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Monash University: University handbooks: Postgraduate handbook: Units indexed by faculty
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Doctor of Philosophy

Course code: 1322 + Course abbreviation: PhDArt&Design + 4 years full-time, 8 years part-time

Study mode and course location

On-campus (Caulfield; Gippsland)
Off-campus (Caulfield; Gipplsand)

Course description

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy can be undertaken in two modes:

By studio research (85% research)

Candidates develop a studio research project, resulting in a body of work examined by exhibition. The examinable material includes a written exegesis of about 30, 000 words. This documentation provides a photographic record of the visual or creative work. Candidates are required to successfully complete a sequence of three units which guide them through the discursive and documentary dimensions of their project:

The final examination is usually an exhibition of visual work. The works in the exhibition are not only new but result in a doctoral level contribution which has substantial cultural significance. The documentation is the retained archival record of the research. It outlines the development of the research and its conclusion, and provides a critical context within which the work may be viewed and examined. Unless site specific, the faculty requires doctoral examination exhibitions to be conducted on-campus at either the Caulfield or Gippsland campuses.

Disciplines offered include ceramics, design, digital arts, drawing, glass, graphic design/visual communication, industrial design, interior architecture, metals and jewellery, multimedia/multimedia design, painting, photomedia, printmedia, sculpture, tapestry, and visual arts.

By thesis (100% research)

The principal research discipline is theory of art and design. Candidates develop a substantial written proposal that outlines the proposed project, places the research within the context of the scholarly literature, and provisionally outlines the methodology by which it might be brought to conclusion. Examination is by thesis only and requires the candidate to submit a thesis, the length of which would not normally exceed 100,000 words. The thesis is expected to make a substantial contribution to knowledge.

Entry requirements

The PhD is a university award, administered by the Research Graduate School Committee. The minimum qualifications for admission to PhD candidature are: a bachelors degree requiring at least four years of full-time study, which normally includes a research component in the fourth year, leading to an honours degree class 1 or class 2A level; or a course leading to a masters preliminary qualification at a level rated by the faculty as equivalent to an honours class I or IIA; or a masters degree that entailed work, normally including a significant research component, at least equivalent to an honours degree. The qualifications should be in the field of study appropriate to the proposed research interest.

Under exceptional circumstances, the Research Graduate School Committee may accept candidates with a degree of a lower grade than honours 2A if they have demonstrated an ability to undertake research at the PhD level, for example by producing evidence of quality work that can be reported on by a referee, or by producing proof of relevant professional experience at a high level. Applications for the PhD by studio research should be accompanied by 12 to 20 slides or photographic prints of recent original work, clearly numbered with a corresponding list of details attached.

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