Follow these instructions if you want to apply for one of the following research degrees:
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Find your voice. Create a work of original research that grows your expertise and makes a valuable contribution to society. We offer both masters by research and PhD doctorates, with a simple step-by-step application process.
It’s important you know that this guide is for domestic research degree applications only.
If you’re based overseas and will require a temporary visa, you should visit our step-by-step guide for international research applications.
Go to our international research student application guide
Follow these instructions if you want to apply for one of the following research degrees:
You’re a domestic applicant if you’re one of the following:
You are an international applicant if you will need a temporary student visa to study in Australia.
If you are an international applicant, you should visit our step-by-step guide for international research applications.
A research degree is a masters or doctorate that is mostly made up of researching and writing a single thesis.
We also offer postgraduate degrees made up of different units and classes, however these are known as postgraduate coursework degrees.
If you’re looking to apply for a postgraduate coursework degree, such as a graduate certificate, graduate diploma or masters by coursework, you should visit our application page for postgraduate students.
You can reach out to the Graduate Research School if you have any questions about the research application process.
Email the Graduate Research School
Choose your preferred research course from the list below and read the individual course descriptions:
To be eligible for admission to one of our research courses, you need to meet the entry requirements.
Please note: Even if you do meet the requirements, admission is not guaranteed. Other parts of your application that we'll take into consideration include:
To view the eligibility criteria for higher degree research programs, see section 5 of the Higher Degree Research Regulations.
You may need to demonstrate your English language proficiency if:
You can prove your English proficiency by providing us with evidence of your previous studies or qualifications, or by achieving a certain score in a relevant English language test.
View Appendix C of the Higher Degree Research Regulations for English language requirements for HDR programs.
You can check your eligibility for your chosen research course by viewing its individual entry requirements available in section 5 of the Higher Degree Research Regulations.
You must have one of the following to be eligible for admission to the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD):
You must have one of the following to be eligible for admission to the Doctor of Ministry (DMin):
You must have one of the following to be eligible for admission to the Master of Philosophy (MPhil):
Before you submit an application for admission, you may wish to identify accredited supervisors who are active in your proposed area of research and, if appropriate, discuss your research proposal with them.
It is not mandatory to contact accredited supervisors prior to applying. If you're successful, the University will allocate suitably qualified supervisors to you (refer to section 10 of the Higher Degree Research Regulations).
Should you contact an academic and they indicate they are willing to supervise you, this does not guarantee you will be admitted to the program or that they will be one of your supervisors. The availability of suitable supervisors is assessed as part of your application for admission (refer to section 10 of the Higher Degree Research Regulations).
Supervisors normally are not required to be at the same campus location.
To discuss possible supervisors, please contact the Faculty Associate Dean (Research) of the Faculty to which you will apply for admission:
| Faculty | |
|---|---|
| Faculty Education and Arts | FEA.HDR@acu.edu.au |
| Faculty of Health Sciences | FHS.ADR@acu.edu.au |
| Faculty of Law and Business | LawBusinessResearch@acu.edu.au |
| Faculty of Theology and Philosophy | ADRes.FTP@acu.edu.au |
We are accepting applications from prospective domestic and international candidates.
Candidates may commence prior to the census date in either Research Term A or Research Term C.
If you are applying for candidature and a stipend scholarship, refer to the application deadline listed on the research scholarships page.
If you are applying for candidature only, you can submit your application at any time, though you are strongly encouraged to submit at least 12 weeks prior to the start of your preferred Research Term.
To begin building your application, download and complete our HDR candidature application form.
This form contains application information for:
Once you have completed your application form, make sure you have attached certified copies of all the necessary application and identification documents.
These documents include:
Any copies of transcripts, birth certificates, citizenship certificates and passports must be certified. A certified copy is a photocopy of an original document that has been "certified" as a true copy.
Documents can be certified by a Justice of the Peace (JP) or an authorised officer such as a public notary who is not related to you.
The officer must include his/her professional registration number (if applicable) when certifying your documents.
You must also provide two referee reports with your application.
To do this, download our referee report template and complete Section 1.
Download our referee report template (Word 94KB)
Once you've done that, forward the form to your referees for them to complete the remainder of the form and send to the Graduate Research School by email (grad.research@acu.edu.au).
Please note: It is your responsibility to ensure that your referees return the reports to the Graduate Research School. We won't consider your application until two referee reports have been received.
When you have completed everything in your application (and rechecked everything to be sure), please send your application to the Graduate Research School at grad.research@acu.edu.au.
After you've submitted your application, it's time for us to assess it. Bear with us - there's a lot to process. It normally takes around two months for an application to be assessed. You'll receive confirmation of your application and we'll let you know the outcome as soon as we can.
ACU develops innovative solutions to issues impacting human dignity and the common good.
Learn moreScholarships can support you while you study and provide access to the resources you need to pursue your research.
Learn moreThe Graduate Research School supports our candidates and cultivates the enriching graduate research experience at ACU.
Learn moreUnsure what some of these words mean? We’ve put together a glossary to explain our technical terms in plain English.
View glossary