions’ in the Regulations to find out more.

In some cases the programme or specialisation you enrolled in may no longer be taking new enrolments, so may not appear on these web pages. To find information on the regulations for these programmes go to the Massey University Calendar.

Please contact us through the Enquire button on this page if you have any questions.

Scholarships and awards

Scholarships related to this programme

There are a number of scholarships available for new and current students. They could relate to your situation, achievement or interest.

Find and apply for scholarships