Health Sciences

School of Human Communication Sciences

Master of Applied Science by Research

General Information

• 2 years - Full-time
• 4 years - Part-time

In special circumstances, the Higher Degrees (Research) Committee may suspend or extend the period of candidature.

Time Commitment

Candidates will not be accepted unless they can commit at least one day of the working week to study. It is strongly recommended that part-time students commit two days of the working week to their research. Students should also note that there is a requirement that a candidate maintains adequate and regular contact with the supervisor and School throughout the candidature. Contact means 'in person' and regular does not mean 'on average'. If there is to be meaningful academic discussion of research progress and interchange of ideas, it is desirable that a candidate/supervisor meeting should be held once per fortnight, and certainly not less than once a month.

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Entrance Requirements

Applicants with a high honours degree may be admitted directly to candidature for the Master of Applied Science by Research. Applicants without an honours degree (or equivalent) will normally be required to undertake the Postgraduate Diploma in Health Research Methodology.

Applications for external candidature, with minimal and incidental contact with the University, will not be approved. Where a period of interstate or overseas fieldwork is a necessary and integral part of the proposed research program, the candidate may apply for such a variation to conditions of candidature following admission to the course.

Applicants must have informal discussions with possible supervisors and other relevant persons from the University in order to develop a clear notion of their topic of study and supervision arrangements before formally applying for candidature. Applicants may be interviewed by the School's Graduate Studies Committee.

Applicants must be committed to the effort required to successfully complete a higher degree. Part-time applicants in particular should have a clear idea of how they will manage their time and other responsibilities to ensure adequate progress and satisfactory completion.

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Application Information

The application for Master of Applied Science by Research candidature is available through the La Trobe Research and Graduate Studies Office (RGSO). It may be submitted at any time.

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Program Outline

All students enrolled in the Master of Applied Science program in the School of Human Communication Sciences must complete the following components:

• Research Methods Coursework
• A Major Research Thesis
• Graduate Seminars and Research Colloquia

Research Method Coursework

This subject involves 39 hours of class contact. The emphasis is on controlled inference in field settings. Topics include practical problems in sampling, issues in intervention evaluation, selected topics in multivariate statistics, and time-series designs for group and single case studies. Assessment is by examination and assignments.

Thesis

The Master of Applied Science by Research thesis must not exceed 60,000 words and it is preferable that the thesis not exceed 50,000 words in science subjects and 50,000 words in other subjects.

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Contact Information

Information about the areas of research in which supervision is currently available can be obtained from the Postgraduate Coordinator in the School on 03 9479 1940.

Further information regarding candidature regulations may be obtained from the Research and Graduate Studies Office.

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