The Master of Studies (rendered M.St. or MSt) is a postgraduate degree at the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, the Australian National University, University of Dublin and the University of Newcastle. Depending on the degree, it is comparable to the Master of Laws, Master of Arts, Master of Science and Master of Philosophy. Its creation was necessitated, in part, by the fact that the Master of Arts degree at Oxford, Cambridge, and Dublin is essentially an honorary degree automatically awarded to graduates after a certain period of time, a remnant of modes of instruction used during the Middle Ages. In contrast, the Master of Studies requires completion of classroom study and a thesis.