Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Entry Requirement

A master’s degree from a recognized university. Those who have obtained a bachelor’s degree with a CGPA of 3.7 and above can apply directly for the PhD programme.

Language Requirement

A non-Malaysian applicant whose degree is from a university or institution of higher learning where the medium of instruction for that degree is not the English Language and where the applicant wishes to follow a programme and/or write his thesis in the English Language must possess a minimum English Language score stated below:

1. To obtain a band of 6.0 for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS); or

2. To obtain a score of 60 for an internet-based total for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or a score of 8.5 for Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) Essential (Online); or

3. To obtain a score of 169 for Cambridge English Qualification & Tests as follows:

• B1 Preliminary, B2 First, C1 Advanced, C2 Proficiency; or
• B2 BUSINESS VANTAGE, C1 BUSINESS HIGHER; or
• Linguaskill Online; or

4. To obtain a score of 250 for Cambridge English Qualification & Tests (OCCUPATIONAL ENGLISH TEST (OET) (Conventional /online)) ; or                                                             

5. To obtain a minimum score of 59 for Pearson Test of Academic English (PTE)

For thesis written in Malay or Arabic, before degree conferment, candidates must have obtained a minimum score of:

1. To obtain a score of 400 for a paper-based total for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL); or

2. To obtain a band of 4 for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS)

Graduates from this programme can work, for example,

• In the media, advertising and publishing industry (e.g. script-writers, journalists, writers, editors, copywriters, proof-readers);
• In corporate communication;
• In the education industry (e.g. corporate trainers, language teachers/instructors, teacher educators, programme/curriculum developers, education managers/administrators at government and private schools and institutions, researchers and lecturers in higher education);
• As translators and interpreters;
• As language or linguistic consultants (e.g. linguistic and language-related fieldwork, researchers, analysing linguistic aspects of spoken and written texts).

This PhD programme is based on individual supervised research. At the end of the candidate's study, a thesis must be submitted and upon successful defence of the paper, the candidate will be granted a doctoral degree. All research proposals must be approved and supervised by the Faculty. PhD candidates’ theses must not exceed 100,000 words. They are required to complete their studies within 12 semesters.

The length of time required for the completion of a programme depends on the progress of the individual candidate. In general, the minimum, maximum and average durations are as follows:

Program Duration
Minimum: 4 semesters
Maximum :12 semesters