Doctor of Philosophy - Faculty of Science

Admission requirements

An applicant for the Doctor of Philosophy degree shall have:

1. qualified for the award of a Master degree with Honours, or equivalent, in the sciences or a related field; or
2. an appropriate Bachelor degree with Class 1 or Class 2 Division 1 Honours from an Australian university or an equivalent overseas tertiary institution, taken over a minimum of four years (full-time equivalent) in the sciences or a related field

Applicants must have already completed appropriate research methods subjects and show evidence of research experience in the health sciences. Applicants who do not meet these criteria should contact the Sub-Dean, Graduate Studies for advice.

Doctor of Philosophy by Publication

An applicant for admission to the Doctor of Philosophy by Publication shall meet the requirements below. Admission is subject to external assessment, and a candidate is expected to be an experienced researcher with a significant refereed publication record of doctoral standard.

An applicant for admission to the Doctor of Philosophy by Publication shall have:

1. qualified for the award of a Master degree by research at an acceptable level; or
2. an appropriate Bachelor degree with Class 1 or Class 2 Division 1 Honours from an Australian university or an equivalent overseas tertiary institution, taken over a minimum of four years (full-time equivalent);
3. some other combination of undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications (such as relevant graduate diplomas) and research experience that demonstrates to the Research Advisory Committee that the candidate is capable of undertaking research at Doctoral level.

A Doctor of Philosophy by Publication candidate is required to demonstrate the originality and significance of the publications (which may include books and non-print materials) that clearly make an original scholarly contribution to knowledge, for admission to the program.

Applications are considered by the University in light of availability of places and resources, including facilities and supervision.

Intending applicants should contact the Sub-Dean, Graduate Studies to discuss the proposal before completing the prescribed application form. In addition, applicants must complete an additional admissions form describing their area of interest, which should accompany their application. Please phone info.csu on 1800 334 733 or make an online enquiry for appropriate contact details.

Admission to candidature is subject to approval by the Research Advisory Committee.

Note that scholarship applications are considered separately. There is a range of scholarship packages available to support HDR students. These are administered either by the Research Office, which should be contacted for details of external and University administered scholarships, or by the Faculty. Details of Faculty scholarships and related funding are available from the Sub Dean, Graduate Studies.

Internet access

CSU places great emphasis on services to its students. It is a leader in the provision of online services and, in particular, the use of the internet in the support of teaching, administration and communications with students.

The online environment is so integrated into all aspects of student life and the learning experience at CSU that the University now assumes that all on campus and distance education students at CSU will have ongoing access to an internet connected computer capable of communicating with CSU online systems.

Students enrolled in Information Technology subjects (i.e. with an ITC subject code) may be required to have additional hardware and/or software that is deemed essential for the completion of the learning activities in that subject.

English proficiency

Applicants will be deemed to have sufficient English proficiency if they

1. have undertaken an academic International English Language Testing System (IELTS) with an average score of 7.0, and with no score lower than 6.5, within the last 12 months;  or
2. undertaken a Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a score of 577 (or computerised TOEFL score of 233), with a Test for Written English Score (where reported) of at least 5.0 or an Internet-based score of 90 with a written score of 24 within the last 12 months; or
3. undertaken other equivalent examinations, as determined by the Board of Graduate Studies;  or
4. completed a university degree where the language of assessment is in English;

The Presiding Officer of the Board of Graduate Studies may, in special circumstances, on behalf of the Board waive the above proficiency requirements after consulting the relevant Dean, Sub-Dean and nominated Supervisor.

NOTE: A Faculty may require a higher standard of proficiency than that specified above for programs deemed to be linguistically demanding.