2018 Postgraduate Courses
  • Students are to follow the requirements of the Handbook for the year they commenced the course.

    However, the subject links below do not contain the subject information for the current year. You can view current subject information through the new Course Handbook.

Doctor of Creative Arts | 2018

Testamur Title of Degree:

Doctor of Creative Arts

Abbreviation:

DCA

UOW Course Code:

214

CRICOS Code:

087688K

Total Credit Points:

192

Duration:

4 years full-time or part-time equivalent

Home Faculty:

Faculty of Law, Humanities and the Arts

Intake Session(s):

Autumn/Spring

Delivery Mode:

Supervised individual practice-based research

Delivery Campus:

Wollongong

Overview

The Doctor of Creative Arts provides individuals with a significant professional track record in the creative arts, including extensive experience as a creative practitioner, (ten years miminum) with the opportunity to extend their practice within a scholarly context.

Candidates are expected to develop a research thesis that comprises both a body of creative work and a written exegesis. The overall thesis should represent an original and significant contribution to knowledge in the given creative field. This research training will assist mature artists employed in tertiary education to update their qualifications, and extend the professional capacity of already accomplished practitioners.

Entry Requirements & Credit Arrangements

Information on academic and English language requirements, as well as eligibility for credit for prior learning, is available from the Course Finder.

Course Learning Outcomes

Course Learning Outcomes are statements of learning achievement that are expressed in terms of what the learner is expected to know, understand and be able to do upon completion of a course. Students graduating from this course will be able to demonstrate:

CLO Description
1 Demonstrate expert, scholars specialised cognitive, technical and research skills in a discipline area to independently and systematically generate original knowledge and understanding that to makes a substantial contribution to a particular creative discipline and/or area of professional practice.
2 Critically reflect on, synthesise and evaluate a substantial and complex body of knowledge at the frontier of a creative discipline area and/or an area of professional practice
3 Communicate research findings, explaining and critiquing theoretical propositions, methodologies, results and conclusions to peers and to the community.
4 Apply detailed knowledge of research, research integrity, ethics and the rights and safety of others, to plan and execute original research with intellectual independence and with full autonomy, authoritative judgement, adaptability and responsibility for personal outputs.

Course Structure

The normal full-time study pattern for Doctoral candidates requires enrolment in 48 credit points per year in accordance with the table below, for a minimum of 4 years. Part-time study is also available in most cases.

Potential candidates should discuss their research plan with the Head Postgraduate Studies of the School of the Art, English and Media, at which time the supervision arrangements of the School will be outlined.

All students must attend and participate in the Module 1 workshops for CREA921 Research Topics in Creative Arts.

Rules and procedures for Higher Degrees by Research, including the regulations regarding preparation and submission of the thesis, are listed in the General Course Rules. Doctoral candidates are urged to become familiar with both the General Course Rules and the Higher Degree Research Supervision and Resources Policy. Current policy documents are located in the UOW Policy Directory.

Subject Code Subject Name Credit Points
Choose ONE from the following:
THES924 Thesis Full Time 24
OR
THES912 Thesis Part Time 12

Submission and Assessment

Candidates for the Doctor of Creative Arts will submit their thesis as a combination of creative work and written exegesis. The submission will normally be by exhibition, performance or publication of creative work in a form relevant to the discipline and will be accompanied by a written exegesis of approximately 30,000 words in length. The exegesis may be supported by other forms as a record or explication of the creative work (for example, music scores, photographs, audiovisual recording).

Assessment for the Doctor of Creative Arts is by two external assessors.

The creative work may be in a single discipline, involve multiple disciplines or interdisciplinary variants, or explore new forms for which there is no established disciplinary base.

The creative work should be of significant scale commensurate with expectations for both the creative field and the scope of a doctoral program. For example, in Creative Writing this might be a novel, poetry collection, or play script;, in Visual and Media arts or Design this might take the form of a major solo exhibition, a series of socially-engaged or iterative works, or a portfolio of practice; while, in Music and related fields, it might include a portfolio of compositions or original recordings, a program of original live performance works, or a series of sound installations. In Performance and theatre, the creative work could include theatre-directing, theatre-making, significant studio dramaturgy, or the candidate might submit a portfolio of performance documentation as the key creative.

These examples are indicative only. In each instance the substance of the creative work will be negotiated with the supervisors and Head of Postgraduate Studies.

The accompanying written component will take the form of an exegesis focusing on such aspects as the origins of the work, structures, techniques or methodologies, lineage, and an analysis of relevant art form theory underpinning the work.

The accompanying written component will be submitted prior to, and no later than the presentation, exhibition or performance of the creative work. In some instances the written component may be submitted up to three months after the presentatation of the creative work.

Research Areas

Postgraduate research in Creative Practice is continually evolving within broad disciplinary areas. The School is particularly focused on contemporary practice in a multi-disciplinary setting. Research areas for the DCA may include the following: Creative Writing, including poetry, prose, script writing for a range of media and contexts; Contemporary music including digital and electro-acoustic composition, sound design and installation, audio production and music technology; Design and Visual Communication Design including print and publication design in online or convergent media formats; Contemporary Visual Arts including photography, textiles, painting, and sculpture, live art and socially-engaged or community art practices, as well as theatre and performance practices. 

Other Information

Further information is available via email: lha-enquiries@uow.edu.au

Last reviewed: 24 November, 2017