University of Tasmania, Australia

Each major/minor/degree/diploma has a list of units that may be counted towards that major/minor/degree/diploma. This is called the Schedule. You can access this information from the Course and Unit Handbook website. Please note that schedules can change and students need to apply the schedules/rules of the major/minor/degree/diploma of the year they commenced their study. i.e. students who commenced in 2008 should refer to the 2008 Handbook.

The academic year is divided into teaching periods called semesters. The major semesters of study are Semester 1 (late February to the end of June) and Semester 2 (mid July until late October). Each of these semesters is 13 weeks long, followed by an examination period. The University also has Summer, Winter and Spring Schools (Semester 3, 4 and 5 respectively). The Faculty of Arts offers units in all semesters, though Summer, Winter and Spring Schools have more limited offerings and students are usually restricted in their study load (normally to 25% or 2 units) for those semesters. For Winter school the recommendation is 1 unit only (12.5%).

Some majors/degrees have compulsory units that students must pass to complete the major/degree. See the Faculty website for course/degree planners that outline compulsory units. These units are also listed in the Course and Unit Handbook on the web.

Also see Student Electives

Degree electives are the units that may be chosen from a discipline/area within the degree, such as Arts units in a Bachelor of Arts degree.  Two units would normally be taken in the same discipline at introductory level (to meet the degree requirements) and two at intermediate level, which may be from the same or different discipline areas to the introductory pair.

Census dates are the dates by which students must have completed any enrolment changes to avoid an academic or HECS penalty. Changes made after these dates incur an academic penalty (WN- withdrawn deemed failed result) and/or a HECS penalty. Census dates can be found for each unit on the Course and Unit Handbook.

In some circumstances you may be eligible to enter a unit without the pre-requisites. You will be required to present approval from the unit co-ordinator to a Arts Student Central to arrange enrolment.

Students who have completed study at UTAS or at another tertiary institution can apply for credit for previous study. When applying for a place at UTAS, students are asked to indicate if they are applying for credit and are asked to submit supporting documentation. This is normally in the form of a certified copy of their academic record plus unit descriptions (must have details about unit content, contact hours, assessment, prescribed texts) and structure of their previous degree.  Credit will not be assessed until all documentation is received. The credit application form is available at: http://www.utas.edu.au/students/forms-directory
If new students have queries about what credit can be granted toward a degree, the first place to check is the Description page for their degree rules (you can refer to this website which will give general information).

• My enrolment is showing as ‘Not Approved’?
  This most likely means that you are not enrolled as per the rules of your degree and there is a problem with your enrolment. Contact ARTS Student Central as soon as possible.
• My enrolment approval is “Approved”?
  This indicates that your enrolment can proceed without any further action. Any future amendments are subject to reassessment.
• My Enrolment is showing as ‘Not Yet Approved”?
  This comment indicates that your unit choices have not yet been assessed to ensure all is in accordance with the rules of your degree. If Census Date is approaching and your enrolment has not been APPROVED please contact a ARTS Student Central immediately. Note: avoid late changes to your unit choices (which can result in catching up on 1 or 2 unit and no guarantee of an extension for submission of any assignment), by obtaining overall course approval well before the census date, and especially if you are unsure of the rules of your degree and/or requirements for a major/minor.

New students can request a deferral of their offer of a place for one year. This is centrally handled through the Admissions Office. Note that deferral is only applicable to students who have not commenced their study. If you have commenced the study and would like to take a semester off, you should apply for Leave of Absence. You can apply for a Leave of Absence or deferral via your eStudent Centre

An enrolment overload is defined as when a student takes more than 4 x 12.5% units in semester 1 or semester 2. Overloads are most often requested by students seeking to make up for failing a unit in a previous year/semester and needing an additional unit in order to graduate. If students are requesting an overload, only Faculty Officers or Arts Central Officers can approve overloads. As a guideline, an overload may be allowed a maximum of 12.5% per Semester AND if the student has obtained a Credit average in the previous 2 normal semesters (ie in Semester 1 and Semester 2 not S3, 4, 5) or if the unit is the last unit needed to graduate.

Current students may request a Leave of Absence from their current course of study for a maximum of one year only, but logging into the EStudentCentre. The Student Centre automatically sends a re-enrollment form in the following year to the students who have approval for their Leave of Absence.

New students who have not yet commenced their study will need to refer to the following guidelines: http://www.studentcentre.utas.edu.au/admissions/appandaccept.html

Applications are called twice each year by the International Office, for students intending to study on exchange overseas.  The University website is extremely helpful with step by step procedure: http://www.international.utas.edu.au/static/exhangeOutgoing.php

Students in the Faculty of Arts may study at other institutions in Australia either because they have re-located interstate, or because they want to study units/a major not offered at UTAS. Students require permission from UTAS to undertake this study, to confirm that studies are credited towards their degree, and limits to the amount of study they can take apply.

First familiarise yourself with the Cross-Institutional Study form. It can be downloaded from the Faculty of Arts website

Procedure:

• Students download the form from the website, provide unit descriptions for the units they wish to take interstate, then contact the Head of the relevant School for permission to take the units. (A School is not obliged to give approval for this study, particularly if there are suitable units offered flexibly in the School.)
• Students then proceed to the Faculty Office to finalise the enrolment.
• Participating students are responsible for providing proof of completion of the study by way of an academic record or certified copy.  Graduation may be delayed for students studying this way (If a student is a potential graduate remind them that their graduation is likely to be delayed due to the late release of results from other universities).
• It is a student’s responsibility to organise enrolment with the host university and to conform with their closing dates.