Hi Everyone,
It has been another busy month in the world of the University Higher Degree by Research Committee (UHDRC). The Office of Graduate Research (OGR) has now been successfully relocated, 3MT finals are complete and the HDR community across all colleges has been busy with events to support student enrolments and progressions. There have also been some interesting developments in relation to student scholarships and candidature management which I am very excited to share with you.
Scholarships
In response to student feedback, the Higher Degrees by Research Scholarships Committee has recently made some changes to the application process for Research Student Conference Travel grants. These grants provide Higher Degree by Research students who have completed their confirmation of candidature milestone with up to $500 for domestic travel and up to $2500 for international travel. Applications for these scholarships will now open on the 1st of January each year and will remain open until the funding allocation has been exhausted. This means no more waiting for funding rounds to open to submit an application. For further information on eligibility requirements, please visit the Research Conference Travel Grants. Thank you to those students who gave their feedback in initiating this change and to the Higher Degree by Research Scholarships Committee for being responsive to student voices.
The Office of Graduate Research, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous) and DVC-R’s office has been busy this year, with Guiding Principles for Indigenous HDR Scholarships also being formalised within this university. This gives greater support for Indigenous students to undertake Higher Degrees by Research at Flinders University. You can read more about Flinders University’s commitment to Indigenous education and engagement here. The Professor Lowitja O’Donoghue Indigenous Student Postgraduate Research Scholarship is currently open to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students planning or currently undertaking a higher degree by research at Flinders University. Details of this award can be found here.
There have been some recent changes to the conditions around employment associated with the Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarships (AGRTPS) – Domestic and Flinders University Research Scholarships (FURS). In consultation with their supervision team, recipients of these awards are now able to undertake other paid work for more than 8 hours per week (which was the limit set in the ‘old rule’). Negotiation with supervisors is particularly important as it will help to make sure that your degree progress stays on track and you are supported to meet those milestones. I am sure that this is a welcome relief for many of you and hope that this will support that all important work-study-life balance that we are all working so hard to achieve. For more information refer to the Conditions of Award for these scholarships.
If you have any questions you can contact us via email at: UHDRC.studentreps@flinders.edu.au.
Lisa and the UHDRC Student Representatives.