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Graduate Certificate of Business (GCBU) - GradCertBus

QTAC code (Australian and New Zealand applicants): Toowoomba campus: GCBU01; Online: GCBU03; Springfield campus: GCBU04

CRICOS code (International applicants): 084839B

 On-campusOnline
Start:Semester 1 (February)
Semester 2 (July)
Semester 1 (February)
Semester 2 (July)
Semester 3 (November)
Campus:Springfield, Toowoomba -
Fees:Domestic full fee paying place
International full fee paying place
Domestic full fee paying place
International full fee paying place
Standard duration:1 semester full-time, up to 2 years part-time 
Program articulation:

To: Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only); Master of Business and Innovation ; Master of Project Management

Notes

Not all courses are available on-campus.
Depending on specialisation undertaken, this program may not be able to be undertaken in full-time mode.
There is no semester 3 intake for international on-campus students.
The NDIS Studies specialisation is only available part-time and there is no semester 3 intake.

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Contact us

Future Australian and New Zealand students  Future International students  Current students 

Freecall (within Australia): 1800 269 500
Phone (from outside Australia): +61 7 4631 5315
Email: study@usq.edu.au  

Phone: +61 7 4631 5543
Email: international@usq.edu.au 

Freecall (within Australia): 1800 007 252
Phone (from outside Australia): +61 7 4631 2285
Email usq.support@usq.edu.au 

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Professional accreditation

USQ is a global Registered Education Provider (R.E.P.) accredited by the US-based Project Management Institute (PMI)®, which is the largest professional body for project managers in the world with over 450,000 members. USQ’s status as an R.E.P. ensures the currency, quality and global recognition of the project management programs and courses offered by USQ both on-campus and online. Completion of project management courses and programs at USQ earns professional development units (PDUs) as evidence of professional development and credit towards PMI’s Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) program. Details can be obtained at the

PMI and Project Management Professional (PMP) are registered marks of the Project Management Institute, Inc.

The Graduate Certificate of Business (Project Management) is endorsed by the (AIPM).

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Program aims

The aim of the Graduate Certificate of Business is to enable students to undertake postgraduate study across a range of disciplines to meet their specific work-place needs or to study a discipline specialisation to either provide advanced work-place knowledge and skills or to lay a platform for further study in the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) , Master of Business and Innovation, Master of Information Systems, Master of Professional Accounting or Master of Project Management.

The selection of the courses or discipline specialisation chosen will be influenced by the demands of the work environment and the interests of the student. The entry requirements of articulating programs should be considered when choosing courses.

Students who have completed the Graduate Certificate of Business are not eligible to enter the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) or Master of Project Management until they satisfy the required minimum of two years' full-time relevant professional work experience in business.

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Program objectives

On successful completion of the Graduate Certificate of Business graduates should be able to:

  • understand the concepts, theories and skills associated with a particular selected discipline area or areas related to business

  • apply acquired knowledge associated with their studies to their work environments

  • synthesise selected areas of managerial knowledge to produce meaningful assignments/reports

  • articulate both written and orally, the principles, theories, concepts and applications associated with their area of study

  • display a range of competencies in their selected discipline/s area

  • demonstrate advanced knowledge and skills for professional/highly skilled work and/or further learning.


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Australian Qualifications Framework

The Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) is a single national, comprehensive system of qualifications offered by higher education institutions (including universities), vocational education and training institutions and secondary schools. Each AQF qualification has a set of descriptors which define the type and complexity of knowledge, skills and application of knowledge and skills that a graduate who has been awarded that qualification has attained, and the typical volume of learning associated with that qualification type.

This program is at AQF Qualification Level 08. Graduates at this level will have advanced knowledge and skills for professional or highly skilled work and/or further learning.

The full set of levels criteria and qualification type descriptors can be found by visiting .

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Admission requirements

To be eligible for admission, applicants must satisfy the following requirements:

  • Completion of an Australian university Bachelor degree in any area, or equivalent.

    or

    A minimum of five years’ professional work experience equivalent to a qualification at AQF Level 7.

  • English Language Proficiency requirements for Category 3.


All students are required to satisfy the applicable .

If students do not meet the English language requirements they may apply to study a ¾«¶«´«Ã½app-approved . On successful completion of the English language program, students may be admitted to an award program.

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Program fees

Domestic full fee paying place

Domestic full fee paying places are funded entirely through the full fees paid by the student. Full fees vary depending on the courses that are taken. Students are able to calculate the fees for a particular course via the

Domestic full fee paying students may be eligible to defer their fees through a Government loan called provided they meet the residency and citizenship requirements.

Australian citizens, Permanent Humanitarian Visa holders, Permanent Resident visa holders and New Zealand citizens who will be resident outside Australia for the duration of their program pay full tuition fees and are not eligible for .

International full fee paying place

International students pay full fees. Full fees vary depending on the courses that are taken and whether they are studied on-campus, via distance education/online. Students are able to calculate the fees for a particular course via the .

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Program structure

The Graduate Certificate of Business is comprised of four units of postgraduate courses as follows:

  • Business Administration specialisation

  • NDIS Studies specialistion

  • General specialisation

  • Named specialisation


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Required time limits

Students have a maximum of 2 years to complete this program.

Specific specialisations

In this section:

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Business Administration specialisation

The Business Administration specialisation is recommended for students who want to articulate into the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) .

Course  Semester of offer
Distance/Online 
Semester of offer
Toowoomba campus 
Semester of offer
Springfield campus 
Students choose 4 courses from the following: 
  1, 3 
  1, 2  1, 2 
  1, 2 
  1, 2   
  1, 2   
  2, 3   
  1, 2   
  2, 3 

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NDIS Studies specialisation

The NDIS Studies specialisation is recommended for students who want to develop and lead organisations that deliver high quality services to meet the needs of individuals with disability and promote inclusive communities.

Course  Semester of offer
Distance/Online 
Semester of offer
Toowoomba campus 
Semester of offer
Ipswich campus 
   
   
   
     

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General specialisation

To discuss which courses to study within the General specialisation, please . All course pre-requisites must be met, and all courses chosen are subject to the approval of the Program Coordinator.

Students can choose any four courses from the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only), Master of Business and Innovation, Master of Information Systems, Master of Professional Accounting and Master of Project Management.

Students wanting to study a course/s from other programs across the ¾«¶«´«Ã½app must seek approval from the Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts.

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Named specialisation

Courses in some areas of study may have prerequisites.

Students can choose a named specialisation from the following programs:

Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only)

  • Business Leadership

  • Digital Marketing Analytics

  • Digital Transformation specialisation

  • Finance specialisation

  • General specialisation

  • Global Business Management specialisation

  • Project Management specialisation

  • Strategic Human Resource Management specialisation

  • Strategic Marketing specialisation

  • Sustainable Business specialisation.


Please note: The Emergency and Disaster Communication specialisation is not available in the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only)



Master of Business and Innovation

  • Big Data and Visualisation specialisation

  • Crisis Management specialisation

  • Digital Transformation specialisation

  • Enterprise Leadership specialisation

  • Finance specialisation

  • General specialisation

  • International Business specialisation

  • Professional Communication specialisation

  • Sustainable Business specialisation.


Master of Project Management


Students intending to gain entry to the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) or Master of Project Management on completion of the Graduate Certificate of Business should choose 4 core courses from their intended program.

Students intending to gain entry to the Master of Business and Innovation on completion of the Graduate Certificate of Business should choose a 4-unit specialisation from the program.

Students who wish to articulate into the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) , Master of Business and Innovation, Master of Information Systems, Master of Professional Accounting or Master of Project Management must meet the program admission requirements before applications for credit will be considered.

Students who wish to gain maximum credit for courses completed in the Graduate Certificate of Business upon entry to the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) should consider the Business Administration specialisation.

Students who have completed the Graduate Certificate of Business and do not have a minimum of two years' full-time relevant professional work experience in business are not eligible to apply for entry to the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) or Master of Project Management until they have satisfied this work experience entry requirement.

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IT requirements

For information technology requirements please refer to the .

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Other program requirements

Students must maintain good standing in this program. Please refer to the .

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Articulation

Upon successful completion of the Graduate Certificate of Business with a minimum GPA of 4.0, a student may articulate into the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only), Master of Business and Innovation or Master of Project Management provided they meet other program entry requirements, including a minimum of two years' full-time relevant professional work experience in business for the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only) and the Master of Project Management .

Students who complete the Graduate Certificate of Business and maintain satisfactory academic standing (GPA 3.5) but do not achieve a GPA of 4.0 can articulate into the Graduate Diploma of Business . On successful completion of the Graduate Diploma of Business , students can articulate into the Master of Business Administration (Offered to GCBU and GDBZ students only), Master of Business and Innovation or Master of Project Management provided they meet other program entry requirements.

Graduates of the NDIS Studies specialisation should seek specialist program advice.

There is no other articulation pathway from the Graduate Certificate of Business.

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Exit points

There are no exit points from the Graduate Certificate of Business.

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Credit

Credit may be granted on the basis of equivalent courses undertaken at postgraduate level. In order for credit to be granted, the claim must meet the following specific requirements:

  • the course passed was taken at least at Masters or equivalent level

  • the course was passed within 5 years prior to the application (courses up to 10 years old may be considered if evidence is provided that the applicant has been employed in that field)

  • the course passed is equivalent in objectives, content and weightings to a course prescribed in the Graduate Certificate of Business, or alternatively, the course is suitable as an elective

  • where the student has taken out an award from a recognised tertiary institution and is claiming credit on the basis of courses completed to meet the requirements of that program, the maximum credit on the basis of such courses shall be no greater than 2 courses for the Graduate Certificate of Business

  • credit approved in this program will not automatically apply to other programs offered by the ¾«¶«´«Ã½app of Southern Queensland.


Note: Where credit is granted, maximum and minimum duration will be adjusted in the same proportion as the credit, for example, where the maximum of 50 per cent credit is granted, maximum and minimum duration will be reduced by one-half.

Recommended enrolment pattern

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Recommended enrolment pattern

Students are able to enrol in any offered mode of a course (on-campus, external or online), regardless of the program mode of study they enrolled in.


CourseYear of program and semester in which course is normally studiedEnrolment requirements
On-campus
(ONC)
External
(EXT)
Online
(ONL)
YearSemYearSemYearSem
Specialisation course 11111
Specialisation course 21111
Specialisation course 31112
Specialisation course 41112