• Macquarie Home »
• Faculty of Science »
• Physics and Astronomy

Honours Degree Programs in Physics, Astronomy, Lasers and Photonics

Why study Honours?

We aim to provide you with valuable research experience, and through the coursework program, to broaden and deepen your skills and knowledge in your chosen discipline. Research experience and training offers benefits to Honours graduates in many ways: the successful conduct of a research project requires a depth of understanding of the problem and the background; mastery of particular techniques (whether experimental, computational or theoretical); and the ability to communicate clearly the results and insight obtained in the project work both in writing and speaking. In addition, successfully meeting the deadlines imposed during Honours requires good organisational skills, and a high level of maturity, independence and self-motivation.

Through the mentoring provided by individual supervisors as well as more general skills training provided by the Department as a whole, we aim to help you to develop the research skills needed to successfully complete an Honours degree.

The Honours Programs thus serve two main purposes. If you are seeking a career in industry, the additional coursework and the independent work required for a research project and thesis provide you with a stronger qualification and valuable experience. If you wish to undertake research, the Honours degree is the standard entry point to a postgraduate research degree such as a Master or Doctorate in Australia or the UK. It is recognised as equivalent to the entry requirements for graduate schools in the USA and Europe.

Finally, it is a challenging and unique opportunity to test your limits and discover what you can achieve.

Why study Honours at Macquarie?

The Dept of Physics and Astronomy is a prominent member of the physics research community in Australia. We perform world class research in Photonics, Quantum Science, Condensed Matter Physics, and Astronomy & Astrophysics. In the first preliminary round of the federal government's Excellence for Research in Australia evaluation scheme, the department scored the maximum rating of 5 both overall and in most of its research disciplines. We are a large group with 25 continuing academics, 25 postdoctoral researchers and around 90 postgraduate students. Our graduates have gone on to pursue hugely varying careers, including academic research in physics and astronomy, industrial and defence research, management, government and teaching. The Departments hosts three of the University's Concentration of Research Excellence (CORE) programs in Photonics, Quantum Science, and Astronomy & Astrophysics, and two University Research Centres--MQPhotonics and QSciTech.

Our Honours students are embedded in a research group and experience the full range of research activities from the first week and throughout the year. The coursework we offer at Honours level offers a deeper coverage of topics in Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics, and Photonics than is possible in our 3 year degree. Thus some units are designed to fill omissions in the undergraduate curriculum, or to treat subject material in a more sophisticated way, compatible with the research expectations we have of our Honours students. Additionally, units are designed to improve skills and techniques needed in research, such as analytical or interpretive skills.

At Macquarie, we take our Honours program extremely seriously. For staff, guiding students through their first major research experience is an enjoyable and intellectually rewarding experience. Honours is one of the pillars of our teaching program and the entire Department is involved in the design, administration, assessment and review of the Honours course. We recognise that a creative and vigorous Honours program plays a key role in our recruitment of postgraduate students and in enhancing our external reputation, and is therefore critical to the future health of the Department.

Should I still do Honours if I've completed the Bachelor of Advanced Science in Physics or Astronomy?

Absolutely! Students in the Advanced Science program will appreciate the challenge and extension of the Honours program. There is no overlap between the two, and the Honours year goes far beyond the activities in the Advanced Science degree.

Will I be at a disadvantage if I haven't done an Advanced Science degree?

Not at all. Most of our Honours students are in this category. The Macquarie University Advanced Science units provide focused study in specific areas that do not overlap with the Honours coursework. For students with the required GPA, the standard 3-year degree provides all the preparation that is needed for Honours.