• Section 1 - Purpose
• Scope
• Section 2 - Policy
• Part A - Qualifications
• Part B - Course Structure and Design
• Section 3 - Procedures
• Part C - Volume of learning
• Units of Study
• Part D - Undergraduate course structures
• Part E - Postgraduate course structures
• Part F - Double degree course structures
• Part G - Non-award program structures
• Part H - Distinctiveness across course structures
• Section 4 - Definitions
•  
• Curriculum Architecture Policy – Schedule 1: Course structural requirements and options
• Section 1 - Purpose
• Section 2 – Schedule
• Curriculum Architecture Policy – Schedule 2: Variation to unit level requirement allowances
• Section 1 - Purpose
• Section 2 – Schedule
•  
• Curriculum Architecture Policy – Schedule 3: Unit of study level principles
• Section 1 - Purpose
• Section 2 – Schedule

Section 1 - Purpose

(1) This Policy governs the design and structure of Macquarie University’s award courses.

(2) This Policy provides a consistent and coherent structure for courses and programs, which supports the quality and integrity of the University’s academic offerings and helps to provide students with an exceptional academic experience.

Scope

(3) This Policy applies to:

1. all award courses of study (courses) accredited by the University, and their constituent components (units of study, majors and specialisations), including;
   1. courses delivered with a third-party provider; and
   2. courses delivered onshore, at an offshore delivery location or delivered entirely through an online platform.
2. The following non-award programs delivered by Macquarie University College:
   1. Standard Foundation or Intensive Program;
   2. UniReady; or
   3. Masters Qualifying Program. 

(4) Transnational education (TNE) courses or programs where a Macquarie University degree is awarded are in scope for this Policy. However, necessary variations to this Policy may be approved by Academic Senate and included within specific TNE agreements as required to allow for local context and processes while also ensuring legislative and regulatory responsibilities are being met.

(5) This Policy does not apply to:

1. The Doctor of Philosophy, Master of Philosophy, and Masters of Research degrees;
2. Macquarie University College non-award programs not listed in clause 3(b); and
3. any other Macquarie University non-award course or program.

Section 2 - Policy

Part A - Qualifications

(6) The University delivers a range of courses that lead to designated Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) higher education awards as well as non-award programs to support access to AQF award courses for students who do not meet admission requirements to their desired award course. The qualifications covered within this Policy, and their relevant AQF levels, are:

(7) The University delivers a curated suite of Double Degrees that enable students to undertake an integrated course that leads to the attainment of two AQF awards at the same time.

(8) Where appropriate, awards that align sequentially may be structured in a manner that courses at lower qualification levels are ‘nested’ within courses leading to a higher qualification enabling multiple entry and/or exit points for students.

(9) The name of each award must accurately reflect the relevant AQF level and nature of study undertaken.

Part B - Course Structure and Design

(10) All courses and programs must align with the relevant structural requirements appropriate to the award type set out within this Policy and Procedure unless otherwise approved by Academic Senate. The structural elements available to be used within each award type, and the relevant minimum or maximum credit point requirements, are outlined in Schedule 1 – Course structural requirements and options.

(11) All courses must have specified course learning outcomes and a volume of learning aligned to the relevant AQF level of the specific award. Courses must be designed to enable achievement of course learning outcomes within the specified volume of learning.

(12) All courses and programs delivered by Macquarie University should be purposefully designed in a manner that provides clarity, coherence and supports student success and progression. To achieve this the following principles should be applied in the design of a course or program:

1. Clarity and navigability – courses should have simple, straightforward structures that are easily understood by students.
2. Visible learning gain – courses should be designed to scaffold and progress student learning and skill development in increasingly more complex and challenging environments, enabling students to recognise how they develop depth and breadth of knowledge and capability over time.
3. Assurance of learning – courses should be designed to assure achievement of course learning outcomes and protect award integrity.
4. Meaningful choice – where appropriate, student agency is provided to select areas of study from a limited and curated selection of options that optimise impact and value and support student success.
5. Graduate readiness – courses should be designed to enhance post-study success through the embedding of authentic experiential learning.
6. Lifelong learning – where relevant, courses should be designed to support student mobility across time and tertiary harmonisation, including consideration of appropriate exit awards, entry points and credit optimisation.

(13) To support student mobility, tertiary harmonisation and optimisation of credit transfer, a student may qualify for an award with a variation of study to that represented in the structural design requirements set out in Schedule 1 – Course structural requirements and options. Whether a variation for a relevant award is supported, and if so, the minimal and maximal credit point requirements at unit of study level for a student to attain a relevant award are set out in Schedule 2 – Variation to course structural requirement allowances. In all instances, these variations still require students to meet the course learning outcomes and overall volume of learning requirements, and for any credit recognition to be in accordance with the Recognition of Prior Learning Policy.

Section 3 - Procedures

Part C - Volume of learning

(14) All courses and programs are structured to meet a total volume of learning that is represented in an overall credit point (cp) requirement that is a multiple of 10. Credit point value/s for each qualification type that ensure alignment with AQF requirements are outlined in Schedule 1 - Course structural requirements and options.

Units of Study

(15) All courses and programs comprise units of study (‘units’), which have a designated credit point value that contributes towards the achievement of the total credit points required to attain an award.

(16) All units must be used in the Core Zone of at least one course, unless approved as part of a purpose-built Elective Major.

(17) Units within courses and programs will generally be in multiples of 10cp. However, in appropriate circumstances units may be valued as:

1. multiples of 5cp where greater modularisation is desired or to meet volume of learning requirements for specific external accreditation requirements, such as placement hours; or
2. may be 0cp where this is required to meet specific institutional or external accreditation requirements.

(18) To meet volume of learning requirements, a 10cp unit equates to 150 hours of student workload, including scheduled and unscheduled learning activities and time assigned for completion of assessments. Where a lower or higher credit point value is assigned to a unit, the volume of learning must be adjusted proportionally.

(19) Units are classified as meeting a specified level of learning appropriate to the AQF level of the course in which they are positioned and the stage of the course in which they are delivered. Principles for determining the appropriate level of a unit are outlined in Schedule 3 – Unit of study level principles.

Part D - Undergraduate course structures

(20) Undergraduate courses must be structured around a progressive framework of unit of study levels, commencing at 1000-level and advancing one level for each 80 credit points of the course.

(21) All undergraduate courses must contain a Core Zone comprising Essential Units +/- a Core Major that align with the minimum and maximal credit point value requirements at each relevant level of the course.

(22) All undergraduate courses must have a minimum requirement of Essential Units undertaken by all students in the course at each unit of study level as outlined within Schedule 1 – Course structural requirements and options to support assurance of learning across the course.

(23) All Core Majors used in undergraduate courses will have a harmonised 80cp structure as outlined in Schedule 1 - Course structural requirements and options, unless utilised within a course greater than 240cp in volume where a different structure is required to meet external accreditation requirements.

(24) Each Core Major within a course must be designed to have at least 40cp that are distinct from any other Core major within that course.

(25) In some instances, a course may utilise a limited option set of Essential Units to:

1. enable a streaming of students towards specific discipline fields covered within the Core Majors; and/or
2. provide for a differentiated level of knowledge or skills requirements to be addressed.

(26) In some instances, a course may utilise an Elective Zone to provide additional options for students to add depth and/or breadth of study in a chosen field/s.

(27) Where an Elective Zone is utilised, a curated selection of Elective Majors can be offered to students that have a harmonised 60cp structure that:

1. are derived from all or some of the Core Majors offered within the course; and/or
2. curated from a limited selection of purpose-built Elective Majors offered across the institution that provide meaningful impact and outcomes for students within that course.   

(28) Where an Elective Major is derived from a Core Major, the faculty will select the appropriate removal of units to achieve the required volume reduction. A derived Elective Major will bear the same name as the Core Major.

(29) Faculties may provide up to two (2) purpose-built Elective Majors that can be offered to students in a wide range of courses across the University to provide meaningful impact and outcomes.

(30) All undergraduate courses must have an identified Capstone unit that contributes to the assurance of course learning outcomes. The Capstone must be at the highest unit of study level within the course structure.

(31) All undergraduate courses of greater than 80cp in volume should also incorporate Keystone units at a minimal rate of at least 1 every 80cp across the course to support assurance of learning and visibility of learning gain to students. Where awards are nested, a Keystone unit of the higher level qualification may serve as the Capstone unit of the lower qualification. Keystone units may also be embedded within the highest level of each Core and Elective Major to support assurance of learning.

(32) All Bachelor courses and Bachelor (Honours) courses, with the exception of those that are a stand-alone 80cp structure, must incorporate a Future Ready unit to support the implementation of quality experiential education and enhance employability outcomes. The Future Ready unit may also serve as the Capstone unit.

Part E - Postgraduate course structures

(33) All postgraduate courses are designed in Zones that equate to multiples of 40cp.

(34) Each Zone is classified as one of the following:

1. Foundation – provides fundamental knowledge and skills required to support student success across other Zones of the course.   
2. Core – provides essential units undertaken by all students within the course.
3. Specialisation – provides focused depth in a specific area of study.
4. Elective – provides an opportunity for students to select additional units of study from a curated set of options, or where available, to select an additional Specialisation.

(35) The structural requirements and Zone options for postgraduate courses are outlined in Schedule 1 – Course structural requirements and options.

(36) In designing a postgraduate course, each unit must be distinct to a single Zone, unless part of a Specialisation where a unit may exist in more than one Specialisation.

(37) In some instances, a course may utilise a limited option set of Essential Units within the Core Zone to:

1. enable a streaming of students towards specific Specialisations; and/or
2. provide for a differentiated level of knowledge or skills requirements to be addressed.

(38) All postgraduate courses must have an identified Capstone unit that contributes to the assurance of course learning outcomes.

(39) All postgraduate courses of >80cp in volume should also incorporate Keystone units at appropriate stages within the course to support assurance of learning and visibility of learning gain to students. Where awards are nested, a Keystone unit of the higher-level qualification may serve as the Capstone unit of the lower qualification.

Part F - Double degree course structures

(40) In general, double degrees will comprise two undergraduate degrees, or two postgraduate degrees.

(41) In some limited cases a double degree may incorporate an undergraduate and postgraduate degree combination. This will only be approved in exceptional circumstances such as if this combination supports the timely progression of students through to a professional qualification in an area deemed as a national education priority.

(42) All double degrees are purposefully structured as a double degree with course learning outcomes that reflect the integrated learning of both fields of study and a volume of learning that enables students to meet the course learning outcomes within an appropriate timeframe.

(43) A double degree does not have to be identical in structure to the constituent singles degrees, but should:

1. align to each relevant constituent single degree in a manner that allows for representation of these degrees to be seen as equivalent, including meeting all relevant external accreditation requirements;
2. ensure any options provided to students within the double degree, such as Majors or Specialisations, are curated specifically for the context of the double degree. This may mean there are fewer Major or Specialisation options than are available for selection within the relevant single degree; and
3. ensure that units taken from each constituent single degree do not duplicate learning of knowledge and/or skills unnecessarily.

(44) Where feasible, a double degree may contain a single Capstone that enables a student to integrate their expertise across both discipline fields. Where this is not feasible, such as to maintain external accreditation requirements and/or assurance of learning, the course structure should enable opportunity to showcase integrated application of knowledge and skills from both discipline fields.

(45) Where feasible, a double degree may contain shared Keystone units that reflect the integrated, staged learning across both discipline fields.

(46) All undergraduate double degrees will have one (1) Future Ready unit. This may serve as the Capstone for one of the constituent courses, or for the double degree as a whole.

Part G - Non-award program structures

(47) All non-award programs should, where possible, consist of Essential Units undertaken by all students.

(48) In some instances, a limited option set of Essential Units may be used to:

1. enable a streaming of students towards specific discipline fields that may require differentiated admission requirements; and/or
2. provide for a differentiated level of knowledge or skills requirements to be addressed.

Part H - Distinctiveness across course structures

(49) It is recognised that units will often be shared across more than one course, particularly in the first year of a course or a foundational zone, and that this offers benefits to students obtaining introductory knowledge and skills that are transferable across disciplines, supports student mobility and enhances course viability and sustainability. However, each course should demonstrate clear distinctiveness from others through the application of the following principles:

1. That a course reflects an overall pattern of study that makes it clearly distinct from any other course and provides clarity to a potential student who may be choosing between degrees as to the difference between them.
2. Core Majors and Specialisations must have a structure that is at least 50% distinct from any other Core Major or Specialisation.
3. Students can only complete a second Major (Core or Elective) or Specialisations where at least 80% of the units are distinct from all other units undertaken as part of their overall credit point requirements.

Section 4 - Definitions

(50) The following definitions apply for the purpose of this study:

1. Capstone – a Core Zone unit undertaken at the end of the course that is designed to enable a student to demonstrate integrated and synthesised application of knowledge and skills obtained across the duration of a course and contribute to assuring course learning outcomes have been met.
2. Keystone - a unit undertaken at the end of a stage or component of a course that is designed to enable a student to demonstrate integrated and synthesised application of knowledge and skills obtained across the course to that point, provide feedback on progression to meeting course learning outcomes and contribute to assurance of learning.
3. Future Ready – a unit that is designed to meet institutional standards for the implementation of quality experiential education and enhance employability outcomes.

Curriculum Architecture Policy – Schedule 1: Course structural requirements and options

Section 1 - Purpose

(51) This Schedule outlines the structural requirements and options available for each course or program, required volume of learning and relevant minimum or maximum credit point requirements for relevant unit of study levels.

Section 2 – Schedule

Undergraduate courses

Undergraduate certificate

(52) Undergraduate Certificate awards have the following structural design requirements:

1. 40cp of Core essential units
2. All units to be at 1000 level or above
3. If award is deemed to be higher than AQF level 5 the following additional requirements apply:
   1. Level 6 – requires at least 20cp at 2000 level
   2. Level 7 – requires at least 20cp at 3000 level.

Diploma

(53) Diploma awards have the following structural design requirements:

1. 80cp of Core essential units
2. All units to be at 1000 level or above

Associate Degree

(54) Associate Degree awards are exit only awards with a structural design that reflects 160cp of the relevant Bachelor Degree award in which it is nested. This may include:

1. Core unit option sets that reflect units within Core Majors of the relevant Bachelor Degree.
2. Elective units where the relevant Bachelor Degree has an Elective Zone.

(55) Structure may contain options sets to reflect students exiting with an Associate Degree may have undertaken varied patterns of study. However, the structure should reflect:

1. A maximum of 80cp at 1000 level;
2. A minimum of 80cp at 2000 level or above; and
3. No more than 40cp of units undertaken as part of an Elective Zone that are not within the Core Zone or Core major of the relevant Bachelor Degree.

Bachelor Degrees

(56) Bachelor Degrees are generally 240cp in overall volume of learning, unless a higher volume of learning is required to meet external accreditation requirements.

(57) Bachelor awards of 240cp have four options for structural design as outlined in the following table:

(58) All Core Majors in 240cp Bachelor Degrees will have the following structural design:

1. 20cp at 1000 level
2. 30cp at 2000 level
3. 30cp at 3000 level

(59) Each Core Major must have at least 50% of its structure as unique from any other Core Major.

(60) All Elective Majors will have the following structural design:

1. 10cp at 1000 level
2. 20cp at 2000 level
3. 30cp at 3000 level

(61) Each Elective Major must have at least 50% of its structure as unique from any other Elective Major.

(62) Bachelor Degrees of 320cp will be designed to align with the unit level requirements of the 240cp Bachelor Degree wherever feasible, with an additional 80cp at 4000 level or above.

Bachelor (Honours) Degrees

(63) A Bachelor (Honours) Degree is typically an 80cp structure that is either:

1. embedded with a Bachelor Degree as part of a 320cp structure; or
2. a stand alone 80cp Bachelor (Honours) Degree that follows completion of a Bachelor Degree.

(64) A Bachelor (Honours) Degree structure must

1. have a minimum of 80cp at 4000 level or above; and
2. include a project and/or piece of research and scholarship that has at least some level of independence.

Postgraduate courses

(65) All postgraduate courses must be structured with units that are 6000 level or above and have a minimum of one 40cp Core Zone undertaken by all students in the course.

(66) Foundation and Elective Zones may only be utilised in Masters Degree (Coursework) awards >80cp in volume.

(67) An Elective Zone can only be a maximum of 40cp and contain curated options for students to ensure study undertaken in this zone is meaningful and impactful for students within the context of the specific course.

(68) Masters Degree (Extended) awards are only for externally accredited courses where additional volume of learning is required to meet accreditation requirements.

(69) The structural requirements and Zone options for postgraduate courses are outlined in the table below:

Curriculum Architecture Policy – Schedule 2: Variation to unit level requirement allowances

Section 1 - Purpose

(70) This Schedule outlines the allowances given for a student to attain a relevant award where they have undertaken a variation of unit of study level that differ to the requirement/s represented in the structural design requirements set out in Schedule 1 – Course structural requirements that may be recognised as credit towards their award.

(71) Allowances applied are designed to balance the support of student mobility, tertiary harmonisation and optimisation of credit transfer while also protecting the integrity of awards conferred by the University.

(72) In all instances, any permitted variations still require students to meet the course learning outcomes and overall volume of learning requirements, and for any credit recognition to be in accordance with the Recognition of Prior Learning Policy.

(73) Double degree structures will generally be purposefully constructed to reflect a shorter duration of study aligned to one or both of the single constituent courses in recognition of the breadth and/or depth of study across two discipline areas with a larger volume of learning in total than required for a single degree. Should a student transfer out of the double degree to one of the constituent courses, they will be required to meet volume of learning requirements and course learning outcomes of the relevant single degree.

(74) Variations permitted beyond those set out in this Schedule will require approval from the appropriate Delegate in accordance with the Delegations of Authority Policy.

Section 2 – Schedule

(75) The permissions for variation of study to awards conferred by the University to that represented in the structural design requirements are outlined in the following table:

Curriculum Architecture Policy – Schedule 3: Unit of study level principles

Section 1 - Purpose

(76) This Schedule outlines the principles applied to identifying unit of study levels within the University.

Section 2 – Schedule

(77) All units of study are identified by an alphanumeric code containing four letters followed by four numerical digits. The first digit of the numerical component is aligned to the level of study expected to be achieved at the completion of study within that unit as indicated through the unit learning outcomes as outlined in the following table: