phd thesis sydney university

Finding theses

University of sydney theses, higher degree by research theses.

We hold theses written by the University’s Higher Degree by Research (PhD or Masters by Research) students in our collections.

You can find a University of Sydney thesis by searching the  Library catalogue . Select the “Advanced search” and then select “USYD Theses” from the “Material type” dropdown menu.

You can also find digital theses by searching directly in the Sydney eScholarship repository .

Access a digital or digitised thesis

Many of the University’s digital and digitised theses are openly available for download through the Sydney eScholarship repository .

Theses marked “University of Sydney Access” are only available to current University staff and students. Libraries and private researchers can request to purchase a copy of a University of Sydney Access only thesis for AUD$18.50 (incl. GST, within Australia) or AUD$40.00 (international requests).

To purchase a digital thesis, you need to complete one of the relevant request forms below and submit it to [email protected] :

• Individuals requesting a thesis, or library requesting on behalf of an individual
• Libraries requesting a copy to be included in their collection

All requests for copies of material held at the University of Sydney Library must comply with the  Copyright Act of 1968 .

Access a hard copy thesis

Theses that are only available in printed format can be viewed in the Rare Books and Special Collections Library , Level 1, Fisher Library.

We are currently running a project to digitise hardcopy theses. You can request an update to find out where a particular thesis is in our digitisation queue by emailing [email protected] .

We don’t digitise theses on request.

Honours or postgraduate coursework theses

Search for an honours or postgraduate coursework thesis in the repository , then use the filters on the left side of the results page to narrow by “Type”.

You can also search the Honours and Postgraduate Coursework theses collection for a faculty, school or discipline (if available).

There are limited numbers of honours theses in the Sydney eScholarship repository as we have strict requirements for submission of honours theses . If you can't find the thesis you're looking for, we suggest contacting the relevant faculty office.

Theses from other Australian and New Zealand universities

Find a thesis from other Australian or New Zealand universities by searching:

• Australian theses via Trove
• Libraries Australia for Higher Degree theses awarded from 1989 onwards
• Education Research Theses for citations and abstracts from theses submitted from 1919 onwards.

If you’re interested in a thesis that isn't available online, you can request the item through our Resource Sharing Service .

International theses

For theses written and submitted at universities outside of Australia, try the following resources:

• Open Access Theses and Dissertations
• DART-Europe E-theses Portal
• British Library Electronic Digital Thesis Online Service (EThOS)
• EBSCO open dissertations
• French Thesis-On-Line Repository
• History Online – postgraduate theses in History submitted in the UK since 1995
• Index to Theses – listing of theses with abstracts accepted for higher degrees by universities in Great Britain and Ireland since 1716
• Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations – North American theses
• ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global

Related information

For more help finding and accessing theses, speak to our friendly library staff.

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• Master of Philosophy

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Admission requirements Supervision Time limits

Doctor of Philosophy Our research and current research projects

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy is a University degree governed by Resolutions set down by the Academic Board. Candidates should be familiar with the Academic Board documents:

• University of Sydney (Higher Degree by Research) Rule 2011 , and
• Thesis and Examination of Higher Degree by Research Policy 2015 .

The most recent versions of these rules are found the Policy Register . The degree of Doctor of Philosophy is a research degree awarded for a thesis considered to be a substantial and original contribution to knowledge. The successful completion of some coursework to support the development of research skills and improve understanding of research methods may be required as part of candidature but in no case does it constitute a major component of the degree.

A preliminary research proposal outlining the topic or area of study, the likely research method and the argument for conducting the proposed research will need to be attached to the application, however, we strongly recommend that you discuss the proposed research project with an academic member of staff before making your application. Guidance on preparing a research proposal or finding a research supervisor may also be obtained by contacting the Postgraduate Coordinator at Sydney Nursing School.

PhD students are expected to work independently with guidance from at least two academic supervisors. Students will be required to present their work to colleagues and peers, a minimum of three times during their candidature, in general addressing the key candidature milestones of scoping and developing the project, refining the methodology and method, and communicating the findings of their research.

All PhD students are expected to communicate regularly with their agreed research supervisors and attend the research workshops and seminars that are held at regular intervals during each year and to participate in the annual Sydney Nursing School Research Week and to actively participate in an annual progress review and interview process.

Admission requirements

Applicants should hold one of the following to be eligible for an offer of enrolment: - a bachelor's degree with first or upper-second-class honours, OR - a research master’s degree OR - a master's coursework degree with a significant research component, and considerable work-related research experience &/or research publications OR - an advanced learning master’s degree (60 credit points) awarded by Sydney Nursing School, having achieved within the degree a minimum of a credit level for 12 credit points of research training related coursework and a minimum of a distinction level for the 12 credit point Capstone (Research) unit of study.

Time limits

Candidates can proceed on a full- or part-time basis. The normal maximum length of candidature would be three to four years for full-time students and six to eight years for part –time students.

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University of Sydney Thesis Template (Engineering)

This is a template that can be used for publishing an Honours, Capstone or PhD thesis in Engineering at The University of Sydney. It is not at all compulsory.

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Q. I’d like to submit my Thesis as a series of papers. What are my options?

I don’t have four published papers where I am displayed as the first author.

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Answered By: The Library Last Updated: Jul 30, 2023     Views: 319

If you are doing a PhD by Publication, the following are the general steps for submitting your portfolio to the Library for deposit:

• All Higher Degree Research theses must be submitted to the Graduate Research School (GRS) for examination.
• Once approved, the GRS will forward the approved PhD by Publication Portfolio and Right of Access to HDR Thesis form to the Library for deposit.
• The Portfolio and Right of Access form will be described and catalogued to be added to ResearchDirect .
• To increase the  discovery of your work , register with ORCID for an ORCID iD .

To submit a Thesis as a series of publications you don’t have to be the first author, however, it’s expected that you would have completed the bulk of the research and writing involved in any multi-authored publication i.e. 51% or more during your period of enrolment. Section J - Thesis of the Doctorate Policy , particularly clauses (96) and (97), will provide further information, as will the Library’s Copyright Relating to Higher Degree by Research Thesis page.

If the matter requires further investigation, please contact the University Copyright Officer . The University Copyright Officer will require the following information:

• Details of the HDR course in which you are currently enrolled.
• Your associated School.
• The focus of your PhD Thesis.

For the papers to be included in your Thesis:

• Titles of each paper.
• The journals in which you have published.
• The publishers for each paper.

General steps to publication:

• Designed a research project based on your PhD subject.
• Write an original manuscript called an Author’s Original Manuscript (AOM) , which is the version of your article before you have submitted it to a journal for peer review. You would hold the copyright for the original manuscript.
• Choose a journal to submit your original manuscript.
• Submit your original manuscript to the journal for peer review. If your article is accepted, it becomes the Accepted Manuscript which is defined as “The version of a journal article that has been accepted for publication in a journal.” This version has been through the peer-review process and has been accepted by a journal editor.
• The final, definitive, citable version of your paper, which has been copyedited, typeset, and the other things that publishers do, and which has metadata applied and been allocated a DOI (Digital Object Identifier like https://doi.org/10.1109/5.771073 ) is the final published version which is called Version of Record (VoR) .
•  Copyright for the Accepted Manuscript and Version of Record is decided by you and/or the publisher depending on their policies and which agreement you sign.
•  You either choose a Transfer your Copyright Agreement or a Licence to Publish with the publisher where you may or may not hold copyright for your journal article depending on the publisher, or retain copyright by purchasing an Open Access Licence (typically  one of the six Creative Common Licence to publish the article).
•  An Open Access Agreement usually has a processing fee which the publisher decides.
•  Creative Commons Licences are copyright licences where you retain copyright and can choose what other people can do with your article.
•  Different publishers have different guidelines, but the trend is towards publishing open access articles with publishers, or with known, but not predatory journals.

Third-Party Copyright content to be deposited in the Institutional repository

• If the publisher owns the copyright of your articles, you should seek written permission from them to deposit these articles in the Institutional repository.
• You should seek written permission from third-party copyright content owners to deposit third-party copyright content in the Thesis, in the institutional repository, e.g. images, tables, etc.
• Suppose you are unable to get permission to deposit the third-party copyright content in the repository. In that case, this content must be omitted, with a notation on the Right of Access form describing the removed content.
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Finding UNSW theses

UNSW PhD or Masters by Research theses can be located via  UNSWorks . For honours theses, contact the UNSW faculty, school or the author directly.

For more information on rights of use and removing material in UNSWorks see  Copyright - UNSWorks .

Finding Australian and international theses

Australian theses.

Library collection To find UNSW Library’s collection of Australian and international theses in print, search Library collection for a title or keywords. Refine your results by selecting Refine my results > Resource types > Dissertations  in the column on the left.

Trove - Australian print and digital theses Trove includes theses at all levels, including PhD, masters and honours. To limit your search to Australian theses only, use Trove - Research & Reports  search. Tick the Australian content box. Next to format select Thesis from the drop-down list.

International theses

BASE BASE academic search engine provides access to the repositories of 8,000 institutions. 60% of the full-text documents are open access.

CORE CORE aggregates open access research outputs from repositories and journals worldwide.

DART-Europe e-theses portal DART-Europe is a partnership of research libraries and library consortia working to improve global access to European research theses.

EBSCO open dissertations Includes the content from American Doctoral Dissertations in addition to theses and dissertations from around the world. Coverage from 1955.

Open access theses and dissertations OATD provides access to open access graduate theses from over 1100 colleges, universities, and research institutions. This index is limited to records of graduate-level theses that are freely available online.

Theses Canada Theses and dissertations in the Library and Archives Canada (LAC) collection.

NZ Research.org.nz Gathers information about documents stored in research repositories from around New Zealand and assembles them in one database. Search open access research documents produced at universities, polytechnics and other institutions in New Zealand at this site. Select Thesis from the Browse by Type menu on the search page. Includes doctoral and masters theses.

Web of Science - ProQuest Dissertations & Theses The Web of Science ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Citation Index is a curated collection of multi-disciplinary, international dissertations and theses, including over 5 million citations and 3 million full-text works from thousands of universities. To search for thesis citations, change the search from Web of Science Core Collection to ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Citation Index .

Note: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses can be searched at no cost. Researchers can purchase individual theses using a credit card. Beware of paying for theses that are available for free electronically.

Worldcat An international database of library collections. When searching, select the Thesis/Dissertation option form the format list.

Obtaining theses

Many non-UNSW theses are available to download via the open access institutional repositories listed above. Beware of paying for theses that are available for free electronically.

• Some print copies are available for loan and can be accessed via the interlibrary loan service .
• Theses held in closed collections of other libraries and not available for download or loan cannot be accessed via the interlibrary loan service.
• Conditions of access to a thesis are determined by the author and holding library, and are outside the control of UNSW Library.
• Contact the owning library or institution directly to enquire about purchasing a thesis.

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Eight Tips for Turning Your PhD Thesis into a Book

By Agata Mrva-Montoya

Congratulations! After years of doing research and writing, you finally joined the ranks of freshly minted PhDs. You even have an endorsement from your examiners – ‘this work is brilliant and should be published’. So, you send it in to a publisher, then another one or two. And your proposal gets knocked back, time after time. Why? 

Publishers rarely consider unrevised PhD theses. (And if they approach you and offer to publish it as is, you should carefully check the publisher’s credentials!) A dissertation in the humanities and social sciences is written with a different intent and structure to a book, and for a different audience. Your thesis may indeed be brilliant – well researched, well referenced and well organised – but what the publisher sees is a manuscript that is too long, with tedious and predictable structure, full of jargon and repetitious announcements of intent, and so many quotes and references that it reads like compilations of facts and regurgitated opinions.

So before you send your dissertation to another publisher, you need to restructure it, revise it and turn it into something that someone, apart from your long-suffering supervisors and briefly accosted examiners, might actually want to read.

Seriously though, your manuscript needs to be capable of reaching a broader audience. Book publishing is a resource-intensive enterprise and the reality is that the book has to be commercially feasible – if not making heaps of money, then at least breaking even. Apart from the sales potential, publishers look for manuscripts that fulfill their mission of disseminating research results and communicating great ideas to readers in a broad range of disciplines, and the general public. Dissertations on obscure topics, with unclear arguments and a bias against readability fail on both accounts.

If the subject matter of your thesis is awfully narrow, there are other ways of making your research available to scholars – you can upload it into your university’s digital repository, make it open access, and publish a handful of journal articles to disseminate your findings and join the discussion in your discipline. And consider writing an entirely new book on a different topic.

If you believe that your PhD thesis has the potential to be a book that would interest readers beyond the circle of your close family and friends, then it’s time to turn it into a publishable manuscript. Here are some ideas you may consider:

• Decide what type of audience you want to reach with your book. While you could potentially write a scholarly book with mass-market appeal, the reality is that these two markets are rarely compatible. They require different approaches, different styles of writing and attract different publishers. Nevertheless, it is a good idea to write with a broad readership in mind using straightforward English to produce a scholarly, sophisticated and intellectually challenging work, which is accessible to scholars in other disciplines and the interested general public.
• Identify what are the most interesting or important issues or themes. Think of your audience – what aspects of your research would potential readers find intriguing? It is unlikely to be the literature review or methodology (these are best entirely removed or just briefly mentioned in the book). Do you need to broaden the subject area, look at your topic in a wider context or from a new perspective?
• Review the structure of the manuscript focusing on the important themes and paying attention to the narrative drive. You need to reorganise the material to make it interesting and accessible, promising readers an intellectual adventure. If you need help, check Developmental editing: a handbook for freelancers, authors, and publishers by Scott Norton (The University of Chicago Press, 2009). Norton offers detailed advice, illustrated by a variety of case studies, on how to identify leading themes and topics, how to restructure the manuscript to reveal its greatest potential and how to come up with a great table of contents and a winning title.
• As soon as you have the structure in place and a clear vision for the book, start approaching publishers. Investigate the publisher before you send the proposal off. Most academic publishers and university presses specialise in a specific area of scholarship and particular types of books and audiences, and you should try to find a reasonable match. Check the publisher’s submission requirements, fill in the form, make sure your proposal sounds interesting, is error-free, and send it off. You may need to include a couple of sample chapters with your proposal. Ideally, you will find a publisher that will be as excited about your research and your manuscript as you are, and your published book will be intellectually stimulating and highly readable.
• Rewrite the manuscript in your own voice. Readers want to know what you, the book’s author, think about the issue, so there is no need to hide behind authorities, excessive number of footnotes or blocks of quoted material. Rewrite, engage and express your view. Make sure there are no gaps, mistakes and inconsistencies in the text or the argument. Ideally you would secure a contract before you start rewriting the manuscript, but you can start working on it while you are waiting to hear from publishers.
• Make sure you follow the publisher’s author guidelines. You may need to follow specific spelling conventions depending on whether the publisher is based in Australia, the UK or the USA. And importantly, format your references consistently, and on brief. Ideally, you should use Endnote or other referencing software to help you wrangle the reference list. It will save you heaps of time.
• Revise the writing style. Remove unduly complicated constructions, unnecessary jargon and passive voice. You should aim for clarity of expression and writing in plain English without relinquishing intellectual strength or scholarly authority. There are plenty of books that can help from George Orwell’s ‘ Politics and the English language ’ to William Strunk’s The elements of style (Pearson, 1999) to Mark Tredinnick’s The little red writing book (UNSW Press, 2006). Make sure that the structure of the book and of each chapter is coherent, that every paragraph flows logically, that every sentence is where it needs to be, and every word is necessary.
• Check your facts, grammar, spelling and punctuation before you submit your manuscript. While copy-editors will help you to polish the work, you want to come across as a professional writer. If you need help with grammar or punctuation, Mark Tredinnick’s The little green grammar book (UNSW Press, 2008) is a delight to read (please keep in mind it follows the Australian style). Confirm that all your references are in place. (Your exhaustive bibliography needs to be trimmed to a reasonable size.)

Almost there? Not yet. Submitting the manuscript is a huge step toward getting a book published, but of course this is just the beginning of a long(ish), collaborative process as the manuscript undergoes peer review, copyediting, typesetting and so on. Your responsibilities as an author can differ significantly among publishers, so you need to make sure you understand the expectations particular to your publisher early on to avoid delays and unnecessary stress.  You need to work closely with the publisher, and give the process and your book, your best shot. Good luck!

This is a (heavily) revised version of a post originally published on the PhD2Published blog in 2011. Image by Pixabay.

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Where Will Postgraduate Study in Law Lead You?

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at Sydney Law School equips you for careers in advanced research, policy development, public service, tertiary teaching or professional leadership. You will benefit from a vibrant and dynamic research culture and engage with internationally renowned School members who are experts across a range of fields.

Subject areas

Shared pool, entry, fees, funding & how to apply, your entry requirements, english language proficiency.

For academic requirements check the ‘Admission requirements’ section on this page.

How to apply

Please apply by 15 September for commencement on 1 March and 15 March for commencement on 1 July. If your application cannot be assessed in time for commencement, it will be considered for the next possible start date.

If you intend to apply for an Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) scholarship, please submit a full admission application by the relevant  RTP scholarship closing date .

Starting date

Research Period 2: 1 March and Research Period 3: 1 July

Research areas

Doctor of Philosophy researchers perform original research in an area of law or regulation involving legal or interdisciplinary methodologies under the supervision of a member of the University of Sydney Law School who is an expert in the subject matter. 

Learn more about  Sydney Law School research

What you'll study

The Doctor of Philosophy (Law) is awarded on the basis of a supervised thesis of a maximum 80,000 words. The thesis must make a substantially original contribution to the knowledge of the subject concerned. Students are also required to complete the compulsory research-support coursework units, LAWS6077 Legal Research 1 within the first 12 months of their candidature and LAWS7001 Legal Research 2 within the first 24 months.

There is no separate tuition fee cost for the coursework units of study you will undertake, it is part of the tuition fee for the course .

See the ‘Your Fee’ section for fee information. Additional non-tuition course costs vary depending on the units of study.

Applying for admission

To apply for admission to a Doctor of Philosophy (Law) degree, you must submit a formal application for admission.

Expression of Interest (Optional)

While you are not required to submit an Expression of Interest before applying, Sydney Law School recommends that you do so before submitting a formal application, especially if:

· you are seeking funding assistance;

· have not identified a potential supervisor ; or

· you are an international applicant. 

Submitting an Expression of Interest will allow the School to support you in presenting a formal application and provide you with feedback on whether your application is likely to succeed.

The Expression of Interest form includes information about your intended research topic, academic and professional qualifications, and publications.

To allow the School to consider your information and provide you appropriate and timely guidance, applicants are encouraged to submit an Expression of Interest as early as possible and no later than:

*Note: If you intend to apply for an Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) scholarship, please submit a full admission application by the relevant  RTP scholarship closing date . 

Formal Application for Admission

To apply for a Doctor of Philosophy (Law) degree, you will submit a formal application through the University's Online Application portal.

You must ensure that all required supporting documents are submitted with your application, including the following documents requested by Sydney Law School:

. expression of interest acceptance (if submitted one), otherwise please include evidence of consultation/comments from potential supervisors. The nomination of supervisors is determined by the Law Postgraduate Research Education Committee.

·  full research proposal (approximately 10 pages) which outlines:

    - a ims of the proposed research thesis

    - background to the research, including a brief reference to the relevant iterature and law (including case law where appropriate)

    - a clear statement of the area to be researched

    - rationale for the research and a statement of why it is significant

    - working hypotheses or research questions

    - research methodology including theoretical and empirical considerations for the research

    - statement indicating how you will be able to sufficiently fund your proposed field work or overseas study/research. Explain why this work is essential for completion of your thesis.

· motivation statement

· time availability statement

· curriculum vitae

· list of publications (if available)

· timeline for completion of the thesis and the two compulsory units of study (LAWS6077 Legal Research 1 and LAWS7001 Legal Research 2)

· two referee statements in support of your application (in addition to the referee forms)

Before you apply, please check the University of Sydney’s eligibility criteria for admission to a research program at Apply for Postgraduate Research .

To Apply now

Scholarships

To be considered for a RTP scholarship, you must select “Yes” in the “Scholarship Details” field on your application form and apply by the relevant  RTP scholarship closing date . Information about the Sydney Law School Postgraduate Research Scholarships in available here .

Completion requirement

To satisfy requirements of the degree students must:

• complete any specified probationary requirements;
• complete LAWS6077 Legal Research 1 and LAWS7001 Legal Research 2;
• conduct research on an approved topic; and
• write a thesis of a maximum 80,000 words embodying the results of the research.

Admission requirement

There are three main conditions of admission, namely:

(i) Academic qualifications

(ii) Research and publication experience and

(iii) Suitability of the proposed course of study and research. If you are not academically qualified to undertake a research degree, you may consider pursuing your research interests through coursework study before progressing to a research degree.

The coursework program provides you with an opportunity to enhance your expertise in the proposed area of research by allowing you to complete research projects in related units of study. Applicants require a Master's degree (with a significant research component) and/or Bachelor's degree with first or upper second class honours.

Careers & future study

Career pathways.

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at the University of Sydney Law School is a pathway to a number of careers, including tertiary education, policy development, advanced research, and specialisation for employment in government, inter-governmental and international organisations, and civil society organisations. You will conduct a research project that makes a substantial and original contribution to knowledge and will have a highly developed knowledge base, with strong written, oral, and critical analytical skills.

Important fee information

Domestic students, international students.

The course information on this website applies only to future students. Current students should refer to faculty handbooks for current or past course information.

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