Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Arts Studies

Purpose

The purpose of the Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Arts is to make a significant and original contribution to interdisciplinary work in the arts. The skills developed through the independent study will help foster critical and creative thinking, problem-solving and innovative approaches required for interdisciplinary arts-based research. The interdisciplinary nature of the qualification will provide learners with an appreciation for collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches to research and knowledge generation.

The qualification is aimed both at practicing artists and learners following a more conventional academic trajectory in the interdisciplinary study of visual arts, music, theatre, and performance studies, or historical, philosophical, sociological, or anthropological reflections on art practices. Learners of the qualification will benefit from this expanded definition of arts research with applicability in diverse industries and arts-related fields.

A doctoral degree requires a candidate to undertake research at the most advanced academic levels culminating in the submission, assessment, and acceptance of a dissertation. The work must be of a quality to satisfy peer review and merit publication. The degree may be earned through pure discipline-based or multidisciplinary research or applied research. This degree requires a minimum of two years of full-time study, usually after completing a master's degree. A qualified learner must be able to supervise and evaluate the research of others in the specialisation concerned.

Upon completion of this qualification, qualifying learners will be able to

• Demonstrate expertise and critical knowledge in interdisciplinary arts research and practice.
• Conceptualise new research initiatives and create new knowledge or practice.
• Contribute to scholarly debates around theories of knowledge and processes of knowledge production in interdisciplinary arts research.
• Develop new methods, techniques, processes, systems, or technologies in original, creative, and innovative ways appropriate to specialized and complex contexts.
• Apply specialist knowledge and theory in critically reflexive, creative, and novel ways to address complex practical and theoretical problems.

Rationale

The PhD (Interdisciplinary Arts Studies) responds to the growing need for advanced training in interdisciplinary research in the arts that sits at the interstices of academic disciplines and incorporates artistic and practice-based approaches.

The qualification in Interdisciplinary Arts Studies will contribute to a transformed and integrated academic community committed to exploring the role of the arts in public and intellectual discourse and debates on democracy, human rights, and social justice.

The qualification is aimed both at practicing artists and learners following a more conventional academic trajectory in the interdisciplinary study of visual arts, music, theatre, and performance studies, or historical, philosophical, sociological, or anthropological reflections on art practices. Graduates of the programme will benefit from this expanded definition of arts research with applicability in diverse industries and arts-related fields.

RPL for access

• Learners who do not meet the minimum entrance requirements or the required qualification that is at the same NQF level as the qualification required for admission may be considered for admission through RPL.
• To be considered for admission in the qualification based on RPL, applicants should provide evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates that they have acquired the relevant knowledge, skills, and competencies through formal, non-formal and/or informal learning to cope with the qualification expectations.

Entry Requirements

The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is

• Master of Arts, NQF Level 9.

Or

• Master of Arts in Music, NQF Level 9.

Or

• Master of Arts in Drama, NQF Level 9.

This qualification consists of the following compulsory module at National Qualifications Framework Level 10 totalling 360 Credits.

• Interdisciplinary Arts Studies thesis, 360 Credits.

Exit Level Outcomes

1. Demonstrate expertise and critical knowledge in interdisciplinary arts research and practice.
2. Conceptualise new research initiatives and create new knowledge or practice.
3. Contribute to scholarly debates around theories of knowledge and processes of knowledge production in interdisciplinary arts research.
4. Develop new methods, techniques, processes, systems, or technologies in original, creative, and innovative ways appropriate to specialized and complex contexts.
5. Apply specialist knowledge and theory in critically reflexive, creative, and novel ways to address complex practical and theoretical problems
6. Identify, address, and manage emerging ethical issues, and advance processes of ethical decision-making, including monitoring and evaluation of the consequences of these decisions where appropriate.
7. Make independent judgements about managing incomplete or inconsistent information or data in an iterative process of analysis and synthesis for the development of significant original insights into new complex and abstract ideas, information, or issues.
8. Produce substantial, independent, in-depth, and publishable work which meets international standards, is considered to be new or innovative by peers, and makes a significant contribution to the discipline, field, or practice.
9. Develop a communication strategy to disseminate and defend research, strategic and policy initiatives and their implementation to specialist and non-specialist audiences using the full resources of an academic and professional or occupational discourse
10. Manage complex systems to achieve systemic change; and independently design, sustain and manage change within a system or systems.
11. Demonstrate intellectual independence, research leadership and management of research and research development in a discipline, field, or practice.
12. Operate independently and take full responsibility for his or her work, and where appropriate lead, oversee and be accountable for the overall governance of processes and systems.

The following Associated Assessment Criteria are assessed in an integrated manner across all the Exit Level Outcomes

• Adequately delimitate and conceptualise the field and subject of research.
• Adequately command the relevant research method and familiarise with the relevant literature.
• Present a clear and systematic material and logical exposition of the argument.
• Properly document and support the results of independent research.
• Present research in an acceptable linguistic and stylistic manner.
• Apply knowledge of and display the contribution made by the dissertation to knowledge in its field.

INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT

This qualification will be assessed through a full dissertation. The dissertation aligns with the regulations for research modules of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences and is offered in both the traditional monograph and the integrated arts-based format.

The dissertation is assessed by an examination panel. In accordance with Faculty rules, the doctoral examination panel shall consist of one unattached internal examiner and at least two unattached external examiners, one of whom should preferably be based abroad.

The traditional or monograph format applies to a dissertation as a report on research on one central and coherent research question that is examined as a single work.

• A dissertation by monograph must be a project approved and planned in advance. Candidates are required to prepare, in consultation with their supervisor(s), and submit a research proposal in accordance with the prescribed faculty guidelines for doctoral proposals for dissertations by monograph. The research proposal must convince the Admissions Committee that the study has academic merit, is practically feasible and is capable eventually of being examined as a dissertation.
• Only work produced after the date of the first registration of the doctoral candidate is permitted for this format.
• Examiners submit a written report which is an independent evaluation of the dissertation in accordance with a set of general assessment criteria and are required to comment on the suitability of all or parts of the dissertation for publication.

The integrated format, as artistic research, includes creative work as an integrated component of doctoral research.

The creative work may include exhibition(s), installation(s), composition(s), performance(s), portfolio, literary work(s), translation(s) and/or any other form of creative work recognized as such by the faculty. In recognising integrated creative-critical research, the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences aims to encourage and promote scholarship that integrates original, independent artistic research.

• An integrated doctoral study must be a project approved and planned in advance. Candidates are required to prepare, in consultation with their supervisor(s), and submit a research proposal in accordance with the prescribed Faculty guidelines for doctoral proposals for integrated dissertations. The Admissions Committee will take into consideration that the research design and outcomes are flexible and potentially unique to every study. In addition, an individual project may be dependent on a research design that unfolds as the study progresses. The research proposal must convince the Admissions Committee that the study has academic merit, is practically feasible and can eventually be examined as a theoretical component integrated with creative work.
• Only creative work produced after the date of the first registration of the doctoral candidate is permitted for this format. In exceptional cases, a small amount of creative work produced prior to the date of first registration may be considered provided that it is motivated in the research proposal. Such a request must be supported by the Admissions Committee and approved by the Higher Degrees and Research Committee.
• In terms of examination, the body of research that comprises an integration of creative and scholarly work is examined in its totality and the study should therefore show evidence of its creative and conceptual integration. Examiners should be given access to those creative and conceptual components that demonstrate such integration. The examiners will evaluate whether the candidate's work has demonstrated independent research on a doctoral level, considering the overall project and will report on their findings in their examiners' reports.