• Section 1 - Purpose and Scope
• Scope
• Section 2 - Definitions
• Section 3 - Policy Statement
• Part A - Selection Policy
• Part B - Work
• Part C - Relocation Allowance (Australian Postgraduate Award Only)
• Part D - Thesis Allowance (Australian Postgraduate Award Only)
• Section 4 - Application Scoring
• Qualifications
• Category 1: Australian Research Honours (First Class) Or Equivalent
• Category 2: Australian Research Honours (Second Class, Division 1) or Equivalent, Or Masters By Thesis
• Category 3: Honours/Masters With Reduced Research Component (< 25% Research For Honours; At Least 25% but <50% For Masters)
• Category 4: Masters with Reduced Research Component (<25% Research)
• Category 5: Masters/Phd Qualifier At SCU Or Other Australian University
• Category 6: Coursework Masters/Honours
• Category 7: Other Post-Graduate Non-Research Qualifications
• Category 8: Creative and Performing Arts Post-Graduate Qualification
• Category 9: Publications
• Creative Works Equivalences
• Category 10: Referees' Reports
• Category 11: Bonus Points
• Section 5 -

Section 1 - Purpose and Scope

(1) This Policy establishes the University's selection principles and conditions for Postgraduate Research Scholarships, and research and thesis allowances for Australian Postgraduate Awards in accordance with the Commonwealth Scholarships Guidelines (Research) 2012.

Scope

(2) This Policy applies to Postgraduate Research Scholarship applicants and recipients.

Section 2 - Definitions

(3) Postgraduate Research Scholarship

1. means Commonwealth funded Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) and International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (IPRS) and University funded equivalent scholarships, including the Southern Cross University Postgraduate Research Scholarship and other grant-funded postgraduate research scholarships.

(4) Removal expenses

1. means the cost of removalist services used in order to move the students personal belongings.

(5) Travel expenses

1. means the cost of:
   1. air, train or coach travel for the Australian Postgraduate Award scholarship holder and their dependants.
   2. hotel and/or fuel expenses for your car.

Section 3 - Policy Statement

Part A - Selection Policy

(6) The University will award Postgraduate Research Scholarships in accordance with the Commonwealth Scholarships Guidelines (Research), hereafter referred to as "the Guidelines".

(7) A candidate will not be selected for a Postgraduate Research Scholarship unless the University is satisfied that the candidate meets, or will meet before the Scholarship payment is made, the eligibility criteria for Postgraduate Research Scholarships, as set out in the Guidelines.

(8) Applications will be ranked by the Scholarships Sub-Committee in order of merit against the University's selection criteria at Section 4 - of this Policy to provide a recommendation of scholarship allocation to the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research).

(9) Applications will not be considered where the documentary evidence provided in the application is insufficient or incomplete.

(10) University policy and application, selection and offer procedures and associated information and forms will be available on the scholarship advertisement on the University web site. For Postgraduate Commonwealth Scholarships (Research), a link will also be provided to the Guidelines on the Department of Industry website.

(11) The Scholarship Sub-Committee will rank applications according to their merit to provide a recommendation of scholarship allocation to the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research). The highest ranked applications will be offered Commonwealth Postgraduate Research Scholarships at the discretion of the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research). Remaining applications deemed meritorious of award by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research), will be offered University equivalent scholarships where possible.

(12) The University reserves the right to make offers for SCU-funded Postgraduate Research Scholarships out of round where candidates are deemed meritorious of an award. Such candidates are required to apply for a Postgraduate Research Scholarship in the next available scholarship round. In the event that the candidate is not successful for a Commonwealth funded scholarship, the SCU funded scholarship will continue.

(13) The University will not take over the payment of a scholarship awarded to a candidate by another University, where the candidate transfers to Southern Cross University. The transferring candidate may apply for an SCU Postgraduate Research Scholarship at the next available opportunity and will be considered on the basis of the University's selection criteria and in relation to other applicants. Such candidates will be eligible for only the balance of the initial scholarship awarded by the other University, in accordance with the Guidelines.

(14) Candidates who are awarded a scholarship, but withdraw from their program of study or are cancelled by the University for failure to re-enrol or pay outstanding fees and charges, and later re-enter, will not be able to access their initial scholarship. They must apply again for a Postgraduate Research Scholarship and if successful, will be paid only the balance of the initial scholarship.

(15) Candidates who are awarded a scholarship and defer or take leave of absence in accordance with the relevant Academic Policy for their degree will have their scholarship held for the period of deferment or leave and may take up the scholarship on their return to study, subject to proof of continuing eligibility under the Guidelines.

(16) Candidates who are awarded a scholarship are required to comply with all University policies, including those relating to satisfactory academic progress. The University will monitor academic performance and may terminate a Postgraduate Research Scholarship if a candidate is in breach of any of its policies or is identified as making unsatisfactory progress.

(17) The expectation is that a Higher Degrees Research student will normally study full-time. In some cases, a Higher Degrees Research student can apply to receive scholarships on a part-time basis if there are compelling reasons (such as the need to provide full-time care of children, disabled, sick, injured or the elderly), continuing eligibility is subject to satisfactory academic progress.

(18) Candidates who are found to have provided misleading or inaccurate information to the University will be immediately re-assessed for their entitlement to the Postgraduate Research Scholarship. The University will notify the Department of Industry of the suspected offence in the case of Australian Postgraduate Awards (APA) and International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (IPRS).

Part B - Work

(19) A student may undertake work outside the research degree subject to the approval of their supervisors, School Director and Head of School. International students must ensure this is consistent with the conditions of the student visa.

(20) A supervisor will not approve a student undertaking work unless he/she is satisfied that the work will not interfere with the student's study program. The work must be documented in all progress reports and regularly monitored.

(21) Postgraduate Research Scholarship students must not be receiving a top up scholarship or other additional scholarship/salary to undertake their research degree which is greater than 75% of the Postgraduate Research Scholarship stipend rate. Students receiving more than 75% of the Postgraduate Research Scholarship stipend rate will have their primary scholarship cancelled. Income from sources unrelated to the research degree will not be taken into account.

(22) Work commitments will not be accepted as grounds for an extension to scholarship or an extension to candidature.

(23) A research degree student cannot be required to undertake employment at the university as a condition of their candidature or scholarship

(24) It is recommended that full-time research degree students undertake paid employment for no more than 8 hours per week or for a total of the equivalent of 8 hours per week over a 12 month period. The hours of work include marking and preparation associated with part-time teaching duties.

Part C - Relocation Allowance (Australian Postgraduate Award Only)

(25) Southern Cross University will provide a one-off payment of up to $2000 for the Removal Expenses and/or Travel Expenses of an Australian Postgraduate Award scholarship student where it has been necessary for the student (and any accompanying dependents) to relocate (the relocation allowance).

(26) Applicant must submit a complete relocation allowance form.

(27) To be eligible to apply for the relocation allowance students must:

1. be an Australian Postgraduate Award scholarship holder, domestic or international;
2. submit the application for relocation allowance within 3 months of commencement;
3. submit original, hardcopy receipts/invoices; and
4. be required to relocate in order to study the research higher degree at SCU.

(28) Only one application for relocation allowance may be submitted per student, therefore claims for student and dependents must be made together.

(29) The relocation allowance does not cover:

1. the cost of visa application fees for the student or their dependants;
2. multiple trips, only the cost for one journey can be claimed;
3. the retrospective cost of any removal or travel expenses incurred before the student was offered a place to study the Higher Degree Research award at SCU.

Part D - Thesis Allowance (Australian Postgraduate Award Only)

(30) As per the Rules Relating to Awards Rule 7 Masters by Thesis, Rule 8 Professional Doctorates and Rule 9 Doctor of Philosophy, candidates are not required to submit hard bound copies for their final thesis for graduation. Therefore, no thesis allowance is payable.

Section 4 - Application Scoring

(31) A point-scoring scheme objectively ranks applicants for Postgraduate Research Scholarships. It aims to identify as objectively as possible the applicants most likely to complete a high quality higher degree research thesis. This point-scoring scheme does not take into account other considerations that may be used in the allocation of these scholarships such as the relationship of the applicant's proposed research with the strategic research priorities of the university.

(32) This scheme includes points for each aspect of an applicant's prior research training, research publications (or creative equivalent), and other research experience.

Qualifications

(33) Most Postgraduate Research Scholarship applicants seek to commence a PhD degree, with a number of others seeking Masters by Thesis or Professional Doctorate.

(34) Australian Government guidelines require a university to assign Australian Postgraduate Awards preferentially to 1st class Honours graduates or equivalent. An Australian 1st class Honours qualification is thus the benchmark against which all other qualifications are ranked.

(35) Although points are allocated in this scheme to applicants with lesser qualifications than 1st class Honours, Australian Postgraduate Awards and International Postgraduate Research Scholarships will not be awarded to any applicant who fails to demonstrate at least 1st class Honours equivalence.

Category 1: Australian Research Honours (First Class) Or Equivalent

(36) Equivalent qualifications are determined by the following criteria:

1. The qualification includes at least 25% of one academic year of research that is reported in a final thesis/dissertation (the year may include seminar presentation, proposal, literature review and/or advanced research methodology coursework units).
2. The research component of the qualification must be formally assessed (separate to any coursework), as being of outstanding quality. For example, graded at the highest possible grade, or ungraded with examiners' reports supplied, in which the thesis is specifically described by examiners in terms indicative of the standard normally expected of a first-class Honours thesis (e.g. 'exceptional', 'outstanding', 'remarkable' or rank the thesis in the top 10% of contributions in the field, etc.).

Points

(37) 20 points are awarded under Category 1.

Category 2: Australian Research Honours (Second Class, Division 1) or Equivalent, Or Masters By Thesis

(38) Equivalent qualifications are determined by the following criteria:

1. The Honours or equivalent qualification includes at least 25 % of one academic year of research that is reported in a final thesis/dissertation. The Masters qualification includes at least 50 % of one academic year of research that is reported in a final thesis/dissertation (the year may include seminar presentation, proposal, literature review and/or advanced research methodology coursework units).
2. If graded, the research component of the qualification achieved the second highest level possible.
3. Includes ungraded Research Masters (not 'outstanding' but assessed as at least a 'satisfactory' Research Masters).

Points

(39) 18 points are awarded under Category 2.

Category 3: Honours/Masters With Reduced Research Component (< 25% Research For Honours; At Least 25% but <50% For Masters)

(40) Equivalent qualifications are determined by the following criteria:

1. The Honours or equivalent qualification includes a research component but this component is of less than 25% of one academic year of research that is reported in a final thesis/dissertation/project. The Masters qualification less than 50% of one academic year of research that is reported in a final thesis/dissertation/project (the year may include seminar presentation, proposal, literature review and/or advanced research methodology coursework units).
2. The grades awarded for this reduced research component are to be at the level above 'satisfactory' or 'pass'.
3. Normally, at least 25% is the minimum research content for a Honours qualification for direct admission into PhD. However, some mixed-format Honours degrees in various fields may award 'degrees with Honours' with research/project components of less than 25%. They may be included here, if they normally qualify for direct entry into PhD in that discipline. Outstanding examiners' reports on the research component could raise the score to Category 2 if recommended by the Scholarships Sub-Committee.

Points

(41) 14 points are awarded under Category 3.

Category 4: Masters with Reduced Research Component (<25% Research)

(42) Equivalent qualifications are determined by the following criteria:

1. The qualification includes a research component but this component is of less than 25% of one academic year of research and is reported in a final thesis/dissertation/project (the year may include seminar presentation, proposal, literature review and/or advanced research methodology coursework units).
2. The grades awarded for this reduced research component are at the level of 'satisfactory' or 'pass'.

Points

(43) 12 points are awarded under Category 4.

Category 5: Masters/Phd Qualifier At SCU Or Other Australian University

(44) A Qualifier must include a research component in which a small research project is formally reported.

(45) As this course does qualify the applicant for direct entry into a postgraduate program, it is increased in value relative to coursework Masters.

Points

(46) 10 points are awarded under Category 5.

Category 6: Coursework Masters/Honours

(47) One full-time equivalent academic year (post-undergraduate).

(48) Less than 25% research component.

Points

(49) 8 points are awarded under Category 6.

Category 7: Other Post-Graduate Non-Research Qualifications

(50) For example a Graduate Diploma.

Points

(51) 4 points are awarded under Category 7.

Category 8: Creative and Performing Arts Post-Graduate Qualification

(52) Post-graduate Diploma in Arts to be ranked by Head of School of Arts and Social Sciences on advice from Director, Higher Degrees Research Training, in appropriate School, Research Entity or Special Research Centre. Some may be considered equivalent to Masters by Research or Honours — the guiding principle will be the amount of research, the form of its presentation, and examination.

Points

(53) 2 points are awarded under Category 8.

Category 9: Publications

Publications/creative works

(54) A maximum of five publications/creative works in total will be considered toward the applicants final score as part of their application. All publications listed must meet the eligibility criteria for one of the publication types below and will be verified according to the Higher Education Research Data Collection (HERDC) Guidelines (http://scu.edu.au/research/index.php/146 ). Please note that publications of up to ten years from their publication date will be considered. Publications older than ten years will not be counted. In addition to this, the applicant is required to provide all of the documentary evidence for each publication listed to ensure it meets the criteria of the respective categories below.

Points

(55) 2 points are awarded under clause (54).

Book

(56) Book must be a major work of scholarship, offered for sale, have an ISBN, be written by a single author or joint authors who share responsibility for the book, have been published by a commercial publisher or peer reviewed if published online only.

(57) Verification documentation required:

1. contents, preface and introduction and pages showing all bibliographic information (ISBN, authors, publishers, all dates referring to copyright, publication, printing and distribution).

Points

(58) 6 points are awarded under clause (56).

Book Chapter

(59) Book chapter in Research Book must be a contribution consisting of substantially new material, to an edited compilation in which the material is subject to editorial scrutiny. It must be in a book offered for sale, have an ISBN and have been published by a commercial publisher, or peer reviewed if published online only.

(60) Verification documentation required:

1. book chapter, contents, preface and introduction and pages showing all bibliographic information (ISBN, authors, publishers, all dates referring to copyright, publication, printing and distribution).

Points

(61) 5 points are awarded under clause (59).

Refereed Journal Articles

(62) Refereed Journal Articles must be a research article published in a scholarly peer reviewed journal with an ISSN and listed as being refereed/peer reviewed in Ulrichs' database (http://ulrichsweb.serialssolutions.com ).

(63) Verification documentation required:

1. article or post-print of article / contribution, pages showing bibliographic information (journal title, dates where not provided in the article or post print), byline, evidence of being refereed/peer reviewed (e.g. a copy of the Basic Description report for the journal from Ulrichs' database).

Points

(64) 5 points are awarded under clause (62).

Other peer reviewed research documents

(65) Other peer reviewed research documents in the public domain.

(66) Verification documentation required:

1. article, contents, preface and relevant bibliographic details (ISBN, title, editor, authors, publisher, dates), proof of national or international significance if applicable, evidence that document has been peer reviewed.

Points

(67) 2 points are awarded under clause (65).

Non refereed works

(68) Non refereed works, conference abstracts (refereed or non-refereed), papers, or other works which have been submitted

Points

(69) 0 points are awarded under clause (68).

Creative Works Equivalences

(70) The following information will be required in order to verify these submissions.

(71) Please detail this information if applicable to your submission:

1. Publisher (if applicable)
2. Place and date of publication
3. Type of work (e.g. interactive video installation, website, novel etc.)
4. Extent (e.g. size, dimensions, duration, number of images/works)
5. Standard number (e.g. ISBN, ISSN, ISMN)
6. Relevant web site links
7. Other notes (if applicable) (e.g. venue name and type, venue commissioner, role of creator, selection process for creative work e.g. competition, application process etc.)

Visual Art

Contemporary Music

Creative Writing

Category 10: Referees' Reports

(72) Referees' Reports include the following question and the indicated responses attract the indicated points:

1. In comparison with their peers, how would you rate the potential of this candidate to complete a program of post-graduate research and produce a high quality thesis in English?

Category 11: Bonus Points

(73) In addition to the points indicated under the identified Categories 1—10, when the following circumstances are met, the following bonus points may be awarded:

Section 5 -