Doctor of Medicine

This course is unavailable for new students and is being phased out. Prospective students should refer to the Doctor of Medical Science.

For course information, please refer to the Doctor of Medical Science degree (course code: J15AA)

The MD degree is the School of Medicine's senior higher degree and may be taken by approved candidates as a supervised research program. The thesis submitted at the end of the supervised period of research must satisfy the examiners that it makes an original and substantial contribution to the candidates field of study. The research program must be considered to represent a substantial contribution to knowledge, and be relevant to the theory and practice of medicine. MBBS (University of Melbourne) graduates of not less than two years standing may seek prior approval to undertake part or all of the research for the MD degree at another institution. A senior academic staff member from the relevant department of this University will be appointed as the principal supervisor and an approved supervisor from the other approved institution as the co-supervisor.
Candidates are enrolled in a year-long research subject for the duration of the degree.

Candidates must hold an approved medical degree or recognised equivalent of at least two years standing and have been approved for admission by the faculty.

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this course are articulated in the Course Overview, Objectives and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this course are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and the Disability Liaison Unit: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

Research Masters degrees at the University of Melbourne seek to develop graduates who have a capacity for defining and managing a research project characterised by originality and independence. Their training equips them for more sustained and original work at the doctoral level or for applied research positions in a wide variety of contexts.

The University expects its research masters graduates to have the following qualities and skills:

• an ability to initiate research projects and to formulate viable research questions;
• a demonstrated capacity to design, conduct and report independent and original research on a closely-defined project;
• an ability to manage time to maximise the quality of research;
• an understanding of the major contours of international research in the research area;
• a capacity for critical evaluation of relevant scholarly literature;
• well-developed and flexible problem-solving abilities appropriate to the discipline;
• the ability to analyse research data within a changing disciplinary environment;
• the capacity to communicate effectively the results of research and scholarship by oral and written communication;
• an understanding of and facility with scholarly conventions in the discipline area;
• a profound respect for truth and intellectual integrity, and for the ethics of research and scholarship;
• a capacity to cooperate with other researchers;
• an ability to manage information effectively, including the application of computer systems and software where appropriate to the student's field of study.