Doctorate (PhD)
Please note: This course will no longer be available from 2022 onwards. Please apply for Doctor of Philosophy (Arts and Social Sciences) instead.
The Doctor of Arts (DArts) is a professional doctorate which is designed to respond to the rapid changes taking place in professional workplaces that create demands on industry professionals to upgrade their qualifications.
The degree involves units of coursework training and a thesis of 50,000-80,000 words, for candidates not also submitting a significant creative project, or a thesis of 20,000-30,000 words for candidates also submitting a significant creative project.
The DArts differs from a PhD. The thesis component may have a tighter word limit than a PhD thesis, and it should be focused on questions of professional practice, such as policy analysis and advice in the case of the social sciences, or critical exegesis in the case of theses accompanying creative works.
The exact nature of the significant creative project will be determined by the disciplinary norms of the department through which a student is enrolled. Applicants must discuss their proposed significant creative projects with the department to ensure that the department has the relevant expertise to supervise the projects.
Examples of significant creative projects include novels, biographies and memoirs, sets of short stories, poetic works, plays and other performance scripts, performed pieces, audio and/or video works, documentaries, collections of feature articles, and documented interventions in public debates, such as submissions, reports and major essays.
From 2021, Higher Degree by Research students will be required to complete some coursework as part of their candidature. Students will have access to a range of specialist units of study relevant for research students.
To be eligible for admission to the Doctor of Arts you must have a minimum of five years' recent, full-time employment or professional experience in a relevant field and completed the equivalent of one of the following in a subject area related to your proposed research area:
These constitute the minimum requirements for eligibility and do not guarantee admission. This remains at the discretion of the relevant supervisors and departments. The University must certify that there are sufficient supervisory and other resources and facilities available to enable your candidature to be completed successfully.