Monash University: University Handbooks: Postgraduate Handbook 2002: Units indexed by faculty
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Masters Qualifying in Visual Culture with a research component


General information

Program code: 1988 + Program fees: Local students -- HECS; international students -- $A13,500 pa + Coordinator: Conrad Hamann
This program is intended to offer advanced studies in visual culture. The program provides students with the opportunity for work in gallery and museum studies, Australian art and film studies. It is addressed to students returning to study after either professional work or a period away from the university who are intending to pursue research in visual culture or who wish to bring themselves up to date with recent developments in the discipline, and who wish to develop a major research initiative in specialised areas. Students undertaking the program will pursue study in visual culture and criticism. They will undertake detailed elective study by coursework in an area of visual culture (including film and gallery studies) and pursue skills in research technique, writing and argument. The research component will introduce these skills to students at a larger scale and is intended to provide a bridge between their previous scale of essay work and the requirements of a large research project at graduate level. The masters qualifying program is one year's study full-time and two years' study part-time.

Entry requirements

There are three paths of entry into the masters qualifying with research component. Candidates must have obtained one of the following:
(a) A Bachelor of Arts pass degree incorporating a major sequence in visual arts, film studies, or visual culture, or its equivalent to the approval of the head of the section, with credit gradings in units completed for this major sequence at third-year level, if completed before or during 1996. If completed during 1997, the section will normally expect results of credit level or above at third year. In addition, the section will consider special admission for those who possess a bachelors degree in another discipline or who have completed a single major outside of the visual arts or visual culture.
(b) A degree in practical areas of art, architecture, photography or film and video training that includes a significant sequence, normally three years with at least credits in one or more of art, architectural, film or television theory, art or architectural history and criticism, or in media studies with an emphasis on theory training. Students holding these qualifications should have significant experience in the scholarship and curating of art galleries or of museums with a significant art or media involvement.
(c) A degree in another discipline with credit grades in the third year of a major sequence, coupled with significant experience in research, criticism, history, curating or administration of the visual arts.
Note that students who have completed relevant units at level four which have not been used to take out a degree or an award of any kind with grades of credit or above in visual arts or visual culture or a cognate discipline may apply for a maximum of 50 per cent credit at the time of their application for entry into the program. Applications will be considered by both the section and the faculty.

Course structure

The program requires completion of components totalling 48 points. Units taken at level four as part of a postgraduate sequence in visual culture are normally weighted at 12 points each.

three coursework units totalling 36 points to be:
(a) at least one methodology unit chosen from the following:

(b) at least one unit chosen from the following:

One 12-point unit may be taken in a related discipline other than visual arts or visual culture, with the approval of the heads of sections of the related discipline and visual culture.
Students successfully completing the masters qualifying (at an average of at least credit or second class honours division B) may apply to proceed directly into the MA in Visual Culture by coursework. Successful completion of the masters qualifying program with a research component is also a means of entry to the MA by research, or to the PhD, if a student's consistent grading for the masters qualifying is the equivalent of a distinction or a second class honours degree, division A, including a grade of distinction or above for the research component.

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