Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Business

4 Years On Campus Bachelors Program

Macquarie University

Program Overview

This double degree pairs a refreshed Bachelor of Arts with a forward-thinking Bachelor of Business, giving you both sharp critical thinking skills and practical business know-how. It’s perfect for students who want to combine creative, analytical, or social science interests with employable, real-world business skills.

Curriculum Structure

Year 1:
Your first year lays the foundation across both disciplines. In Business, you’ll explore units like Leadership for Business, where you’ll learn about different leadership styles and how to lead ethically. Meanwhile, in Arts, you’ll complete core units that develop your analytical thinking, data literacy, and communication abilities — essential skills no matter where your career takes you.

Year 2:
In your second year, you’ll dive deeper into both fields. Business units like Decision Making for Business will teach you how to make informed choices under uncertainty, while in Arts you’ll start exploring your chosen majors or minors — whether that’s Ancient History, Languages, Media, or another area you’re passionate about.

Year 3:
By your third year, you’ll tackle more advanced business units such as Financial Management for Business, gaining a solid understanding of financial markets, accounting, and risk management. On the Arts side, you’ll begin preparing for your capstone experience, bringing together everything you’ve learned in a final integrative project.

Year 4:
Your final year is about bringing it all together. You’ll complete any remaining business and Arts units, including your Arts capstone, while also having the freedom to choose electives that reflect your interests and career goals.

Focus Areas

Leadership & strategic thinking
Critical analysis & communication
Financial management & business decision-making
Interdisciplinary integration (Arts + Business)

Learning Outcomes

Build strong leadership and teamwork skills
Think critically and across disciplines
Communicate effectively in business and cultural contexts
Apply business knowledge in ethical and real-world situations

Professional Alignment (Accreditation)
This degree meets Macquarie’s high standards for higher education. The business component is delivered by the Macquarie Business School, ensuring your learning is relevant, practical, and aligned with industry expectations. With a total of 320 credit points, you graduate with a solid grounding in both Arts and Business.

Reputation (Employability & Rankings)
Macquarie University is consistently ranked among the top universities in Australia. The Bachelor of Arts has been developed in close consultation with industry leaders, ensuring your skills are relevant in the workplace. Business units are taught by research-active faculty, helping you gain employability skills like strategic thinking, communication, and sustainable business practices.

Why This Degree Could Be a Winning Move for You

Versatility: You don’t have to choose between passion and practicality — you get both.
Strong Employability: Graduate with leadership, financial, and critical thinking skills that employers highly value.
Customisable Learning: With flexible electives and a range of Arts majors and minors, you can tailor your degree to suit your interests and career goals.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

In the Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Business at Macquarie University, you won’t just learn theory — you’ll actively put your knowledge into practice, gaining real-world skills that set you apart. The degree is designed so you can tackle hands-on business challenges, collaborate with industry partners, and sharpen your thinking with both qualitative and quantitative approaches. At Macquarie’s lively Arts Precinct, you’ll have access to advanced technologies like the full Adobe Creative Cloud suite to create multimedia projects. Meanwhile, in the business stream, the Macquarie Business School offers innovative learning spaces, such as the Finance Decision Lab, where you work in teams with real financial data. You’ll also have structured opportunities to connect with employers through internships, while dedicated career advisors and e-portfolio experts help you showcase your practical achievements every step of the way.

Here are some of the ways you’ll gain hands-on experience:

Work-Integrated Learning via PACE: Every Business School undergraduate completes a PACE (Professional and Community Engagement) unit. This means you’ll get real experience through internships or consultancy-style projects with companies, government bodies, or non-profits.

Paid Internships through the Industry Partnership Program (IPP): You can take up paid placements lasting from one to six months in areas like accounting, finance, entrepreneurship, human resources, business analytics, and more — contributing real deliverables to partner organisations.

Collaborative Business Challenges: In spaces like the Finance Decision Lab, you’ll work in teams on financial simulations, case studies, and strategy-based problems using live market data, giving you practical, hands-on business experience.

Creative and Digital Tools in the Arts: As an Arts student, you’ll regularly use the full Adobe Creative Cloud suite — including Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere, and InDesign — along with tech-enabled studios to create media, design, and communication projects.

Professional E‑Portfolio Development: From your first day, you’ll build an e-portfolio with guidance from career advisers, helping you document your projects, internships, and creative work to present confidently to future employers.

Global and Cross-Cultural Experiences: Macquarie has partnerships with over 200 universities in more than 50 countries. Student exchange programs let you take your business and arts skills into international contexts, broadening your perspective.

Co‑curricular Leadership Program: Through the Global Leadership Program (GLP), you can engage in credit-bearing experiential activities like volunteering, internships, study tours, or language learning — all of which can earn you a distinction on your transcript.

With all these opportunities, you won’t just graduate with strong academic credentials. You’ll leave Macquarie with real-world experience, a polished portfolio, and the confidence to make an impact in both business and the creative world.

Progression & Future Opportunities

Graduates of the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Business double degree at Macquarie leave with a unique blend of creative, critical thinking, and strategic business skills. This combination makes them highly sought after in a wide range of industries — from corporate careers and consulting to entrepreneurship — because they can navigate both analytical business challenges and human-centred, strategic problem-solving.

Typical Job Roles
Graduates often go on to roles such as:

Business analyst or consultant
Marketing, human resources, or international business manager
Policy advisor, communications specialist, or cultural strategist
Entrepreneur or social enterprise leader

Detailed Insights

Work-integrated learning through PACE
This program includes Macquarie’s Professional and Community Engagement (PACE) program, built into every bachelor degree. Through PACE, you’ll have the chance to work on real projects — including internships, fieldwork, community initiatives, or industry research — with organisations across Australia and globally. With over 3,000 partner organisations, PACE helps you build networks, adapt to real workplace environments, and develop professional skills that employers really value.

Macquarie Business School Industry Partnerships
The Industry Partnership Program (IPP) connects students with leading firms through paid internships (3–6 months) and structured two-year traineeships. IPP partners span all areas of business, including accounting, marketing, HR, and finance, giving you the chance to apply what you learn directly in industry. Traineeships provide mentoring, real responsibility, and a clear pathway into full-time roles.

Career development support
Macquarie’s Careers and Student Employment team is there from day one, offering career planning, resume support, mock interviews, and guidance throughout your studies. MQ Student Employment (MQSE) helps you find paid work — casual, part-time, or full-time — relevant to your future career. The business school also embeds employability skills into its curriculum, covering leadership, negotiation, communication, and digital literacy, so you’re building professional competencies as you study.

Industry recognition & partnerships
IPP has strong ties with industry: in recent years, companies such as Grant Thornton, MLC Life Insurance, and others have hosted interns, offered traineeships, and awarded prizes. Macquarie Business School also has international engagement, for example through a partnership with the National Stock Exchange Academy in India, delivering a certificate in corporate treasury.

Graduate outcomes & employability
Research shows that Macquarie Business School students perform strongly on employability metrics, with high ratings for skill development, teaching quality, and graduate performance. Across the university, data indicates that Macquarie undergraduates achieve strong full-time employment outcomes after graduation.

Bringing together arts and business prepares you not just for conventional roles but also for leadership, innovation, and cross-sector careers such as social entrepreneurship, cultural management, and policy.

Further Academic Progression
If you wish to continue your studies, this double degree provides a strong foundation. Graduates can pursue an Honours year in Arts or Business, or enrol in master’s programs in Management, International Business, Public Policy, Marketing, Cultural Studies, and more. The combination of humanities and business also opens doors to professional or research-based postgraduate pathways.