Faculty of Science
Support
1. Scholarships
Macquarie University offers scholarships for domestic students (i.e resident in Australia and New Zealand), as well as international students. Please refer to the link for an overview of the scholarships currently available for Higher Degree Research (HDR) study.
In addition to University and/or government scholarships, some candidates may be eligible for stipend supplement (“top-up”) scholarships provided by industry, CSIRO, or departments and research centres. Please consult your supervisor and/or the Departmental Director, HDR for further information.
2. Scholarship Extensions
2.1 Government awards (APA/APAI/E-IPRS)
Under the Conditions of Award for Government PhD scholarships (APA/APAI/E-IPRS), students can apply for a 6-month extension to their award (to a maximum tenure of 3.5 years) on the basis of research-related delays, for example: problems recruiting subjects, unanticipated problems with experiments, damaged equipment, fieldwork delays, prolonged problems with accessing archival materials, etc.. These delays should be noted on your annual report (page 3), with your supervisor commenting on your case in their section of the form. HDRO will process extensions from your annual report submission once the Annual Report collection closes in late November, and you can expect written confirmation of the outcome by mid to late December.
APAI holders will also need to seek support, in writing, from their Industry partner for the additional 6 months funding and return with the Annual Report. This consent is included in our advice to the ARC that we wish to seek a variation to funding. The Faculty also needs to agree to underwrite the extension should the variation of funding fail to be approved, so please send a copy of the relevant documents to the Associate Dean, HDR.
If your scholarship expires prior to the return of a completed Annual Report (end of November each year) and you not have made a case for extension in your prior Annual report, then you can submit your case in writing to the Associate Dean HDR, including a completion timeline and a letter of support from your supervisor. They will review your request and forward it to the HDRO.
2.2 Other awards (RAACE, MUPGRA, iMURS, MQRES)
The tenure of these awards is normally 3.5 years. No extensions are provided for within the Conditions of Award (but see (2.3)).
2.3 Scholarship extensions awarded by the Faculty of Science
Scholarship extensions for periods up to a maximum of six (6) months may be granted by the Faculty of Science under exceptional circumstances, where the need for an extension due to research-related delays is clearly demonstrated, and a tuition fees debt will otherwise be generated due to failure to submit a thesis by the primary scholarship end date. Such delays may include problems recruiting subjects, unanticipated problems with experiments, damaged equipment, fieldwork delays, prolonged problems with accessing archival materials, etc.
Extension requests, for either tuition fees only or fees plus stipend, must be made in writing, in a letter addressed to the Associate Dean HDR, in advance of the expiry date of the primary scholarship. A letter of support from your Principal Supervisor must also be provided. The request should include:
(1) An explanation of the reasons why the thesis cannot be submitted by the primary scholarship end date, and
(2) A detailed timeline for completion within the requested extension period, including milestones and dates.
Requests must be submitted no later than 31st May for primary scholarships ending between July and December, and by 30th November for primary scholarships ending between January and June each year. Please download a coversheet, attach it to the paperwork, and forward to your Head of Department (or delegate) for approval. Departments must supply an account name and number from which the fees and/or stipend will be drawn.
Requests for extensions will be considered by the Associate Dean HDR and relevant Faculty staff. A letter setting out the conditions of award, including the nature of the award, the tenure and expiry date, will be sent to successful applicants within one month of the relevant closing date for applications.
All scholarship awards, including extensions, are conditional on candidates making satisfactory progress with their research, and participating in regular progress review activities, as specified by the University and Faculties/Departments.
3. Funding and Grants
• Faculty of Science HDR Research and Conference Funding
Higher degree research candidates (MPhil and PhD) can access financial support to assist with their research, where a clear need for such support is evident. You may also request funds to assist you to present your research at recognised conferences. The total amount of funding per student will be governed by the budget for higher degree research project support set by your department. The Head of Department will make that determination in consultation with the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science.
Students will be allocated funds to support their research, subject to approval of a project outline, fully justified budget and timeline. For PhD candidates, this support is normally available for 3 years (6 years for part-time, pro rata); requests for a fourth year of funding will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and must be fully justified with reference to an amended project outline and budget. For MPhil candidates, the corresponding limits are 1.5 years full-time and 3 years part-time.
A range of activities are supported with this funding, depending on the nature of the research. The principal guideline is that the money should be used to facilitate the candidate's research and timely completion of the degree. Examples include (note this is not an exhaustive list):
- Fieldwork expenses - e.g. travel, accommodation, food, vehicle hire
- Fieldwork equipment - e.g. recording equipment/data loggers, transcribers
- Other minor equipment - e.g. scanners, technical software
- Laboratory consumables - e.g. chemicals, gases, etc.
- Analysis costs - e.g. DNA sequencing, NMR, etc.
- Conference attendance, where you are presenting a paper or poster related to your Higher Degree research - e.g. registration, travel, accommodation, etc.
- Thesis preparation costs - e.g. printing, binding.
All items purchased with these funds remain the property of Macquarie University.
At the commencement of candidature, and each year at the time of annual progress review, you should discuss your needs for project support funding with your supervisor as part of your research planning. To access the HDR project support funds, you are required to submit a budget, making full justification for all funding requested, related to the aims and methods of your research. You and your supervisor need to agree to the budget and submit it for approval to the Head of Department (or delegate - normally the Departmental Director, HDR). Once approved, the amount requested for the year will be transferred into an individual account for you to use to support your research. Any travel bookings, purchases, or reimbursement of expenses incurred by you in carrying out your research will be drawn against that account and will need to comply with the University's financial policies and with the normal financial procedures of your department. However, it will not be the responsibility of the departmental finance officers to check whether the expenditure is in keeping with your budget - you will need to provide them with an approval form signed by your supervisor.
You will also need to report each year, at the time of your progress review, on how the funding was spent and what outcomes were achieved. Further funding is conditional upon satisfactory progress with your research. Any changes to your budget necessitated by a change in the research project activities can be accommodated at any time by a revised budget signed by you, your supervisor and the HoD or delegate.
• Macquarie University Postgraduate Research Fund (PGRF)
The PGRF is the main source of central funding for enrolled research candidates in addition to the substantial Faculty funding. The limit of a PGRF grant is currently $4,000 and it is normally available once only during the period of candidature. The normal expectation is that an applicant will be in their later second year or third year of doctoral enrolment, or early second year of MPhil enrolment, with significant research results achieved. You should plan to apply for PGRF funds to present a paper or poster at an international conference, and/or to visit overseas research institutions when preparing your project management plan.
Full details and application forms are available by following the link.
There are two rounds per year, with applications closing mid-April for funding available to successful applicants from 1 July, and mid August for funding from 1 January the following year.
Due Dates: Round 2, 2009: 17th April 2009
Round 1, 2010 TBA
The PGRF scheme is administered by the Faculty., Please make sure your application and relevant documents, including your supervisor’s report, reach the Faculty’s HDR Team before the closing date.
• External Research Grants
Your supervisor will be able to advise you about other organisations, some philanthropic, from which you may be able to obtain additional funding for your research. Typical examples accessed by HDR students in the past include Australian Geographic, Seaworld, PADI, Royal Botanical Gardens, Environmental Trust, etc. Also check on the Research Office website.
4. Resources and Facilities
In recognition of the significance of HDR candidates’ research to the University and in order to encourage research, the Faculty of Science provides candidates with office and laboratory space with furnishings and basic equipment. This generally means, for full-time candidates, a minimum of 4 m2 of space with desk, computer/workstation, chair, lockable drawers in a filing cabinet, and bookshelf. Photocopying and printing facilities, postal, email and internet access are also provided. Each department (and, in some cases, disciplines) in the Faculty may provide additional resources and facilities to support your research. For further information, please go to the web site for your Department or contact your Departmental Director HDR.
5. Training
• HDR Training Units
Most departments of the Faculty offer department/discipline-specific research training units, with varying content. These are usually taken in the first and/or second semester of your candidature, or in some cases, may be required as an ongoing part of your HDR candidature. For specific details, please see your Departmental HDR website, or talk to your supervisor and/or departmental Director, HDR, or the Faculty’s HDR Team.
• Ethics Workshops
Workshops on Animal, Human and Biosafety Research and Teaching issues are run annually by the Research Office in conjunction with the Learning and Teaching Centre (LTC).
If your research requires Ethics clearance, you should discuss this first with your supervisor, and then with the Faculty representatives on the respective Ethics Committees:
Human Ethics: A/Prof Rodney Bonello
Dr Ken Cussen
Animal Ethics: A/Prof Robert Harcourt
Dr Darren Burke
• Occupational health and safety (OH&S) Inductions
The management of the Faculty aims to make the Faculty the safest it can be for staff, research candidates and members of the public. All personnel of the Faculty, including the research candidates, must undertake relevant safety induction within their first four weeks on campus; further information available by following the link.
Other safety information sessions, for example for terrestrial and water-based fieldwork, including international travel, will be provided either at the Faculty Commencement Program, or by the relevant Department.