Bachelor of Economics and Bachelor of Laws

5 Years On Campus Bachelors Program

University of Sydney

Program Overview

The Bachelor of Economics and Bachelor of Laws at the University of Sydney is a five‑year journey designed for curious minds who want to understand how markets, policies, and legal systems shape the world around us. You’ll gain solid foundations in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and econometrics while also learning how law works in practice — from contracts and constitutional law to commercial and international law — preparing you for a wide range of careers in law, business, policy, or public service.

Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Campus, Sydney, Australia

Curriculum Structure:

Year 1:
Your first year is all about exploration. You’ll dive into core economics with courses like Microeconomic Principles and Macroeconomic Principles while also tackling foundational law units such as Foundations of Law and Foundations of Legal Skills. These courses will start shaping your ability to think both like an economist and a lawyer — asking why markets behave the way they do and how rules and rights are structured in society.

Year 2:
In your second year, you’ll start building depth in both fields. You’ll continue core law studies, such as Civil Law and Criminal Law, while exploring intermediate economics and your chosen embedded major, which could be Econometrics, Financial Economics, or Environmental Economics. This is the stage where you can begin to focus on the questions that excite you most — whether that’s how economic policies impact communities or how legal systems protect rights.

Year 3:
By the third year, you’ll start tailoring your journey. You’ll take advanced units in your economics major while also progressing through law courses like Contract Law and Property Law. This is where the big picture comes together: you’ll see how data, policy, and legal frameworks interact to solve real-world problems in business, government, or community settings.

Year 4:
Now fully immersed in law training, your focus will shift to more complex legal reasoning with courses such as Torts and Administrative Law. These units are designed to help you think like a lawyer — interpreting statutes, analysing cases, and crafting persuasive arguments — while your economics background gives you a unique lens to understand societal impacts.

Year 5:
In your final year, you’ll round out your law studies with electives and specialised topics that match your interests — from commercial and international law to human rights or environmental law. By the end of the program, you’ll have strong legal knowledge, a sharp economic perspective, and the confidence to step into graduate roles or continue professional training.

Focus Areas:
Strong foundations in economics (micro, macro, econometrics), an embedded major specialisation, essential law training, and the flexibility to pursue legal electives aligned with your interests.

Learning Outcomes:
You’ll graduate able to analyse economic data, understand legal systems, think critically, communicate effectively, and solve problems across business, policy, or legal contexts.

Professional Alignment:
The law component meets the academic requirements for admission as a lawyer in New South Wales, meaning you can go on to practical legal training and ultimately practice professionally.

Reputation:
The University of Sydney is consistently ranked among the world’s top universities for both law and economics. Its law school, in particular, is highly regarded globally — a strong signal to employers that your degree is backed by rigorous thinking and real-world relevance.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

This combined degree isn’t just about learning theory — it’s about experiencing economics and law in ways that mirror the real world. You’ll start by building a strong foundation in economics, developing sharp analytical skills and a data‑driven approach to decision-making. At the same time, you’ll gain the rigorous legal knowledge needed for professional practice. As you move through the program, you’ll get the chance to put these skills into action, through real legal experiences and structured professional development, so what you learn in lectures and seminars directly connects to workplaces. In short, your skillset grows academically and practically, helping you step confidently into careers in law, government, business, or public policy.

Here’s what real-world learning looks like in this program:

Hands-on legal practice: In your final year, you can take part in clinical legal education options, working with legal centres, law firms, or organisations helping real clients and communities.
Professional internships: Opportunities with domestic and international law firms give you insight into the industry and valuable professional experience.
Practical skill-building through Open Learning Environment (OLE) units: These workshop-supported, on-demand experiences help you develop skills like persuasive communication, project management, and ethical reasoning — all directly relevant to real workplaces.
Structured learning in economics and law: From microeconomics and macroeconomics to econometrics, you’ll apply analytical frameworks to real economic issues.
Advanced research opportunities: If you choose the Advanced Economics program and Honours year, you’ll complete a supervised independent research project — a major piece of work that mirrors professional research expectations.
Workplace experience for credit: Internship opportunities allow you to earn academic credit while gaining hands-on experience across a range of sectors.
Optional placements and professional pathways: University-facilitated internships give you even more ways to test your skills in real workplace settings.

If you’re someone who learns best by doing — engaging with real challenges, practicing professional skills, and seeing how law and economics play out beyond the classroom — this combined degree is designed to give you those rich, career-focused experiences every step of the way.

Progression & Future Opportunities

Graduates of the Bachelor of Economics and Bachelor of Laws at the University of Sydney are highly regarded for their ability to combine economic analysis with legal reasoning, enabling them to understand how markets, policy, regulation, and governance interact in complex real-world systems. The degree prepares students for influential careers in law, economics, public policy, finance, consulting, and government, where strong analytical thinking and decision-making skills are essential. Typical career pathways include corporate lawyer, economic analyst, policy adviser, competition lawyer, investment consultant, government economist, regulatory affairs specialist, and management consultant.

The University of Sydney supports strong graduate outcomes through structured employability services, industry engagement, and internationally recognised academic excellence across both economics and law disciplines:

Sydney Careers & Employability Services : Students receive tailored career development support including internship programs, clerkship preparation, résumé workshops, interview coaching, networking events, employer engagement sessions, mentoring programs, and leadership development opportunities aligned with law, economics, finance, and public policy careers.
Professional Legal Qualification Pathway : The Law component satisfies the academic requirements for admission to legal practice in Australia, subject to completion of Practical Legal Training (PLT), providing a direct pathway into legal careers while maintaining flexibility across non-legal sectors.
Strong Industry & Government Partnerships : Students benefit from connections with major law firms, economic research institutions, government departments, Treasury, Reserve Bank of Australia-related networks, consulting firms, financial institutions, and multinational corporations that support internships, policy projects, clerkships, and graduate employment pathways.
Economics Career Pathways & Professional Recognition : The Economics component prepares students for roles in economic analysis, policy development, banking, finance, and consulting, with strong alignment to professional economist and analyst roles across public and private sectors.
Graduate Employment Outcomes : University of Sydney graduates consistently achieve strong full-time employment rates across law, economics, and business-related disciplines, reflecting high employer demand for graduates with quantitative, analytical, and legal expertise.
Median Graduate Salary : Based on Australian graduate outcomes data across economics, law, and finance-related fields, graduates commonly achieve median full-time salaries ranging between approximately AUD $85,000–$110,000 depending on industry sector, role complexity, and career progression.
Global Career Opportunities : The combination of Economics and Law creates pathways into international organisations, global consulting firms, investment banks, regulatory bodies, policy institutions, and multinational corporations operating across legal, financial, and economic systems.
Research & Policy Engagement : Students engage with contemporary economic and legal issues such as taxation policy, competition regulation, financial markets, trade policy, and corporate governance, building the ability to analyse complex global challenges.
Long-Term Professional Flexibility : Graduates develop adaptable skills in economic modelling, legal reasoning, policy analysis, and strategic decision-making, enabling careers across law, finance, government, consulting, and international organisations.

Further Academic Progression:
After completing this dual degree, graduates may pursue postgraduate study such as a Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Economics, Master of Public Policy, Master of International Economics and Finance, Master of Finance, or Master of Business Administration (MBA). High-achieving graduates may also continue into Honours or PhD research programs in Economics, Law, Finance, Public Policy, or Econometrics, leading to careers in academia, advanced economic research, government advisory roles, international organisations, or senior policy leadership positions.