Applications are invited from suitably qualified international students for scholarships to undertake the degree of Master by Research or Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Western Australia.

The purpose of the IPRS and the UWA SIRF scheme is to attract top quality international postgraduate students to areas in which the University has specialised research strengths and to support Australia’s research effort. Successful applicants can expect to become members of a research team working under the direction of senior researchers and in an area which has attracted external resources.

Applications for international postgraduate research scholarships at UWA are rated according to the following criteria: (a) Academic achievement; (b) English language achievement; (c) Research training achievement; and (d) Proposed research environment. Allocation of scholarships is the outcome of a competitive ranking and selection process in which applications are scored and ranked by Schools, Faculties and the University Scholarships Committee, according to these common criteria and on the basis of evidence provided.

International Postgraduate Research Scholarships (IPRS) and Scholarships for International Research Fees (SIRF)

The International Postgraduate Research Scholarships (IPRS) are funded by the Australian Government through the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research (DIISR) and the Scholarships for International Research Fees (SIRF) are funded by The University of Western Australia.

Both of these scholarships cover tuition fees and health insurance premiums only. The University provides a University Postgraduate Award International Students (UPAIS) or a University International Stipend (UIS) living allowance scholarship of $A22,500 per annum (in 2010, to be confirmed by DEEWR) for successful IPRS and SIRF applicants and an allowance for thesis production costs. Travel and relocation costs are the responsibility of the applicant.

UWA Safety Net Top-Up Scholarships for IPRS awardees

UWA Safety Net Top-Up Scholarships valued at $3,500pa for 2010 were awarded to successful IPRS applicants without other Top-Ups of $10,000pa or more. The UWA Top-Ups were introduced as a temporary measure to raise the minimum postgraduate scholarship to at least $25,000 pa due to the Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) rate not being raised for 2009. The UPA(IS) and the UIS International living allowance stipends are set at the same stipend as the APA rate. The combined value of the UPA(IS) and Top-Up stipend is $26,000pa in 2010. The final Safety Net Top-Up annual stipend rate will be determined when the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations confirms the 2010 APA rate in December 2009.

Please note that the award and value of the UWA Safety Net Top-Up stipend for each year is wholly within the discretion of the Scholarships Committee. The Committee will take various factors into consideration, especially the value of the APA stipend set by the Australian Federal Government. It will be reviewed annually and the annual value may be varied up or down in subsequent years from the amount initially quoted in the year of commencement.

In the recent Federal Budget it was announced that the APA stipend will be increased to $22,500pa for 2010, and the Scholarships Committee will reduce the Top-Up for 2010 to $3500pa in the light of the APA increase. The UPA(IS) will be increased to $22,500pa for 2010 in line with the APA increase. The combined total UPA(IS) plus UWA Top-Up living allowance stipend will be $26,000pa for 2010. The UWA Top-Up stipend for 2011 and later years will be subject to change and may be further reduced if there are future increases to the APA and UPA(IS) stipends.

SIRF Safety Net Top-Up Scholarships for SIRF awardees

SIRF Top-Up Scholarships valued at the same rate as the UWA Safety Net Top-Ups ($3,500pa for 2010) were awarded to successful SIRF applicants. SIRF Top-Ups are funded by the applicants’ School and/or Faculty, and paid in conjunction with the University International Stipend (UIS) living allowance scholarship. The combined value of the UIS and SIRF Safety Net Top-Up stipend is $26,000pa in 2010. SIRF Safety Net Top-Up scholarships are not available to students in receipt of a SIRF scholarship only and who have not been awarded a UIS living allowance scholarship. They are also only automatically available to SIRF scholarship holders whose scholarships commence from 1 January 2010.

SIRF Safety Net Top-Up Scholarships will be reduced to $3500pa for 2010, in line with the reduction of the UWA Safety Net Top-Ups and the increase to the UPA(IS) and UIS stipends to $22,500pa for 2010. The combined total UIS plus SIRF Top-Up living allowance stipend will be $26,000pa for 2010. The SIRF Safety Net Top-Up stipend for 2011 and later years will be subject to change and may be further reduced if there are future increases to the UIS and UPA(IS) stipends.

Eligibility Criteria for IPRS and SIRF Scholarships awarded by UWA

IPRS and SIRF Scholarships will only be available to those applicants who:

• Have completed a four year undergraduate degree at first-class honours level or equivalent. An applicant may be disadvantaged if the Scholarships Committee cannot make a comparison with The University of Western Australia’s standards, particularly in relation to the class of Honours achieved, ie first or second class Honours;

• Intend to enrol as a full-time candidate for a Master’s degree by research or a PhD degree;

• Will be commencing their course in the semester following the scholarship round in which they have successfully applied;

• Provide evidence of achieving English language proficiency to the following standards:

* IELTS SCORE OF 6.5, with speaking and listening no less than 6.0, and with reading and writing no less than 6.5;

* Paper-based TOEFL score of 580 or above (Computer-based TOEFL test is not acceptable) with a Test of Spoken English score of 45 and a TWE (Test of Written English) of 4.5;

* iBT TOEFL internet-based test score of 95 with 22 for reading and listening, 24 for speaking and 23 for writing;

* Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English: C grade;

* Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English: B grade;

* UWA CELT Bridging Program – ‘B+’ grade or above

dentification of suitable School or Centre, supervisors and area of research interest

Other information is also available on the following UWA websites:

• A list of Faculties, Schools and Centres may be found by following the links from: http://directory.uwa.edu.au/structure

• A list of Postgraduate Contacts within specific Schools and Discipline Groups may be found at: http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/page/41554

• You can also search for UWA staff with particular areas of research expertise by looking at: http://directory.uwa.edu.au/specialists/

• The UWA online Postgraduate Handbook is available at http://handbooks.uwa.edu.au/postgraduate and contains information for each Faculty and other general information for postgraduate students

More information:  http://www.scholarships.uwa.edu.au/home/postgrad/international/iprs