single unit subjects pathway

[krisvonoz]

Is this in any way a good pathway to university; i'm afraid it might be a waste of time and that I won't get into the degree when i complete it because i'm uncertain what kind of scores you will need to be accepted. Anyone heard of any success coming out of it?

Side note: I am thinking of getting into the arts degree in latrobe which allows me to double major in two languages so of course my single subject selections will be two languages. Plus, my ATAR will in no way help me get into the degree anyway and I am not willing to spend TWO YEARS studying a diploma of liberal arts just to get into an arts degree!

[binders]

Doing single subjects can work out ok if you really put the effort in to get the marks needed for the entry pathway.
I took 3 single latin units with a H1 average, which would have qualified me for entry (In the end I got in with my atar).

So it's doable.

But paying full fee is quite expensive, and you want to make sure you're going to get credit towards your BA if you do get in,
or it may feel like you wasted your efforts somewhat. It could be a good option for you, in your situation.
It's a shame you can't undetake a Diploma of Languages (1 year full time) at Latrobe and get into your BA that way. worth asking about, anyway.

out of interest, which languages?

[krisvonoz]

what's a H1 average?
I don't think latrobe offers a diploma of languages but they only a graduate diploma of languages.
I want to do Japanese and Spanish or Chinese.

[binders]

H1 is over 80%
The introductory units for those shouldn't be too hard, and if you study hard for them, a high enough average seems realistic. A quick squiz at latrobe's website suggests you'd be looking at ~$4200 for two units to get their guaranteed
entry into a BA. 2 units probably isn't enough to keep you busy, so you might want to find some other studies to do on the side.

[krisvonoz]

Thanks. When you say other studies what do you mean?

[binders]

well, as an example, if you were doing 2 full fee units over the year, you could study one of your other languages on your own to prepare for when you get into your degree. 

Most language streams allow you to enter at a higher level than beginner's, and have evaluation tests to figure out where you should start. It's probably doable to find out what coursebooks the uni uses for spanish, and what they expect you to know before entering Intermediate Spanish, and to learn that yourself over the course of the year.

Or you could audit a subject at Latrobe, or take some other class elsewhere to keep busy and advance your studies while you wait to get into your preferred course.

[krisvonoz]

oh, I thought single unit subjects could only be done in one semester only...