How to and forms

Ready to apply? Need to go part-time? Decided it’s time to upgrade to the Masters degree? The Faculty office provides all its forms for postgraduate candidature right here, online. Check the list and download your form. If you’re having trouble finding or printing the form, contact us directly:

Faculty of Arts office
Level 2
Quadrangle A14 (Next to MacLaurin Hall stairwell)
The University of Sydney
NSW 2006
Telephone: (02) 9351 3240
Fax: (02) 9351 2045


Please note the following requirements in relation to specific requests.

Application to Transfer Candidature (Coursework students only)

Subject to the approval of the Department and the Dean of the Faculty, coursework candidates who have satisfied progression requirements in one course may apply to transfer candidature between "articulated" or associated courses. Courses are articulated within programs to allow students of sufficient merit to "upgrade" from the Graduate Certificate to the Graduate Diploma, and from the Graduate Diploma to the Master degree. It is not possible to transfer between programs eg Media Practice to Professional Communication, or Curatorship and Modern Art to Museum Studies.

Students planning to upgrade should take special note of the core unit of study requirements in their program, and of the semester or semesters in which core units of study are offered. All students must complete core units of study as specified in their individual programs to be eligible for the award of their certificate, diploma or degree.

Minimum completion requirements to upgrade
Graduate Certificate to Graduate Diploma: 18 credit points
Graduate Diploma to Master: 24 credit points
Master to Master of Letters: 36 credit points

Upgrade approval is neither automatic nor guaranteed and, in some instances, students may be asked to submit an application to upgrade only after they have completed all the requirements for the award of the certificate, diploma or degree in which they are currently enrolled.

Application for Credit (Coursework students only)

"Credit" and "advanced standing" in postgraduate coursework refer to the recognition of work completed during previous study at postgraduate level.

Credit

Recognition of previous studies, or of studies undertaken at another institution. If credit is granted, then the number of credit points required for the completion of the course is reduced.

Credit for previous postgraduate study undertaken at another institution
Candidates may apply for credit for a limited number of units of study undertaken toward a previous postgraduate diploma or degree which has not been awarded, if those units of study were completed at an accredited tertiary institution other than The University of Sydney. Candidates undertaking a Graduate Diploma in the Faculty of Arts may apply for credit up to 3 postgraduate units of study (18 credit points); candidates completing a Master degree may apply for credit for up to 4 postgraduate units of study (24 credit points). No credit may be granted toward a Graduate Certificate.

Candidates seeking credit for previous postgraduate study must satisfy the Faculty that the academic content, assessment methods, duration of study, objectives and outcomes, and study workload of individual units are equivalent to those offered by the Faculty in the relevant course of study at The University of Sydney. Undergraduate units of study may not be credited toward a postgraduate course.

Results awarded by another institution are not recorded. Consequently, approved credit will appear on University of Sydney academic transcripts as "unspecified credit" with a corresponding block credit point value, approved by the Faculty.

Applications for credit from another tertiary institution must be made on the form available from the Faculty of Arts office, and be accompanied by an original academic transcript and course outline or syllabus from the relevant tertiary institution.

Further reference: University of Sydney (Coursework) Rule 2000 (as amended)

Advanced standing

Recognition of previous experience or studies, meaning that the candidate has satisfied the entry requirement for a particular unit of study. Advanced standing does not reduce the number of credit points required to complete the degree course.

Advanced standing means that the entry requirement for a unit of study is waived by the Dean on the recommendation of the Chair of the department. In some instances, candidates may be exempt from undertaking the core unit or units in a course, and be permitted to enrol in an alternative unit or units.

Advanced standing does not reduce the total number of credit points required for the satisfactory completion of the course or the award of the certificate, diploma or degree.