Culture

Perth’s cultural scene offers an array of activities, with plenty of festivals, eateries, modern bars and weekend markets adding flavour to the city and its suburbs.

Our sense of humour

One thing you’ll likely encounter as soon as you land is the Aussie sense of humour and our love of slang. Australians tend to not take themselves too seriously and often make jokes in social settings. We also love to shorten words. Here are some terms you may come across, however these are just the tip of the iceberg.

University terminology

When you start university, you’re bound to come across a number of terms that may not mean much to you. Here’s a quick guide to some you may or may not already be familiar with.

Bachelor's degree

This is your first degree and is what you achieve after completing an undergraduate course.

Census date

The date by which you must finalise your enrolment and fees are charged. It's also the last day you can withdraw from a unit without having it listed on your academic record.

Contact hours

The hours a student is expected to spend in tutorials, lectures or labs.

Faculty

A faculty is a university division responsible for administrating teaching and learning in a particular area of knowledge.
Faculties include schools and centres within that teaching area.

Fresher

Informal term for freshman. A first-year student at university.

Full-time study

At least 75 per cent study load (that is, three or four units) per semester.

Grade Point Average (GPA)

An index of academic performance calculated by converting a student's percentage marks/grades.

Honours

An additional year of full-time (or equivalent part-time) study undertaken on completion
of a bachelor’s degree. Includes coursework and a research dissertation.

Lab

A class that takes place in a laboratory. Labs are practical classes involving experiments,
investigation, construction, observation or testing.

Lecture

A class that involves the presentation of a particular topic, idea or subject to a large group of students.
Lectures normally run for about 45 minutes and many are recorded so you can revise later.

Level

A ranking applied to a unit that indicates the amount of prior knowledge or maturity of learning required to study a unit successfully.
A three-year undergraduate degree consists of Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 units.

Major

An area of specialisation that comprises an approved sequence of eight units within an undergraduate degree course.

Mature-age student

A person aged 20 years or over at 1 March in the year they intend to commence study at university.

Orientation or O-Week

A week of activities and information sessions to welcome you to your new life at university and introduce you to what you can expect.

Part-time study

Enrolling in less than 75 per cent study load (that is one or two units) per semester.

Postgraduate

Higher-level university study undertaken upon the completion of a bachelor’s degree.

Prerequisite

A subject or condition a person must satisfy before gaining entry to a unit or course.

Semester

The university year for most students is divided into two semesters, running from February to July (Semester 1) and August to December (Semester 2).

Tutorial

A small class involving discussion that is facilitated by a tutor on a particular topic
or idea (usually what has previously been presented in a lecture).

Undergraduate

A term that refers to a university student who is studying towards their first degree (bachelor’s degree).

Unit

A subject usually studied for the duration of one semester.
Units normally involve different classes – lectures, tutorials, seminars, labs, etc.