The faculty offers the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and the Master of Engineering Science (MEngSc) degrees by research. These courses are currently offered at the Caulfield, Clayton and Gippsland campuses.
For admission to full candidature for the degree of MEngSc(Research), there must be clear and irrefutable evidence that a candidate has (a) a university honours degree in engineering or (b) a university pass degree in engineering or similar degree plus honours-equivalent experience appropriate to the field of study.
A candidate who seems to have the potential but is deemed to be inadequately prepared for MEngSc(Research) studies may be considered for preliminary candidature. Such a candidate would be required to pass a preliminary prescription recommended by the head of the department; this will normally consist of undergraduate subjects for which credit towards the MEngSc(Research) will not be allowed. Admission to full candidature will follow on receipt of an appropriate recommendation from the head of department certifying that the preliminary prescription has been passed.
Candidature
is either on a full-time or part-time basis as determined by a committee of the
faculty board. The duration of the full-time candidature is 24 months and every
two months of part-time study counts as one month of full-time study for the
purpose of calculation of duration of candidature. There are no levels of
candidature other than part-time or full-time.
Part-time candidature is permitted under the following guidelines:
(a) The supervisor shall be a full-time member of the academic staff of
the university. An associate supervisor may be an appropriately qualified
member of an external organisation. If the associate supervisor is from an
external organisation, frequent communication with the supervisor should be
maintained.
(b) The topic of the thesis shall be decided by the candidate in
consultation with the supervisor.
(c) (i) In order to undertake part-time candidature, a candidate must be
able to devote the equivalent of a minimum of two days per week to the pursuit
of the research project.
(ii) Where the postgraduate's research work involves the systematic use of
the university facilities, the faculty may require that these two days be
weekdays.
(iii) Where the candidate is engaged in full-time employment, the head of
the department will be required to certify that the head is satisfied that the
candidate is able to spend the equivalent of two days a week in pursuit of the
research project.
(d) The candidate must discuss progress with the supervisor in person at
least once each calendar month.
(e) The candidate must attend the university frequently and on a regular basis;
one day per week on average is considered the minimum necessary.
(f) The candidate must attend all such courses, seminars, workshops etc as
are deemed necessary by the head of department (in the case of a regular
seminar or lecture series a minimum of 80 per cent attendance may be
deemed adequate).
(g) The candidate shall be required to undertake the equivalent of three
months of full-time study within the university (including its research
stations and teaching hospitals); the apportionment of that attendance period
should be determined by the faculty at the time of application but need not be
continuous.
(h) Where the candidate is engaged in full-time employment, the head of
department will be required to certify at the time of application that the head
is satisfied that the candidate will be able to comply with the residency
requirements of this regulation.
(i) The supervisor and head shall certify that the requirements for
candidature have been met and an annual report of attendance and progress will
be presented.
(j) The thesis is to be available for publication.
(k) Off-campus equipment and other facilities may be used with the
permission of the head and supervisor. Whenever feasible, on-campus facilities
shall be used or developed in preference to those off-campus.
The faculty administrative officer will maintain a master list of all
candidates enrolled on a part-time basis.
There may well be circumstances in which to ensure equity with regard to
duration of candidature, a supervisor may wish to recommend that a part-time
candidate be registered as a full-time candidate who is undertaking field work
(see regulation 7 of the MEngSc[Research] regulations).
A
candidate whose preparation for the MEngSc(Research) and potential for
MEngSc(Research) studies may be adequate, but for whom some doubt exists in
respect of either or both, may be considered for probationary candidature.
Such a candidate will be required to pass a probationary prescription
recommended by the head of department. This prescription may take different
forms dependent upon the nature of candidature.
The prescription may consist of the requirement to prepare an adequate
literature survey and research program proposal in the candidate's chosen field
of study. Admission to full candidature will follow on receipt of an
appropriate recommendation from the head of department which includes
examiners' reports on the documentation submitted.
For all MEngSc(Research) candidates probationary candidature will not normally
exceed one calendar year.
In
special circumstances, external candidature for the MEngSc(Research) is
available for interstate and international students. All external candidates
are admitted on a probationary basis.
A minimum of 20 days of attendance per year at the department or school at
Monash University for the duration of candidature is required. Apportionment of
these days would be determined on a case-by-case basis (eg a single or the
equivalent in several smaller blocks of time). A portion of this attendance
could be off campus, provided that the candidate is able to interact with the
principal or associate (university) supervisor during this time (eg attending a
conference). Proposals for programs considered equivalent to 20 days of
residency would be considered by the faculty as they arose.
It must be certified that there are appropriate means by which the candidate
could communicate with the supervisor on a daily basis, eg email, fax,
telephone. Regular interactive communication between candidate and supervisor
should take place at least once a month via telephone, video conference or
other interactive communication.
Candidates may be permitted to transfer between standard and external
candidature in special circumstances, as assessed on a case-by-case basis.
External MEngSc(Research) candidates would be permitted to transfer to external
PhD candidature under the same guidelines which apply to standard candidature.
The
guidelines for part-time PhD candidature are the same as the 18 points listed
above for MEngSc(Research), save that part-time PhD candidates must also attend
the department, faculty, centre, school or unit for not less than six of the
first 24 months of candidature.
In Engineering, the six months attendance requirement for each candidate will
be specified at the time of admission. Each case is considered in terms of the
candidate's demonstrated experience and aptitude for research.
All requests for admission to part-time candidature and for transfer from
full-time to part-time candidature will be decided on their merits.
The duration of candidature is three to four years for full-time candidates and
eight years for part-time candidates.
A candidate for a PhD will normally undertake the first year of studies on
probation. During this probationary year the candidate may be registered either
for a MEngSc(Research) or for a probationary PhD. Candidates who do not possess
an honours degree in either the first or upper second class must register
initially for an MEngSc(Research) degree.
The transfer to full PhD status will be initiated by the PhD and Scholarships
Committee in the case of a candidate who is registered for a probationary PhD
or by the candidate's department in the case of a candidate who is registered
for an MEngSc(Research). In either case, on receipt of an appropriate
recommendation from the head of department and the presentation of an account
of the candidate's progress during the first year of research and performance
in the appropriate departmental transfer procedures together with assessors'
reports of the candidate's performance in such departmental transfer
procedures, the candidate will be permitted to transfer to full PhD
candidature.
In order to preserve the status of an MEngSc(Research) as a major academic
award within the Faculty of Engineering, no transfer will be permitted from PhD
status to MEngSc(Research) status on academic grounds.
In special circumstances, external candidature for the PhD is available for interstate and international students. All external candidates are admitted on a probationary basis.
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