Admission - How to Apply

Closing dates
Direct and UAC applications for Semester 1, 2009 are open. There are two closing dates:

(1) FRIDAY 31 OCTOBER 2008 - Local applicants for research candidature who are also applying for a scholarship must apply by this date. Local coursework applicants may also apply by this date. Applications received by 31 October will be sent to academic staff for assessment the following week and letters of offer will be sent to successful applicants before the Christmas break. Research applicants applying for a scholarship must submit a separate application to the Research Office.

(2) FRIDAY 9 JANUARY 2009 - This will be our final closing date for local research and coursework applicants. Enrolments will be held mid January.

Local applicants (Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents, citizens of New Zealand, and holders of an Australian permanent humanitarian visa) interested in postgraduate coursework study in the Faculty of Arts should contact the faculty office with enquiries regarding admission.

Applying to UAC - Universities Admissions Centre

In 2009, the Faculty of Arts is participating in a trial for admissions through UAC. Applicants for award courses in the following programs only should apply to UAC: Health Communication, Media Practice, Strategic Public Relations. All UAC applicants must apply online using Apply-By-Web on the UAC web site. Click on ‘UAC Postgraduate’ then click on the ‘Apply-By-Web’ under ‘Online applicant services’.

Apply-By-Web will instruct you throughout the application, but read the Apply-By-Web FAQs before you apply.

Applying to the Faculty of Arts directly

Applicants for all other award courses apply directly to the Faculty of Arts. Applications may be lodged in person or by post and application forms will be available on request from mid September, or may be downloaded from the Faculty of Arts web site, also from mid September. Click on ‘Future Students’, then ‘Postgraduate Coursework’ and go to the ‘How to & Forms’ tab. Our contact and postal details are:

Faculty of Arts
Main Quadrangle A14
NSW 2006
Telephone: +61 2 9351 3240
Fax: +61 2 9351 2045
Email:


International applicants should visit here. International applications formally close FRIDAY 31 OCTOBER 2008 to allow time for assessment and the issue of firm offers to successful applicants who must then apply for a valid student visa at the Australian diplomatic mission in their home country, but late applications will be accepted. Please be aware that applying for a visa may take up to 8 weeks in some countries.

If you are a local applicant, please contact us for further information, or to request an application pack. The pack contains a 2009 Arts postgraduate course information brochure, an application form, and detailed information about tuition fees, FEE-HELP and how it works, HECS-HELP and eligibility criteria, and advice about what to include in your application. We post application packs on request.

The Faculty office is located next to the MacLaurin Hall stairwell in the Quadrangle (view map), and is open for student enquiries at the counter Monday – Friday 10:00am – 4:00pm. Please provide your full postal address and a daytime contact telephone number when leaving messages or placing email requests for information.

Before submitting your application please read the following important notes.

Application inclusions – coursework programs

Evidence of qualifications
If any of your qualifications are from a university or institution other than The University of Sydney, you must submit an original official transcript of your academic record plus one photocopy for each application. Original academic transcripts accompanying applications will not be returned unless requested.

Evidence of Residency or Citizenship status
All applicants must submit evidence of their Australian permanent resident or citizenship status. Proof may be in the form of a passport or birth certificate. Copies certified by a Justice of the Peace will be accepted.

Evidence of meeting the English language requirements of The University of Sydney
If your undergraduate qualification was undertaken at a university or other institution where the language of instruction was not English, you are required to provide evidence that you meet the English language requirements of The University of Sydney.

Photocopies of documents by themselves are not acceptable. A certified translation must be attached for any document not in English. Applications with inadequate documentation will not be accepted.

Coursework programs –all Master, Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate-level courses, and all Postgraduate Non-Award study– are fee paying. Following the passage of Commonwealth Government legislation in November 2005, University of Sydney Union subscriptions may be paid voluntarily.

Equity HECS (Commonwealth Supported) Places
In 2009, there will be a limited number of Equity HECS places offered to postgraduate coursework students in Arts. Applicants will be considered eligible if their income for the financial year is less than the threshold set by the Australian Government - details will be included here mid September 2008. Please note that a HECS place is valid for the course of study for which an applicant is approved, and may not be automatically transferred to another course of study.

Merit Scholarships
Merit Scholarships are available to Postgraduate Coursework Students who are fee paying and not eligible for an Equity HECS place and do not have a FEE-HELP loan. Students must enrol in a minimum of two units of study and achieve a Distinction average of 75% or above in the two best units of study to be considered. Students do not apply for a Merit Scholarship.

Offer and acceptance
Offers of admission for Semester 1, 2009, will be sent to successful applicants who applied directly to the Faculty in December 2008 and January 2009. If you receive an offer, you must advise us in writing, by the date specified in the offer letter, of your intention to accept the place. Please note that UAC applicants will receive an offer of admission directly from UAC - please do not contact the Faculty of Arts for information about the progress of your application. You will receive a response in due course. If you receive an offer of admission, please accept your offer by contacting . We will then provide details of enrolment dates and times.

Deferment of acceptance/commencement
It is not possible to defer acceptance or commencement to a later semester or year. If you are unable to commence in the semester you have been made an offer, you must reapply for admission for a following year/semester on the official University application form.

Enrolments
Enrolments will be held in mid January for Semester 1, 2009. Details will be provided in your offer letter and we will post the information here on the web nearer to the dates. Semester 1, 2009 commences MONDAY, 2 MARCH 2009. Successful coursework applicants must be able to attend classes from this date.

Concurrent enrolment in more than one award program
You may not enrol concurrently in more than one award program that is not already a combined program approved by the Senate, unless approved in writing by the relevant deans.

Arts 2009 postgraduate information brochure
The information contained in the Faculty brochure and departmental publications is not to be taken as a firm offer or undertaking and is subject to alteration at any time without notice.

Enquiries and applications
A card is included in each application pack which can be used to acknowledge receipt of your application. If you wish to receive the acknowledgment, please address the card and affix a stamp. We regret that due to the number of applications received, receipt advice cannot be given by telephone.

Enquiries are welcome
Office counter hours for personal enquiries or the hand delivery of applications:
Mon – Fri 10:00am – 4:00pm
Telephone +61 2 9351 3240
Email: arts.pg@usyd.edu.au

If you have submitted an application through UAC (see above), details of your application will be sent to the Faculty at fortnightly intervals from late October 2008 for assessment by academic staff in the relevant department or discipline. When the assessment of your application is complete, you will receive an offer of admission from UAC. Offers will be made late November 2008 to end January 2009. To accept your offer, please send an email to quoting your name and UAC number.

If you have applied directly to the Faculty, your application will be assessed after 31 October and we will formally advise you of the outcome of your application by letter. Included with your letter will be a page for you to sign and return to us by way of accepting the Faculty's offer.