Russian Studies

The Masters degree is designed for students to develop advanced skills in carrying out independent and sustained research in Russian language, literature and culture. The thesis should demonstrate a critical application of specialist knowledge and make an independent contribution to existing scholarship in the area of research. Candidates may advance to the Doctor of Philosophy degree after successful completion of the Masters or may apply to convert to the PhD at an earlier stage. An Honours grade of at least 65% (H3) must be attained to qualify for the award of the Masters degree.

Students who complete the Master of Arts (Thesis only) in this area of specialisation should:

• produce a thesis of 30,000 words on a research project dealing with an area of Russian studies;
• demonstrate an ability to present, argue and hypothesise on an issue in Russian studies, supported by research and analysis;
• demonstrate aptitude for original research at a higher degree level.

Duration: 1.5 years full-time / 3 years part-time

The Master of Arts (Thesis only) in this area of specialisation requires:

• thesis 30,000 words

Please note: it is expected that a graduate of the University of Melbourne will be able to engage in academic discourse in English. Therefore a research Masters thesis will normally be written in English. At the same time the Faculty seeks to encourage the acquisition of appropriate levels of linguistic and cultural competency necessary for research of international distinction. Consequently, if a candidate wishes to write a thesis in another language, an application can be made to the Faculty's Research and Research Training Committee at an early stage in the candidature. The Committee will consider such an application if the source material and readership are primarily in that language or the thesis is concerned with the study of language. Where permission is granted, a summary of the thesis (approximately 2,500 words) in English should be bound in the thesis.