The Faculty of Arts only accepts applications for Graduate Research study to commence in Semester One. No mid-year intake is offered.

Deadlines for applications

To be considered for Graduate Research Scholarships applications must be complete and received by the closing dates. Application outcomes will be available approximately eight weeks after the application closing date.

*International applicants

1. To be considered for Graduate Research Scholarships please make sure that you submit a complete course application before 31 August. The majority of faculty international scholarships will be allocated in September.
2. If you are successful in obtaining a scholarship, you must commence your course by the first day of Semester 1 of the academic year you have been made an offer for
3. Please ensure you have allowed adequate time for your student visa application to be processed between your admittance into the course and the late date you must start your course
4. In order to be eligible for consideration for a Graduate Research Scholarship, applicants must have met the University of Melbourne English Language Entry Requirements by the application closing date

Application process

Step 1: Ensure you meet the minimum entry requirement

Please familiarise yourself with these courses before deciding on the course most suitable to you.

The Faculty of Arts offers three research degrees:

• Doctor of Philosophy – Arts (PhD)
• Master of Arts (Thesis Only) – not available to students in the School of Social and Political Sciences
• Master of Arts (Advanced Seminar and Shorter Thesis) – Philosophy only

Please note: the School of Social and Political Science does not consider applications for the Masters of Arts by Research.

Please check if you are eligible for consideration by viewing our entry requirements before you proceed further. Need help? Use the checklist on the Faculty Graduate Research application web page to help you determine if you are eligible.

If you do not meet the minimum entry requirements for direct entry into our graduate research degrees, you may wish to consider undertaking the Graduate Diploma in Arts (Advanced) as a pathway into Graduate Research. For further information please email Arts Graduate enquires.

Step 2: Finding a Supervisor

Before you can submit an application, you need to first confirm that there is a supervisor who is willing to supervise you in the Faculty of Arts.

To find an academic supervisor that is best suited to supervisor your research, you can:

• *Search for academic supervisors within your intended research area by using the University’s Find an Expert directory. You can search by topic key words, name, faculty or school.
• Browse the Faculty of Arts School websites to understand our research strengths:
  • Asia Institute website / staff list
  • School of Culture and Communication website / staff list
  • School of Historical and Philosophical Studies website / staff list
  • School of Languages and Linguistics website / staff list
  • School of Social and Political Sciences website / staff list

Please note: The School of Social and Political Science is currently not considering applications for the Master of Arts (Thesis Only). The applies to thesis topics within the study areas of Anthropology and Development Studies, Criminology, Sociology and Political Science.

When contacting a potential supervisor, you should include:

Please ensure that all documents are labelled with your name, the student to which you are applying and the date.

Step 3: To submit an application

To submit an application please visit our online application web pages:

• Domestic applications
• International applications

To apply you will need to search using the course code:

• DR-PHILART for Doctor of Philosophy – Arts
• MR-ARTSTHS for Master of Arts (Thesis Only)
• MR-ARTSAST for Master of Arts (Advanced Seminar and Shorter Thesis) – Philosophy only

Please also note the following:

• Liability category:
  • International applicants select ‘PG Overseas Fee Paying’
  • Domestic applicants select  ‘RTP / RTS / CTS’
• Attendance mode: Select 'On Campus'
• Study mode: Select 'Standard'.

Please note: you may proceed with your application only when you have written confirmation from a supervisor.

To avoid delays in the assessment of your application, you must include:

• A copy of an email or letter indicating that your nominated supervisor has agreed to support your application
• A current CV outlining your all complete and incomplete academic qualifications and work experience, and details of any research publications (if relevant)
• A copy (or copies) of all higher education transcript(s), showing the subjects studied and numeric marks obtained. If you have already completed your degree, copies of your official degree certificate will also be required. You should only upload official documents issued by your institution and any transcript not in English should be accompanied by a certified translation. If you are still studying, you can apply now before completing your degree by including current transcripts of at least up to the first semester of your final year studies
• A 2,500-word research proposal
• A 5,000-word writing sample

Assessment of your application will only commence once you have provided all required documents.

Important information

1. Your research proposal will assist the School selection committee to make a qualitative assessment amongst the many applications received for available places. It will also enable the School selection committee to ensure that appropriate expert supervision is available, as well as the resources necessary to facilitate your proposed research. The School selection committee recognises that it is common for research proposals to go through different stages of development, and your proposal is considered indicative, rather than binding, in all details
2. Ensure both research proposal and writing sample documents are labelled with your name, the School to which you are applying and the date

Referee reports

To support your application you will need to nominate two referees who can comment on your academic ability and research potential.

All referee reports must be submitted using the online tool. On submission of your application, your referees will be emailed a link to access the online referee form and they must provide their references using this online form. You will be notified when they submit the reference. Your application may be deemed as incomplete if the referee reports are not submitted before the application closing dates.

It is important that you contact your referees well before submitting an application. This ensures they expect the request and understand that the University of Melbourne referee request email contains both instructions on how to access the tool and submit their references through the attached link.

Ungraded Masters thesis

If you have completed, or are competing a masters thesis, which will not receive a numeric mark on your transcript or your thesis component will not appear on your transcript, you must include this detail in your online application or attach a separate statement to your application which explains this. You must attach a copy of your thesis and examiners reports (if relevant).

We recommend that you nominate an academic referee who can comment directly on your thesis. They should provide as much information as possible about your thesis by completing all relevant sections of the academic referee report and may also choose to attach a separate letter.

More information

Scholarship applications

To apply for the Graduate Research Scholarships no separate application is required. You will be automatically considered for these scholarships.

Please note: In order to be eligible for consideration for a Graduate Research Scholarship, applicants must have met the requirements by the application closing date.

For all other scholarships please follow the relevant application instructions and complete the scholarship application section in the online form.

Enrolment

If you are successful in obtaining an offer for a place, you must complete your enrolment and commence your course by the first day of Semester 1.

All commencing graduate researchers are invited to an Orientation Welcome Session before the start of the semester. At this session you’ll be introduced to your Graduate School, learn about our facilities and services, and get a chance to meet coordinators and peers from your program. For more information please visit the Faculty of Arts Orientation and Induction web page.

Graduate Researchers completing a Doctor of Philosophy (Arts) Phd degree are required to complete 4 coursework subjects in the first year. For more information about coursework requirements and candidature management please visit the Faculty of Arts Graduate Research web page.

Residency requirements

Graduate researchers must be resident in Victoria for at least one third of their candidature. For more information on residency requirements please see the Melbourne Policy Library Selection and Admission Policy (MPF1295).

Transferring applicants

Transferring students apply through the same application process as new applicants. Please note, however, that the ability of students to transfer into the Doctor of Philosophy (Arts) has been severely limited because of the requirement to complete the PhD coursework in the first year prior to confirmation. Generally only unconfirmed students who have been enrolled for 6 months or less (full-time equivalent candidature) can successfully transfer.

Frequently asked questions

For questions, please check our frequently asked questions. If you still can’t find what you’re looking for, contact one of our friendly advisors for help.