2710 - Doctor of Philosophy - 2017

Enrolment in a Doctor of Philosophy involves the independent investigation of a research problem that has been formulated by the student. It is expected that the research undertaken will make a significant contribution to the discipline in which the student is enrolled. Doctoral students are supported by a minimum of two supervisors throughout their enrolment.

Students are also required to complete training activities as part of the Monash doctoral programMonash doctoral program (http://www.monash.edu/migr/future-students/phd). These discipline-specific and professional development activities are designed to impart skills and knowledge that will assist students to conduct their research.

These course outcomes are aligned with the Australian Qualifications Framework level 10 and Monash Graduate AttributesAustralian Qualifications Framework level 10 and Monash Graduate Attributes (http://monash.edu.au/pubs/handbooks/alignmentofoutcomes.html).

Successful completion of the program will signify that the holder has completed a course of postgraduate training in research under proper academic supervision and has submitted a thesis that the examiners have declared to be a significant contribution to knowledge and which demonstrates the student's capacity to carry out independent original research.

This course consists of:

• a research and thesis component
• a professional development training component.

Areas of research

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) program may be undertaken in any area of research offered by the institute which covers sustainability and climate change and all related topics. It is expected that the research will be multi-disciplinary, therefore a student will be expected to bridge issues in at least two disciplines. The research approach will reflect the complexity of issues associated with sustainability and climate change, in terms of social, environmental, economic and governance aspects. While the institute can provide two supervisors, it is common for a second supervisor to be based in another Monash faculty. The Monash Sustainability Institute does not offer research in a single discipline of science, medicine or engineering, where laboratory experimental is the sole component of research.

More information is available on the institute's Postgraduate program in sustainabilityPostgraduate program in sustainability (http://monash.edu/sustainability-institute/programs-initiatives/postgraduate-research.html) webpage.

Students must, in consultation with and under the direct supervision of a member/s of the academic staff:

1. carry out a program of research on an agreed topic approved by the institute in the student's chosen discipline for a specified period, including attending and/or presenting at seminars and other related activities as indicated by the institute

2. submit for assessment a thesis of not more than 80,000 words on the program of research which meets the requirements of the examiners. Submission of the thesis based on or partially based on conjointly published or unpublished workconjointly published or unpublished work (http://www.monash.edu.au/migr/examiners/publication/) may be permitted.

3. satisfactorily complete the following program of professional development training:

• Monash sustainability interdisciplinary PhD program

Students are required to undertake regular progress milestones to support them in conducting research of an appropriate quality, originality and depth as required by their course of study, in accordance with the Graduate Research Progress Management policyGraduate Research Progress Management policy (http://policy.monash.edu/policy-bank/academic/research/mrgs/grad-research-progress-mgmt-policy.html) and supporting procedures.