Postgraduate Education

PhD Scholars | MSc Students | Honours Students

One of the primary aims of the School is to train the medical researchers of the future. Most of our postgraduate students are carrying out research directed towards the production of a thesis for a PhD degree. However in the last few years we have been fortunate to attract growing numbers of Honours students of whom we share supervision with the ANU Faculties. The JCSMR has agreed that the target for postgraduate student load in the School should be 105 by 2003. This target was determined by the School's operating budget, anticipated new funding through the Australian Government's Research Training Scheme, and staff capacity to provide high quality supervision.

Amy Berntson takes a rollerblading break from the final stage of her PhD studies - writing up her thesis.

Position of Convenor of The Medical Sciences Graduate Program

During 1999 the decision was taken that research training in JCSMR should be given more focus. A part time academic appointment was made in 2000 specifically as Convenor of the Medical Sciences Graduate Program for the year 2000. The intention being that the appointment should also encompass student recruitment and some career mentoring for Postdoctoral Fellows. During 2000 there have been a number of changes to research training, from the introduction of a full panel meeting at three months for a better definition of projects, to writing a detailed plan for the development of research training covering the next three years. Strengthening the skills of academic supervisors is also a priority, and the Postdoctoral Fellows particularly are being encouraged to take on formal advisory roles and to take CEDAM courses and workshops on supervisory methods and skills. Collecting data on both the current and past students and on the Postdoctoral Fellows of the School is under way, to provide a base from which to provide further strategic planning. A submission to the University's New Plan for Growth Scheme based on the School's research training plan has won funds for the Convenor's position to become full time for the next three years. As well as taking responsibility for research student training, the position will cover student recruitment and PDF mentoring, and career development

PhD, Honours and Summer Research Scholarships

The course for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy is for a minimum of two years and a maximum of four years full-time study. A number of Australian National University scholarships that provide a stipend (but do not cover the tuition fees payable by overseas students) are available for students taking a PhD course in the JCSMR. In addition to Australian National University Scholarships the School hosts each year a number of students holding Australian Postgraduate Awards for Australian citizens or permanent residents, and International Postgraduate Research Scholarships for students of other nationalities for PhD research courses (these are discussed below). A scholarship is normally tenable for three years subject to satisfactory progress. Applicants should be of high scholastic calibre and should have a capacity for research. Applicants normally would have or expect to have one of the following minimal qualifications: BSc (not only in biological sciences) BEng, BVSc. BAgrSc, or their equivalent (at the standard of upper second class honours at least), MBBS or MSc. In special cases applicants with other qualifications or research experience of high order may be considered. Subject to the agreement of the Head of the Division concerned, University scholarship programs may be commenced at any time during the year. Admission may be considered in several of the graduate programs in the ANU Graduate School including the Medical Sciences Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Neuroscience programs. Admission to a Master of Science research program (for one to two years) may be considered.

Graduate programs

As members of the ANU Graduate School, students working in the John Curtin School can elect to belong to any of the Programs of the Graduate School. Most (about 90 per cent) join the Medical Sciences Program, but there are a significant number of students in the Neurosciences Program and a few in other biologically-orientated Programs, such as Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. A panel of a minimum of three supervises PhD students, usually consisting of a main supervisor and two or more other advisers. Their progress is assessed at regular intervals and they attend seminar programs devised to give them a broad overview of current medical research as well as more specialised technical courses and more general seminars on topics such as planning and writing a thesis, giving research seminars and writing a scientific paper. Overall student welfare and training is monitored and coordinated by the Program Convenor.

ANU PhD scholarship awards

A scholarship provides a basic living allowance (or stipend) which, from January 2001, will be $A17 267 per annum (tax free). A married scholar with dependent children may apply for additional allowances. Grants for travel to Canberra are paid for a scholarship holder and for a dependent spouse and children if the scholar is married before taking up the award; some removal expenses may be reimbursed also. Travel and removal grants at the conclusion of the award may also be paid to scholars recruited from overseas.

Successful applicants whose first language is not English may be required to pass an English test before a scholarship offer will be confirmed.

Applications for admission or ANU Scholarships should be made on forms available from the head, Human Resources Section, The John Curtin School of Medical Research, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200, Australia.

Australian Government policy since January 1990 has been that overseas students (other than New Zealand citizens) will be admitted only on a full-fee paying basis. The tuition fee in 2001 for PhD courses in the JCSMR is $A17,000 per annum. Overseas applicants are encouraged to apply to granting agencies able to provide scholarships to cover the tuition fees. The School introduced The Eccles Scholarship designed to attract overseas students of high calibre to pursue postgraduate research at the John Curtin School of Medical Research. The Scholarship provides for payment of the annual tuition fees for overseas students, an annual living expenses stipend set at a normal rate of the ANU PhD Scholarship, plus other benefits as provided under the award of the ANU PhD Scholarship, including travel and removal expenses.

There is no set closing date for applications for admission and for ANU scholarships, but applicants from overseas are advised to apply at least six months before they expect to be able to take up a place if offered.

Australian Postgraduate Awards

The Commonwealth Department of Employment, Education and Training each year makes available awards for full-time study leading to a post-graduate degree. These awards are available to Australian citizens whether resident in Australia or overseas at the time of application, and to persons from overseas who have permanent resident status. They are normally offered at the Australian National University only to applicants intending to undertake courses leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.

Further particulars and application forms are available from any Australian university, or any office of the Department of Employment Education and Training

Applications for these awards close on October 31 each year.

The selection committee normally meets in mid-December to decide first offers of award at the ANU, but selection often continues into the following January or February.

Medical Science fourth year Honours scholarships

Eligible students may compete each year for up to six awards that may be offered to students with strong academic records, to provide encouragement and assistance to undertake, at the ANU, the fourth year of a Bachelor of Science Honours degree in medically related science fields. Successful applicants must meet the normal Faculty of Science requirements for entry to fourth year. Honours Students will be enrolled in the appropriate academic area in The Faculties, but supervision will be shared with the JCSMR. The Honours research project is normally conducted in the JCSMR or in the School of Life Sciences in The Faculties.

Each scholarship has a value of $A6000, with an additional relocation allowance of $A4 000 for a student whose normal place of residence is outside Canberra. Applications close on 30 November.

Paul Bunyan Memorial Scholarship in Medical Sciences

This is an honours scholarship awarded in memory of Paul Bunyan. The Scholarship provides a stipend of $6, 000 per annum for one year for a Medical Science Fourth Year (Honours) student in a medical science field normally related to cancer research.

Summer Research Scholarships

Summer Research Scholarships are normally offered to currently enrolled undergraduate students from Australia and New Zealand who will have completed three years of a full-time four year undergraduate course when they take up the scholarship. The scholarships are primarily awarded to interest students in the possibility of later enrolment as a postgraduate scholar and to test the student's capacity in a given field of research. The Summer Research Scholarships offer full board at an affiliated University College, a weekly allowance of $130 (tax exempt), and a return travel to Canberra.

Correspondence

All correspondence concerning postgraduate courses, ANU PhD scholarships and Medical Science Honours scholarships should be addressed to The Head, Human Resources Section, The John Curtin School of Medical Research, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200, Australia.

PhD Scholars

J Attema BSc B Health Sci (Hons)
N Alitheen BSc (Hons) (University of Malaya Malaysia)
V Barlow BSc(Hons) LLB (ANU) LLM (UTS) Grad Dip Legal Prac (College of Law NSW)(fr June)
N Beard B App Sci (Hons) (La Trobe)
A Berntson BA (Hons) (Minnesota)
A Bhatnagar BSc (Bangalore India) MSc (Mangalore India)
D Bromhead BSc (Hons) (jointly supervised with BoZo)
M Bunce BSc (Hons) (Lincon)
J Cakouros BSc B Health Sci (Hons)
S Calanni BSc (Med Sci ) (Uni of Sydney) BSc (Hons) (ANU)
K Clark BSc (Hons) Concordia University (until September)
S Cuff BSc (Hons) (Adel)
M da Zhang BSc (China) MSc (Wollongong)
D Davy BSc(Hons)(ANU)
KE Day BSc (Hons) (UNE) (until April)
J Dedic BSc (Hons) (Uni of Sydney)
A Delaney BSc (Hons) (Newcastle) (until July)
M Estcourt BSc (Hons) (Monash) A Franklin BSc (Hons)(Wollongong)
J Fisher BSc (Hons) (until March)
Y Foong BSc (UWA) BSc (Hons)
J Forwood BSc (Hons) (James Cook University)
A Franklin BSc (Hons)(Wollongong)
D Green BSc (Hons) ANU
C Haarmann MSc (Heidelburg)
D Halliday BSc (Townsville)
N Hamilton BSc(Hons) (Lincoln University )
E Hamilton-Williams BSc (Hons) (University of Wellington)
N Harley BSc (Hons)
M. Harris BSc Grad Dip
A Henderson BSc (Hons) (NSW)
H Henry BSc (Hons) (Lincoln University Cantebury NZ)
G Herbert BSc (Hons) (Leics UK)
A Hurne BSc (VUW) BSc (Hons) (until June) A Jones BScAgr (Hons) (Syd) (from March)
D Jaccoud BSc (Hons) (ANU)
M Johnson-Saliba BSc (Hons Uni Cape Town) MSc (Uni Cape Town)
T Juelich (Dipl Biol ) (Stuttgart University Germany)
J Jun B Med Sc (Hons) (Sydney)
K Kelleher BSc(Hons) (UNIWA)(until March)
R Khoury BSc (Hons) (Adelaide)
K-J Leck BSc (Hons)
RM Licon Luna BVMed (Univ Baja California Mexico) MEcol (Univ Baja California Mexico)
E Lim B Tech (Hons) (Uni of Auckland NZ)
R Lim BSc(Hons) (Newcastle) (to November)
P Linnett BSc (Hons) BVSc (Sydney)
A Loy BSc (Hons)
T Luu (Cindy) Bmed Sci (Hons) (Sydney)
J Mackenzie BSc (Hons) Lincoln NZ
A Manderson BSc (Hons) (Otago)
S Martin BSc (Hons) University of Otago (Dunedin NZ)
G Maxwell BappSc (Hons) (Canb)
J Melton BSc (Hons) (University of Auckland)
Y Ming (MD West China Uni of Medical Sciences China)
L Miosge BSc (Hons)
K Moerman BMedChem (Hons) (Wollongong)
A Moore BSc (Hons Massey NZ)
J Murphy (BSc (Hons) Canterbury (jointly with RSC)
E O'Neill BSc (Hons)
R Otway, BSc (Hons) (Sydney)
PR Paalangara PhD (Indian Vet Res Inst India) BVSc AH MVSc (Kerala Agr Uni India)
J Pang BM (Luzhou Medical College China) MHSc (Auckland )
P Papathanasiou BSc (Hons) LLB
M Paule BBiotech (Hons)(Flinders University)
S Peterson BSc (Hons) (Murdoch)
J Rayner BSc (Hons) (Otago NZ)
M Regner Dipl Chem (Kaiserslautern Germany) (until June)
A Reynolds BSc(Hons)(Uni Canberra) (to April)
L Rui BM (Wannan Medical College China) MS (Shanxi Medical University China) (until June)
L Rui MS (Shanxi Medical University China) BM (Wannan Medical College China)
B Scott BSc PGDip (UQld)
N Siddon BSc (Hons) (ANU)
L Simson BSc (UC)
T Soboleva MSc (Hons) (Moscow State University USSR)
M Speidel BSc(Hons) (Heidelberg)(from August)
M Stevens BA (Hons)
N Tetlow BSc (Hons)
D Thurbon BSc(Hons) (ANU)
S Titmuss BSc BCompSc MsC (Woll) [SPIRT APAI scholar]
Jun Wang MSc (Weizmann Institute)
Y Wang MB (Beijing Medical University MM (Syd) (from September)
P Warden-Hutton BBiomedSci (Hons) (Griff) [Fenner Merit Scholar]
S Weenink BSc (Hons) (Cantb NZ) (until June)
H Wei M B (China) MSc (Kings College London)
M Weible BSc (Hons) (Uni Michigan)
A Whitbread BSc (Hons) (Qld)
F Willard BSc (Hons) (Victoria University Wellington)
J Woodall BSc (University of Adelaide) BSc (first class Hons) (ANU)
A Wyndham BSc (Hons)
J Young BSc (Hons) ANU Grad Dip Sci Comm (ANU)

MSc Students

M Gustiananda BSc (Bandung) [AUSAID Scholar]
S Yong MSc (Clinical Medicine)
M Taylor BSc

Honours Students

P Barnado BSc (from February
X Chen BSc (from February)
A Eddy BSc (from February)
A Frew BSc (ANU) (from February)
T Gilbert BSc (from January)
R Haddock (until July)
Z Pritchard
S Robbins BSc (until August)
M Sakowska (jointly with BAMBI)
P Tobler BSc (ANU)