Master of Arts (Research)

The Master of Arts (Research) is designed to meet the needs of students who wish to extend their studies beyond their undergraduate degree primarily by thesis but do not have an undergraduate Honours degree or other qualification that would allow entry into a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). The satisfactory completion of the MA (Research) degree is a qualification for admission to higher degree research candidature.

The MA (Research) can be undertaken in a range of subject areas by research and thesis only, or a combination of thesis and coursework, as outlined below. It is not possible to upgrade from an incomplete Master of Arts (Research) degree to higher degree research candidature. The MA (Research) has different admission requirements from both the Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy degrees.

The MA (Research) may be undertaken in the following ways;

• Two postgraduate units of study ( 12 credit points) and a thesis of 26,000 – 28,000 words; or
• One postgraduate unit of study (6 credit points) and a thesis of 28,000 – 30,000 words; or
• A thesis of 30,000 – 35,000 words.

A thesis on an approved topic is researched and written under the supervision of a member of the academic staff.

Full course information

For full course information, click here

Entry requirements

(1) To be eligible to be admitted to candidature by the Dean or Associate Dean, an applicant must hold or have completed the requirements for a bachelor's degree from the University of Sydney or equivalent institution, with a major in a relevant subject area, completed with a distinction average.

(2) The Dean or Associate Dean may admit to candidature an applicant who does not meet the requirements of sub-clause (1), provided that the applicant holds a qualification or qualifications that, in the opinion of the Dean or Associate Dean, are equivalent to those prescribed in sub-clause (1).