University: The University of Western Australia

Degree: Bachelor of Science and Master of Teaching (Secondary), Chemistry and Teaching (Secondary)

School Subjects: Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics Specialist, Mathematics Methods, EALD

____________________________________________

Bachelor of Science and Master of Teaching (Secondary) is a new four-year combined course offered by UWA, which is surprisingly intensive. I had always wanted to be a high school teacher. I’ve enjoyed taking something complex and explaining it in a simple and understandable way, and I find it satisfying when someone goes from completely dumbfounded to understanding a specific topic. Now, why didn’t I just do a Bachelor of Education then? This is because stats show that 70% of teachers are considering leaving the workforce within the next five years, and the latest data shows 1.25–7%.

Course Structure

The course requires two separate STEM fields (Science, Maths, or Sport Science). As I am doing Chemistry as a major, I couldn’t pick Physics as my minor, meaning I had to do either Maths or Sport Science because my ‘Science’ choice was filled.

You will do 10 units (2, 4, and 4 for each year) of your chosen major, and you can choose between four and six units of a teaching minor. The extra units allow you to teach the said subject to Year 11s and 12s, but realistically, I doubt schools will pay close attention to this. It is important to note that the teaching minor is not considered a minor in your degree itself, so your Bachelor’s degree will only have your major listed.

Demands

If you have entered this course, it means you have the assured pathway into the Master’s course. As such, no further application or “try-harding” is needed to get into the course. As a result, unless you’re a sweat, you can take your Bachelor’s pretty chill.

There are mandatory classes that you must attend (labs, workshops, etc.), but the lectures are always optional (as they are all recorded), so those can be done from home or wherever you study.

First Year

An aspect of uni that immediately jumped out to me was the decrease in support. In school, you get coddled by teachers, but do not expect the same support from your lecturers—they have between 100 and 400 students to manage. Some lecturers may be helpful, but you are not entitled to it. As such, it becomes incredibly useful to know some people in your cohort that you can study with. If you are doing Maths, I highly recommend making the most out of your workshops. The content itself was slightly difficult for me personally, but the exams and tests were a breeze if you put in your due diligence. In fact, for first year, most of the questions are recycled from past years or previous workshop questions, so you can just rote-learn if you want to, and you’ll do perfectly fine. Most of the first-year units just build upon Year 12 Chemistry and Maths Specialist while also adding new content. For example, first-year Chemistry covers Organic Chemistry (Carboxylic Acids, Alcohols, all that stuff) but adds content such as Reaction Mechanisms (i.e. how the reactions actually occur) and Synthesis Methods (how we can make these compounds). In first-year Maths, you cover Matrices, Vectors, Limits, and SLEs, but then you learn applications of them such as Eigenfunctions and Eigenvalues, Convergence and Divergence (i.e. where Limits end up).

Second Year

Second year is where rote learning can still get you through. The class sizes become slightly smaller, so asking for support from lecturers becomes a little easier. The units start to become more specialised, with each unit focusing on a particular branch of Science or Maths. But honestly, I think second year isn’t that hard, as long as you stay consistent with your study.

For Maths, you will do intro units for applied and pure Maths. Applied Maths focuses more on the practical application of Maths, whereas pure studies more of the theoretical side. For Differential Equations – MATH2021 (which is essentially the intro unit for applied Maths), strong calculus skills are a must. If you are in high school and are struggling with calculus, you may find applied Maths very difficult. Most Maths majors will steer towards applied Maths, as pure Maths focuses more on abstract theory such as Topology, Geometry, Set Theory, and more, which is inherently harder due to how theoretical the content becomes. If you plan to do Introduction to Pure Mathematics – MATH2031, the content may seem confusing, weird, and abstract, and that’s because it is. Don’t worry—rote learning will get you through it (any normal mathematician would realise I’m on the applied Maths side).

Third Year

By this point, it becomes increasingly harder to rote-learn your content, and a deeper comprehension of it is needed. However, by now, many basics should have been echoed multiple times. In Maths, Integration by Parts, Differentiation Laws, and Set Notation are your love languages. In Chemistry, you might as well propose to Electrophilicity and Nucleophilicity, Orders of Reaction Rates, and a Buchner Funnel.

It is a unique year where you will be attending uni based on two separate schedules. Your Bachelor’s course will run based on the general uni schedule (check the UWA website), and your Master’s course will run based on school terms. As a result, I believe you are only given one proper week of break between both courses that year.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out!