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Information For Prospective Postgraduate Students

Postgraduate study

The School of Historical Studies brings together Archaeology & Ancient History, History, Jewish Civilisation and Religion & Theology. The aim of the School's postgraduate program is to provide research training in these disciplines. Disciplines within the School organise their own seminars for postgraduate students and staff, alongside occasional symposia and conferences.

Postgraduate students are located within a specific discipline, but also gain access to the wider resources and opportunities offered by the School as a whole. New research students undertake a special introductory and induction seminar to help them adjust to postgraduate study and commence their research. It covers such topics as literature reviews, research proposals, planning and managing a research program, and research practice. Students are required to present papers to research seminars during the course of their study. The School and individual disciplines also provide a range of professional seminars for postgraduate research students, covering such issues as writing for publication, conference presentation and post-doctoral opportunities. Research students are encouraged to attend all of these functions. Funding from central university, faculty and school sources is used to help students present their work at national and international conferences and undertake research interstate and overseas. Postgraduate research students may also be offered sessional tutoring opportunities in the School; where possible, the School attempts to provide each student who expresses an interest in tutoring with at least one semester of teaching experience. In all these ways we try to ensure that a postgraduate degree provides training in a topic and in project management, while also developing skills in communication, writing, and ethical and effective research practices that are relevant in a range of careers.

The postgraduate programs in the School of Historical Studies are also characterised by a focus on postgraduate student community, advising and support. Students may also attend regular reading and support groups in various thematic areas, and are encouraged to form new groups around particular issues or related topics. Students undertaking the first year of a research-only degree, and students coming to Monash from interstate or overseas, are sepecially endouraged to join these groups. Mini-conferences, regular newsletters and Eras, a refereed journal edited by students, provide other ways of promoting interaction among graduate students and between graduate students and staff and for providing postgraduate students with a sense of 'place' within the School.

Scholarships

Applications for scholarships are accepted from suitably qualified candidates for research higher degrees (PhD and Masters by research). Applications close at the end of October. In some years, a small number of scholarships are available in the middle of the year, and potential applicants should contact Rosemary Johnston in May or June to ascertain if a mid-year round is scheduled.

Scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit and successful applicants would normally hold a first class honours degree or its equivalent (for example, a coursework Masters with a significant thesis component graded at high distinction, or an H2A honours degree with refereed scholarly publications). In all cases where an applicant does not have a first-class honours degree, they should contact Rosemary Johnston to discuss the prospects of applying for 'H1 equivalence' at the same time as they apply for a scholarship. Only candidates with a first-class honours or Masters degree or H1 equivalence based on publications, relevant research experience or other evidence of research aptitude can be ranked for a scholarship. At Monash, both Australian Postgraduate Awards (APA) and Monash Graduate Scholarships (MGS) are awarded. In addition, from time to time the School of Historical Studies offers its own scholarships. Candidates, however, need only submit a single application to cover all these schemes. It should be noted that they are highly competitive.

Those intending to apply for a scholarship to pursue a research higher degree are strongly advised to contact Rosemary Johnston and the relevant Postgraduate Adviser for their disciplinary area prior to completing their application form. Applications that are incomplete cannot be processed. You can also obtain useful advice on how to best present your skills and qualifications. Scholarship candidates will be contacted regularly between the due date for applications and the final allocation of scholarships by the university in December, so please make sure that we have accurate contact details for you over that period.

Further information on scholarships can be obtained from the Monash Research Graduate School .

Application kits are available from Rosemary Johnston

Overseas applicants

Applicants from New Zealand are eligible for Monash Graduate Scholarships. All other overseas applicants who wish to apply for a scholarship should first consult the information for International Students and are strongly advised to contact the relevant Postrgraduate Adviser prior to completing their application forms. Forms and further information on scholarships can be obtained fromt the Monash Research Graduate School.

A number of other organisations offer scholarships for overseas students to study in Australia. Rotary International sponsors students from around the world to come to Australia to complete further study. Contact the Rotary organisation in your home country. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Australian also sponsors overseas students from selected countries to study in Australia through their AUSAID program. More information can be obtained from their homepage .

Courses and programs offered

These courses and programs are all HECS-based (except where otherwise stated) and can be completed by part-time study. HECS exemption scholarships are also available to students enrolled in research courses and programs. While HECS exemption scholarships cannot be guaranteed, in recent years, all students enrolled full-time or part-time in PhD and research Masters programs have received HECS exemption scholarships.

Research Courses and Programs

Coursework Programs

Detailed descriptions of subjects offered in History are in the School Postgraduate Handbook, available outside the general office.

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