I can’t believe that the greatest shock I could ever have in Australia takes place in the academe.
Monash Uni, for instance, with its financial resources, cannot even hire a webmaster to update its webpages to provide accurate information. In the era of information and technology, the website is the major tool to disseminate information which can be updated at any time. Further, students rely on the official handbook to follow rules and procedures to guide them throughout the course. It’s true that there is an orientation at the beginning of the course, but oral instructions can be forgotten. Also, not all students can attend to these orientations and the info gap should be provided by other tools like the website.
Postgraduate students are categorised into coursework and research. As such, information for each type of student should be distinctly provided.
Completion of a master’s degree at Monash requires a student to undertake a research work. For coursework students, an Industry Research Paper is required. For research students, a Research Dissertation is taken. The Monash University Handbook 2010, however, does not give distinct instructions addressed to each type of student. Instead, it provides a general guide that offers flexible options. Obviously, the handbook is sending a message to a coursework student, for instance, a flexible option to become a research candidate.
But what is a thesis? And what is its purpose? The term itself is quite ambiguous.
In most US universities, a master’s thesis is an optional requirement taken by research candidates to cap the course. It is a token of completion beyond the coursework. The same system is adopted in Korea and the Philippines. At Monash, a thesis called Research Dissertation, is an option only to be taken by students who are prospective PhD candidates. There’s no other reason to take the thesis but an intention to pursue PhD.
Clear enough. Each university has its own systems and requirements. What is flawed here is the information system to better inform candidates.
