Doctor of Philosophy Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Australia === {{See also|Education in Australia|Australian Qualifications Framework}} ==== Admission ==== Admission to a PhD program in [[Australia]] requires applicants to demonstrate capacity to undertake research in the proposed field of study. The standard requirement is a bachelor honours degree with either first-class or upper second-class honours. Research master's degrees and coursework master's degrees with a 25% research component are usually considered equivalent. It is also possible for research master's degree students to "upgrade" to PhD candidature after demonstrating sufficient progress. ==== Scholarships ==== PhD students are sometimes offered a scholarship to study for their PhD degree. The most common of these was the government-funded [[Australian Postgraduate Award]] (APA) until its dissolution in 2017. It was replaced by Research Training Program (RTP), awarded to students of "exceptional research potential", which provides a living stipend to students of approximately A$34,000 a year (tax-free). RTPs are paid for a duration of 3 years, while a 6-month extension is usually possible upon citing delays out of the control of the student.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Home, Graduate Research, University of Tasmania, Australia |url=http://www.utas.edu.au/graduate-research/scholarships/domestic-scholarships/australian-postgraduate-awards |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110311085133/http://www.utas.edu.au/graduate-research/scholarships/domestic-scholarships/australian-postgraduate-awards |archive-date=11 March 2011 |access-date=2013-07-02 |publisher=Utas.edu.au}}</ref> Some universities also fund a similar scholarship that matches the APA amount. Due to a continual increase in living costs, many PhD students are forced to live under the poverty line.<ref>{{Cite book |last=ABC |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/30/2231306.htm |title=PhD students living below poverty line |year=2008 |volume=2008 |pages=1β2 |access-date=11 May 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080501102852/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/30/2231306.htm |archive-date=1 May 2008 |url-status=live |issue=April |work=ABC News}}</ref> In addition to the more common RTP and university scholarships, Australian students have other sources of scholarship funding, coming from industry, private enterprise, and organisations. ==== Fees ==== Australian citizens, permanent residents, and New Zealand citizens are not charged course fees for their PhD or research master's degree, with the exception in some universities of the student services and amenities fee (SSAF) which is set by each university and typically involves the largest amount allowed by the Australian government. All fees are paid for by the Australian government, except for the SSAF, under the Research Training Program.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2011 |title=HEIMSHELP: Information about requirements and procedures for higher education and VET providers |url=http://www.heimshelp.deewr.gov.au/2_Glossary/R/RESEARCH_TRAINING_SCHEME_RTS.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080730123806/http://www.heimshelp.deewr.gov.au/2_Glossary/R/RESEARCH_TRAINING_SCHEME_RTS.htm |archive-date=2008-07-30 |publisher=DEEWR}}</ref> International students and coursework master's degree students must pay course fees unless they receive a scholarship to cover them. ==== Requirements for completion ==== Completion requirements vary. Most Australian PhD programs do not have a required coursework component. The credit points attached to the degree are all in the product of the research, which is usually an 80,000-word thesis<ref>[https://www.anu.edu.au/students/academic-skills/research-writing/introductions/length Current students Β» Academic skills Β» Research writing Β» Introductions Β» Length] [[Australian National University]].</ref> that makes a significant new contribution to the field. Recent pressure on [[Postgraduate education#Types of postgraduate degrees|higher degree by research (HDR)]] students to publish has resulted in increasing interest in [[Thesis by publication|Ph.D by publication]] as opposed to the more traditional Ph.D by dissertation, which typically requires a minimum of two publications, but which also requires traditional thesis elements such as an introductory [[exegesis]], and linking chapters between papers.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jackson |first=Denise |url=https://ro.ecu.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=ecuworks2013 |title=Completing a PhD by publication: a review of Australian policy and implications for practice |date=22 April 2013 |volume=32 |pages=355β368 |doi=10.1080/07294360.2012.692666 |ref=jackson2013completing |access-date=5 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190429154004/https://ro.ecu.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=ecuworks2013 |archive-date=29 April 2019 |url-status=live |issue=3 |journal=Higher Education Research & Development |s2cid=145372065}}</ref> The PhD thesis is sent to external examiners who are experts in the field of research and who have not been involved in the work. Examiners are nominated by the candidate's university, and their identities are often not revealed to the candidate until the examination is complete. A formal oral defence is generally not part of the examination of the thesis, largely because of the distances that would need to be travelled by the overseas examiners; however, since 2016, there is a trend toward implementing this in many Australian universities. At the University of South Australia, PhD candidates who started after January 2016 now undertake an oral defence via an online conference with two examiners.<ref>[https://i.unisa.edu.au/siteassets/policies-and-procedures/docs/academic/guideline-ab-58-ad8_2023.pdf ''Oral Defence of the Thesis in Research Degrees'']. [[University of South Australia]].</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. 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