MSc
coordinator: Dr Mark Jessell * Prerequisites: Credit average in one of the
third-year major sequences in geology, geophysics, mathematics or physics
and/or permission of the head of department, and approval of the faculty
The Department of Earth Sciences offers an MSc preliminary/MSc program designed
to provide an alternative to the honours program. In two years full-time, or
four years part-time, a student may complete the MSc degree by coursework and
minor thesis. The first two (or four part-time) semesters are required to
complete requirements for the MSc preliminary. The MSc thesis may be submitted
12 months subsequently.
In both the MSc preliminary and the MSc, the course is divided into a number of
components. In the MSc preliminary year, students are required to complete five
graduate subjects, an essay, a seminar and a research report. In the MSc, each
student may take a further three subjects.
In practice, all full-time students are required to be working on their
research topic when they are not involved in formal course or project units.
Suitable subjects may include:
(a) formal subjects consisting of two lectures and practical classes over
13 weeks with essays/assignments approved by supervisor
(b) postgraduate subjects - full-time over two weeks with
essays/assignments approved by supervisor (note that VIEPS courses conducted
over one week are assigned a weight of four points)
(c) minor independent project units - assignments/review topics
(d) principal research units - independent thesis topic
(e) other equivalent work (eg mapping/symposia/laboratory classes)
assigned by supervisor.
Students wishing to proceed to the MSc from the MSc preliminary must present a
summary of their MSc preliminary activities at a research seminar conducted by
the Department of Earth Sciences. To be eligible for admission to the MSc, MSc
preliminary students must achieve results equivalent to a BSc(Honours 2A) (an
overall grade of 70 per cent or better). Lower grades are subject to
review and may require approval from the dean.
Students should consult with appropriate staff members in order to determine an
appropriate program of study. MSc preliminary students might take some
third-year geology or geophysics units if the course of study undertaken to BSc
level did not encompass the full range of topics available.
Course units available vary each year depending on availability of academic
staff. Listed below are course units which have been offered to MSc preliminary
students. Note that not all these subjects will be available in a given year.
In addition, MSc preliminary students may take courses offered by Monash
departments other than Earth Sciences, and departments at La Trobe University
and the University of Melbourne, which are members of the Victorian Institute
of Earth and Planetary Sciences (VIEPS). All intending students should consult
with the department's MSc coordinator concerning their choice of course units.
A full listing of course units available in 2001 and the times at which they
will be offered will be available from the coordinator at the beginning of the
academic year.
More detailed information concerning the MSc program will be made available
through the Faculty of Science office and the Department of Earth Sciences,
including detailed scheduling of courses when this information becomes
available. Course units offered can be identified in streams as follows.
Units in this stream include advanced electrical methods; structural analysis of regional geophysics; applied petroleum geology; computers I; hydrogeology; applied petroleum geology.
Units in this stream include introduction to remote sensing; structural analysis of regional geophysics; computers I and II; metamorphism field trip; hydrogeology; deformation microstructures; mesostructural analysis field trip; stable isotopes; strain analysis; tectonics; trace element geochemistry.
Units include ore genesis; hydrothermal geochemistry; stable isotopes; trace element and isotopes.
Units include advanced ore deposits; computers I; stable isotopes; trace element and isotopes; hydrothermal geochemistry; thermodynamics and phase petrology.
Units include ore genesis, applied petroleum geology; computers I; hydrogeology; orogenic belts I; palaeobiology of Australasian vertebrates; sedimentary sequence stratigraphy; tectonics; volcanology.
Units include hydrogeology, aqueous geochemistry, environmental studies.
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