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If you're new to postgraduate study in
philosophy and/or new to
Monash
University
, then you will have much
to find out about the practicalities of graduate candidature. The
following guide provides information on a number of important
matters, and points you in the right direction to find out more
information about other matters.
:: Thesis Guidelines ::
Monash University publishes two important
documents with guidelines for thesis preparation and graduate
candidature in general. For thesis guidelines, you should download a
copy of the Monash Research Graduate School
Doctoral Handbook
. For general guidelines
regarding graduate candidature, you should download a copy of the
Arts Research Graduate School Survival Guide
. These two
documents should be retained for reference throughout your
candidature.
:: Philosophy Department Resources for
Postgraduates ::
Room 922 on level nine of the
Menzies Building is a dedicated space
for postgraduate philosophy students. This room has three desktop
computers, a printer, and free space in which you
can read, write, plug in a laptop or leave your stuff. You
can access this room at any time and you can get your own key
from Sandra Bolton (in room 917) if you want to.
Postgraduate students can also use the Philosophy Department’s
Library, and use the Department’s photocopier for free. You will
need to speak to Sandra Bolton if you want to gain access to either
of these resources. Also, postgraduate students are welcome use the
Department’s Tea Room, which has an urn, a fridge, a water cooler, a
microwave, crockery and cutlery, and a regularly updated rack of
recent philosophical journals for you to read whilst eating your
lunch.
:: Work Space at Monash Clayton
::
There are, at present, several
options available to postgraduate philosophy students wishing to
work on–campus at Monash Clayton. The philosophy postgraduate room
(see above) has three computers and is conveniently located within
the Philosophy Department itself. There are various other shared
office spaces in the Menzies building that are available for
postgraduates, access to which is administered by the
Arts Research Graduate School. There is usually a
waiting list for those applying to use these offices in an ongoing
capacity. Outside of the Menzies Building,
the University has a nice, air-conditioned postgraduate centre for
students from all faculties, and this has a number of shared offices
along with a tea room and a lounge. Unfortunately, the centre is
located some distance from the department, and printing is not free.
Nonetheless, a number of philosophy postgraduates use the centre as
their primary work space. To apply for office space in the centre,
contact the centre manager David Bell
. Although it can be rather difficult to
secure ongoing office space in the postgraduate centre, all
postgraduate students can acquire key-card access to the building,
as it is open 24 hours, seven days a week and has nice computers
available to anyone registered, whether they have an office or not.
One final option: the Matheson Library has a postgraduate room which
is bright and has nice computers, lockers, and a tea room. Access
via a pin number can be arranged at the loans
desk.
:: Departmental Seminars ::
All philosophy
postgraduates are strongly encouraged to attend (and present a paper
from time to time) as part of the MPPA seminar series. These
seminars play an important role in allowing postgraduate students to
workshop ideas, get feedback from peers, and develop
presentation skills. Seminars are held weekly (during
semester) on Monday afternoon at 4:30pm, in the Philosophy
Department Library. Students wishing to present at paper should
speak to Raphael
Fiorese
. Postgraduate students are also
strongly encouraged to attend the Department’s staff seminars, which
feature guest speakers from Philosophy Departments around
Australia and overseas.
These seminars are held weekly (during semester) at 2:15pm on Friday
afternoons, in the Philosophy Department Library.
::
Tricks of the Trade Seminars ::
'Tricks of the Trade'
seminars are run on a regular basis by the Arts
Research Graduate School, and are intended to
guide postgraduate students through various aspects of gradute
research. New Arts research students are required to attend three of
these seminars over their first semester of candidature. The details
of when and where these seminars are being held can be found
here.
:: Getting to Know Your Colleagues
::
You can find out
about the projects, interests and specialized knowledge of other
Monash Philosophy Postgraduates at the
school's
postgraduate
page. Also, if you don't know many
staff members in the Monash Philosophy Department, you
should introduce yourself: the staff in the Philosophy Department
are friendly and keen to encourage you in your research.
You can find out more about the staff at the school's staff page (which also
features some rather fetching pictures).
::
Supervision Issues ::
As a postgraduate student, the
working relationship you have with your supervisor is integral
to the success of your research. If you are finding it difficult
working with your supervisor, it behoves you to try to address
this problem. Candidates should always try to talk with their
supervisor first about any concerns they have, before
approaching other staff. If this proves difficult or does not
resolve the situation, candidates should consult either the
Philosophy Department’s Postgraduate Coordinator or Head of School.
If you wish to discuss the matter with someone outside the
department, you can make an appointment to speak with Dr Fiona
Neilson, manager of the Arts Research Graduate School,
whose contact details can be found here
. The ARGS handles all issues relating to
student/supervisor relations with discretion and
confidentiality.
:: Email Lists ::
As a philosophy postgraduate, there are many
mailing lists to which you can sign up if you want to keep
up to speed with information from Monash and the wider philosophical
community. The 'Philosophy Community' and 'Arts Postgraduate'
mailing lists will keep you informed of most things that will
directly affect you at Monash. Contact John Bigelow if you
want to have your email added to these lists.
To keep
track of all things philosophical in
Melbourne you can sign up to Bruce
Langtry's this
Week in
Melbourne
list. For logic
enthusiasts, Greg Restall's logic seminars
email list is an absolute
necessity. Career-wise the A-Phil email list (maintained by the Australasian Association of
Philosophy) is a good way to stay in
the loop with information on things like conferences to job
advertisements. One more; Philosophy Pathways (a British group)
publishes an e-newsletter which may be of interest. (That is, if your email inbox
is not already full!)
:: Conference
Presentation ::
If you are planning to present a paper
at a philosophical conference in Australia or overseas,
the philosophy department may be able to provide you with some
funding assistance. For further information you should talk to your
supervisor or postgraduate co-ordinator John Bigelow
.
:: IT Support and Free Software
::
All students at Monash require an
Authcate account, which includes a login-name and a password. This
account enables you to login to the University’s computers, access
your university email address, access electronic journals, keep
track of your library loans, and do various other things. If you are
having any IT issues, including issues with setting up or using your
Authcate account, you can consult the student IT help desk in the
Matheson Library, on the ground floor. Another useful IT service
that the library offers is free tutorials in the use of EndNote
referencing software. You can acquire a copy of the EndNote software
from the Library to install on your own PC. In addition to EndNote,
IT Services can provide Monash postgraduates with a
range of free software such as Star Office, Netscape, and
various other Virus Protection Programs.
::
Fun and Relaxation ::
If your brain is feeling sore from too
much reading and writing, you can go to the
Monash University Museum of
Art
(building 55 at
Clayton) which is really good! It's at the entrance to the
university as you come from the bus loop. The uni also runs
regular (and free) classical music
concerts
at lunchtimes, usually on
Thursdays in the auditorium. The Monash Postgraduate Association has
free
coffee
mornings
once a month for all
postgraduate students, and for anyone who may be new to Monash
Clayton, check out the John Medley
Library
in the
main campus centre, where you can read books, borrow DVDs
and listen to music.
:: Taking Time Off
::
If you are on a scholarship you are entitled to
up to three months paid sick leave if you can show you require it.
Scholarship holders are also entitled to two weeks recreational
leave per year, although you are required to notify
your supervisor of any time you plan to take off. |
