The health sector is vitally important to our society, so it is necessary to keep on top of emerging trends and understand how they can benefit health professionals and health outcomes.
The BDes/BHSc programme gives you both the health industry expertise and creative competencies to explore, test and implement different solutions.
You will gain a multidisciplinary understanding of health, healthcare and related services. At the same time you will use digital, material and emerging technologies in real-world and imagined scenarios to prototype designs and analyse their impact on individual, social, political, cultural and ethical levels.
Programme structure
The BDes/BHSc usually takes four years to complete.
You will need to complete 540 points, consisting of:
- 255 points from BHSc courses
- 255 points from BDes courses:
- 165 points BDes core courses
- 90 points from BDes elective courses
- 15 points from General Education
- 15 points from courses available for any programme
In your Design component, alongside design foundation courses and studio practice, you will build your own study plan of six elective courses from our four design themes:
- Design and Local Community Practices
- Design and Global Challenges
- Design and Business
- Design and Emerging Technologies
In your final year, you will undertake a capstone design research project, working from the initial discovery phase right through to testing and implementation.
You must meet the requirements of the Population Health major for the BHSc component of your conjoint. You can choose from six different pathways to structure your courses in this component:
- Health Promotion
- Mental Health and Addictions
- Population Health Nutrition
- Health Systems
- Health Information and Analysis
- Research
You will probably enrol in nine 15-point courses (135 points) each year if you want to complete in four years. You need to maintain a Grade Point Average of 3.5 each year to continue with your conjoint.
Subjects available in this programme
- Design
- Population Health
2020 entry requirements
My highest qualification is from:
New Zealand Outside New Zealand
Secondary school qualifications
If you’re joining us from secondary school, here’s what you need to enter the programme.
You are guaranteed entry to this programme if you meet these requirements.
- First, you must meet the University Entrance (UE) standard.
- You must also meet the rank score for this programme.
- You may need to have studied certain subjects or achieved credits in particular subjects.
- Some programmes have additional requirements, such as an interview, portfolio or references.
Guaranteed rank score, subject and other requirements
If your rank score is slightly lower than the guaranteed score, we encourage you to still apply. We will consider your application if places are available. If you don’t meet the requirements, you may be able to apply under our Undergraduate Targeted Admission Schemes.
- QualificationNCEANational Certificate of Educational AchievementScore required250
- QualificationCIECambridge International ExaminationsScore required300
- QualificationIBInternational BaccalaureateScore required33
Read more about entry requirements for New Zealand secondary school applicants.
Tertiary qualifications
If you’ve studied at a tertiary institution, here’s what you need to enter the programme.
You can transfer from another tertiary institution, or another University of Auckland qualification, if you meet these requirements.
Minimum grade requirements
These are the likely grades required, but they do not guarantee entry. Applicants may require higher grades to gain entry to this programme.
- Grade required GPA Grade Point Average 5.0
- Grade required GPE Grade Point Equivalent 5.0
Further requirements
You must have completed one semester of successful bachelors degree study from a New Zealand tertiary institution, or one year of successful study as part of an acceptable sub-degree qualification from a New Zealand tertiary institution.
Other pathways to study
You could be eligible for another programme, or check out these alternative pathways:
- See if you meet the criteria for the Undergraduate Targeted Admission Scheme (UTAS).
- Bridge your educational gap with a preparation and foundation programme.
- If you are under 20, have no formal University Entrance (UE) qualification, and are a New Zealand or Australian citizen or permanent resident you can apply for discretionary entrance.
- If you can demonstrate outstanding academic achievement and maturity, we offer admission to applicants under 16.
Where could this programme take you?
The BDes/BHSc is a broad non-clinical programme that prepares graduates for a range of health-related careers, particularly in designing healthcare solutions. You could create new product or service offerings within healthcare, or find ways of integrating new technologies into the industry to better connect professionals with patients and communities.
Jobs related to this programme
- Design strategist
- Health educator
- Innovation manager
- Policy adviser
- Policy analyst
- Product designer
- Project manager
- Service designer
Student career planning service
Once you become a student at the University, you can get help with planning and developing your career from Career Development and Employability Services.
Key dates
Please note: We will consider late applications if places are still available. International students should start the application process as early as possible to allow sufficient time to apply for a visa.
Application closing dates
Semester One 20218 December 2020
Start dates
Here are the start dates for the programme.
| Semester One | Starts – 2 March |
|---|---|
| Ends – 29 June |
| Semester One | Starts – 1 March |
|---|---|
| Ends – 28 June |