How to apply for a MA

How to apply for a Master of Arts Degree in the School of Social and Cultural Studies

Thank you for your interest in postgraduate study in the School of Social and Cultural Studies (SACS). Please familiarise yourself with all the general university requirements and, if you are an international student, with the requirements of Wellington University International (or the international students’ office).

The prerequisite qualification for enrolment in Masters-by-thesis degree is a completed BA(Hons) degree or equivalent qualification. You are normally expected to have strong grades, usually a BA(Hons) with a B average in Honours.

Our MA degree requires you to produce a thesis on an approved topic of your choice. Victoria University of Wellington’s maximum length for an MA thesis is 40,000 words.

Find out if we can provide the appropriate supervision for your topic by looking through the Staff Directory, Research Projects page and current Research Students for an idea of our research and supervision interests.

The University’s Master’s Thesis Regulations requires that you submit an MA Research Proposal – which will be a revised and polished version of your original EOI documentation and may not exceed 2500 words in total – within one month of your enrolment date.

Once you have enrolled as an MA student (which cannot happen until your application has been processed and approved by SACS), you will have 12 months to complete and submit your thesis. If you enrol as a half-time student, you will have 24 months to complete and submit.

Application process

All MA applications need to be pre-approved first by the Programme. Firstly, approach the postgraduate co-ordinator regarding your interest in doing a MA (or the school may have already invited you to apply).

School of Social and Cultural Studies postgraduate coordinators:

Criminology: Russil Durrant

Cultural Anthropology: Amir Sayadabdi

Study of Religion: Sara Rahmani

Sociology: Chamsy el-Ojeili

Social Policy: Chamsy el-Ojeili