The decision to undertake postgraduate study is a bold declaration that you intend to be a serious participant in your chosen field. To graduate with a Master's degree from Otago is to be equipped with advanced knowledge and sophisticated skills that will serve you well for the rest of your life.
Masters' degrees at Otago are research-based and are designed to equip you either to move into employment or to advance seamlessly to a doctoral study programme. At Otago we regard research as the heart of our academic activity and we believe that the synergy we have achieved between research and our graduate degree programmes contributes powerfully to our reputation as one of New Zealand's two outstanding research universities.
We have many mechanisms in place to foster and support research and we are proud of our world leadership in a number of key research areas. Our reputation for academic excellence in teaching and research is a major factor in attracting students and staff from throughout New Zealand and from around the world. There are over 1,000 Masters' students currently enrolled, and they are studying in a more varied range of subjects than is available in any other university in New Zealand.
Find a supervisor
You can search on the Otago expertise database to find a supervisor or an expert in your area of research.
The Health Sciences Expertise Database enables you to search for expertise within the Division of Health Sciences.
Resources and support
- Research Masters' Programme digital handbook
- The University's policy regarding resources for graduate research candidates
- Postgraduate support
- Research and Thesis writing development
- Disability Information and Support
- Māori and indigenous Pacific Peoples Conference Funding
Masters' supervision
- Student Supervisor Agreement – Master's (DOCX)
- Student Supervisor Agreement – Master's (PDF)
- Sample Checklist for Masters' Candidates and Their Research Supervisors (DOCX)
- Student perceptions of quality supervision (PDF)
Qualities of postgraduate research candidates
Administrative forms
- Thesis declaration form (for soft-bound copies) (PDF)
- Author declaration form (for hard-bound and electronic copies) (PDF)
- Postgraduate Travel Procedure and Forms
Postgraduate Publishing Bursaries
Postgraduate Publishing Bursaries are available to support candidates to complete papers arising from their research during the examination period. For more information and to download the necessary forms, visit:
Postgraduate publishing bursaries
Policies
- Policy for Intellectual Property Rights of Graduate Research Students
- Guide to policies surrounding plagiarism and email/internet usage (PDF)
- Proof-reading and Editing of Theses and Dissertations Guidelines
Scholarships and awards
Thesis guides
Consult the Library's Thesis Information guide for details on copyright obligations and rights, organising, completing, submitting and depositing your bound and electronic thesis copies.
Graduate Research School
The Graduate Research School provides oversight of the University's graduate research programmes.