Domestic research scholarships

Graduate researchers who have Australian citizenship, Australian permanent residency or New Zealand citizenship may be eligible for a domestic research scholarship.

Explore the scholarships on this page to learn more about their value, eligibility requirements and how to apply.

Applications for Research Period 1 2026 open on 28 July 2025.

All scholarship applicants must nominate a Research Focus Outline in their application in order to be considered. 

About the scholarships

Eligibility

To be eligible for one of these scholarships, you must:

  • be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or New Zealand citizen
  • meet the University’s academic entrance requirements for enrolment into the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree
  • nominate a Research-focus Outline as part of your application
  • enrol as a full-time student (part-time awards may be available for compelling social or medical reasons).

Unless otherwise indicated:

  • all scholarships listed are only for applicants who are accepted into the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree
  • all applicants must have an average final year or Honours year grade of 75% (VU Standard) or equivalent.

You are not eligible for one of these scholarships if you are receiving another equivalent award, scholarship or salary to undertake the proposed program (“equivalent” stipend is regarded as more than $21,000 per annum).

How to apply

Applications for Research Period 1 2026 will open on 28 July 2025. 

  1. Select your research-focus outline (RFO)
  2. Contact the principal supervisor to discuss your interest in and suitability for the research topic
  3. Read the Application Guide for Graduate Research Stipend Scholarships (to come)
  4. Refer to the Apply for Graduate Research  page and follow the steps outlined to submit your application
  5. Use the Institute, course code, FoR code and RFO number of your selected RFO to assist you with your application

Please ensure you include all required documentation for admission and scholarship with your application.

Notification of outcomes

Scholarship rounds are competitive and we estimate that applicants will require the equivalent of 80 to 85 on the VU grading scale to be considered for a PhD stipend scholarship. 

The number of stipend scholarships awarded is determined by the University funds available in any given year. 

We receive a large number of high-quality applications and are not able to provide all eligible applicants with a scholarship. Due to the volume of applications received, we are unable to provide individual feedback on applications or advise on what scores applicants received against each of the criteria. 

All applicants will normally be notified of outcomes within two months of the application closing date.