Faculties of Science atThe University of Western Australia

Science Research Degrees

Shaun Wellbourne-Wood

Overseas Development Manager, Faculty of Life and Physical Sciences and Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences

University of Western Australia

About UWA

• The oldest and most prestigious university in WA (established 1911)

• A member of the Group of Eight research intensive universities

• Consistently ranked in the top 50 science universities in the world (2011, ranked 33 in the SJT world university rankings for life sciences and agricultural sciences)

• Prominently a science university (around 50% of all undergraduates study science, 75% of post graduate research is in the sciences)

How UWA performs in the sciences

• Focus on research (around $160 million in research income annually, around $120 million to NAS, LPS, MD)

• Overall 112 in the SJT, and 33rd in the Life Sciences and Agricultural Sciences category, the highest in Australia

• Of the total research income funds allocated to Australian higher education institutions, UWA receives the fifth highest allocation of national competitive grants in Australia (per capita)

• Lowest staff to student ratio of any Australian University 16:1 (Curtin 24.4, Murdoch 23.3, ECU 24.5)

• In 2010 UWA enrolled 81.4% of the State's top 5% of school-leavers

• Around 50% of total UWA enrolments are studying one of the sciences (LPS, NAS, ECM,MD)

• UWA research income per FTA is around $155k (Murdoch 86K, Curtin 63K, ECU 28K… then National average in $92K)

How important is Science to UWA

Excellence in Research for Australia 2010 National Report (ERA)

For Australia…

• attract more than $6.5 billion in research income,

• sealed more than 650 patents, have

• over $350 million in commercial income

• constitute around two thirds of Australia’s total research output.

For UWA

• UWA rated either 4 or 5 (above world standard) in 40 of the fields of research (Murdoch 11, Curtin 9, ECU 1)

• Over 80% of these came from the sciences.

• UWA achieves this research success with comparably much fewer staff than most Go8

2009 UWA research income by faculty (000’s)

UWA Sciences

• Agriculture

• Agricultural Economics

• Anatomy and Human Biology

• Animal Biology

• Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences

• Earth and Environment

• Food Sciences

• Forensic Sciences

• Computer Sciences

• Mathematics and Statistical Sciences

• Engineering Sciences

• Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences

• Minerals and Energy

• Physics

• Plant Biology

• Psychology

• Sports Science, Exercise and Health

Preparing for a PhD in Australia

• Understanding the Australian academic context

• Knowing about the university

• Communicating effectively with an Australian University

• Knowing how to prepare a research proposal

Preparing to come to UWA

• Planning to study overseas is a major decision and you should consider your options carefully

• Important to appreciate that we want you to come and study with us. Requirements such as ‘ILETS scores’ and ‘preparing a research proposal’ are there to protect you as much as the University

• Getting to your overseas University is essentially a 2 stage process. – Finding a supervisor– Preparing your research proposal.

Finding a Supervisor

• What should I write in my application?

– Remember this is probably your first introduction to the University so think carefully about what you write.

– Avoid unhelpful statements like “I would like to study agriculture” it is a big field and this suggests you have not thought carefully enough. Similarly, “I wish to study agriculture and specifically soil science” whilst more helpful is still too broad.

– Try to be as specific as possible, remember that your proposal is likely to be read first time by an admissions tutor or postgraduate support officer, your potential supervisor may not see it

With thanks to Dr Chris Phillips, Newcastle University, UK

Finding a Supervisor

• What should I write in my application?– You can help the admissions tutor by doing some of the work

yourself. • Use the web pages• Use any personal contacts• Make sure that what you want to do fits with the expertise and strengths of your proposed department. If it does not then look elsewhere!

• Should read something like this– “I wish to undertake PhD study in Agricultural Science and

specifically in Soil Science. I am especially interested in soil organic matter dynamics. Given the possible impacts of climate change and the need to understand C sequestration and mineralisation processes I see this as a critically important area of soils research. I am therefore interested in the modelling and biogeochemical cycling of C in soils. This appears to fit well with the work of the Terrestrial Ecosystems Research Group led by Professor Smith”.

With thanks to Dr Chris Phillips, Newcastle University, UK

Outline Proposal

1. When you apply for a research degree you will usually be asked to supply a short summary of your research topic.

2. This is because we need to know (in outline) what it is you want to do so that we can decide whether we can offer you the high-quality research supervision and the resources that are needed to support you.

3. The research proposal also helps the University to assess your application and to ensure that the research proposed is appropriate and realistic and that we have someone suitably qualified who can supervise your work.

4. If accepted you will have 6 months after commencement to refine and complete your research proposal. You will be able to do this in collaboration with your supervisor(s).

Modified, University of Newcastle , UK

Outline Proposal Template

• Title of proposed project – A short statement of the topic you would like to

investigate

• What are you setting out to do?– Describe briefly what you would propose to do in the

research

• Why are you attempting to do this? – Explain why you think it is important to conduct this

particular research project

Modified, University of Newcastle , UK

Outline Proposal Template

• Are you aware of previous research in this area? – Give a brief statement of what other research you know has

been done in this area with reference to key works. It also helps if you can draw on any of your previous work (eg a Masters dissertation) in the research proposal. Particularly important if you have published

• Why do you think that it is appropriate to undertake this research at UWA? – Outline any academics or research groups at UWA that you feel

are relevant to your research

• Bibliography

– A brief bibliography should demonstrate your familiarity with literature in the field you wish research

Modified, University of Newcastle , UK

Outline Proposal Template

• What data will you need for the research?

– Briefly outline the data you need and the sources you will use indicating whether the data comes from published sources or if new experimental work is needed

• What techniques are you proposing to use to do the research? – Say how you would go about doing the research in terms of

the methods that you would use for example to collect data and analyse it

• Why do you think that these techniques are appropriate?

– Say why you think it is appropriate to use these methods

Modified, University of Newcastle , UK

Outline Proposal Template

• Are you familiar with these techniques or would you need further training? – Briefly summarise your experience in using these

techniques and identify any areas where you think that you would benefit from further training

• What problems might you encounter in the course of the research? – Think of any problems that you might encounter during

the research project and how you might go about overcoming them

Modified, University of Newcastle , UK