Menzies Centre for Australian Studies

The Centre offers research degrees at MPhil and PhD levels in Australian history, politics, literature and film or in other areas of Australian studies by arrangement. We offer access to a number of libraries which together constitute the best resources on Australian subjects in Europe. These include our own Maughan Library, the Institute of Commonwealth Studies Library, which holds one of the largest collections of social science materials relating to Australia, and the extensive Australia House Collection (at the University of London's Senate House Library).

The objective of the Menzies Centre for Australian Studies is to promote the study of Australia in British and European universities, as well as offering teaching courses on Australia at undergraduate and graduate levels within King’s College London and the University of London. There are currently three academic staff members: Professor Carl Bridge and Dr Frank Bongiorno, who teach and research in Australian history; and Dr Ian Henderson who works in the fields of Australian literature and film. All three staff members have extensive teaching, research and supervisory experience in the British and Australian university systems. Its Menzies Centre staff act as external examiners and administer a number of schemes for scholarly exchange between Britain and Australia. The Centre is an Australian cultural base in London, providing a highly regarded forum for the discussion of Australian issues. Its conferences, seminars and briefings attract a diverse audience and help to produce a more comprehensive, detailed and balanced perception of Australian politics, economics, life and culture than is popularly available. Staff are closely involved with the British Australian Studies Association and the European Association for Studies on Australia; frequently lecture throughout Europe, and offer informed advice to academics, the media, business and government on matters Australian. The Centre engages in partnerships with a wide range of cultural institutions and, in cooperation with the British Museum and the National Museum of Australia, has recently been the recipient of an Arts and Humanities Research Coucil collaborative doctoral award.

As a research student you will complete the Introduction to Australian Studies: Approaches & Methods in Australian module in the first semester. As well as attending scheduled classes for the papers in which you are enrolled, you will be encouraged to attend additional seminars in Australian Studies, organised by Menzies Centre. These usually take place on Wednesdays at 17.15 during the teaching weeks of the academic year. These seminars are focused on the Centre's research objectives and include speakers from Australia, the UK and Europe. Research students will also be invited to speak in this forum. They are also encouraged to participate fully in workshops, courses and training sessions offered elsewhere in the College such as in the Graduate School and the School of Arts and Humanities.