Funding opportunities for your research degree
Macquarie University provides a range of generous scholarships to support exceptional graduate researchers. All scholarships are considered and awarded through a competitive process.
Scholarships are available for study in the following courses:
- Graduate Diploma of Research (GradDipRes) (for domestic and international students)
- Master of Research (MRes) (for domestic and international students)
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) courses (for domestic and international students)
- Bundle offers of Master of Research and PhD (MRes + PhD) (for domestic students).
Scholarships may include one or more of the following:
- tuition fee offset
- living allowance (stipend)
- top up living allowance (additional funding on top of base stipend)
- fixed sum or one-off payment
- Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) and/or visa application costs for international students.
Domestic students who are offered entry to an MRes or PhD will have the cost of their tuition fees covered by the Australian Government’s Research Training Program (RTP) Fees Offset Scholarship. This scholarship is administered by individual universities on behalf of the Department of Education.
Research training pathway scholarships
Macquarie's unique research training pathway includes the Graduate Diploma of Research, MRes and the PhD. Dedicated scholarships are available to support students progressing through the pathway.
The Graduate Diploma of Research scholarship, valued at $5000 per session, is awarded to high-performing domestic and international students who meet the eligibility criteria below.
Commencing session
The eligible student:
- enters the program with a Macquarie University WAM ≥ 80 (or equivalent GPA of ≥ 6/7)
- is enrolled full-time as at the census date in their commencing session.
Subsequent session
The eligible student:
- receives a minimum overall WAM ≥ 80 in their commencing session
- is enrolled full-time at the census date in their subsequent session.
Note: Eligibility for the scholarship in each session is confirmed 1–2 weeks after the session census date. Successful students are notified by the Graduate Research Academy via email.
Eligible domestic and international students progressing from the Graduate Diploma of Research to the Master of Research will be considered for a tuition fee offset and stipend scholarship to the value of $38,500 per annum in 2025, indexed annually.
Eligibility
Students are:
- assessed and awarded on academic merit
- competitively ranked based on the overall WAM of their Graduate Diploma of Research units
- the top ranked students (with the highest WAMs).
Note:
- exempt units will not be counted for calculation of the WAM
- the total number of scholarships awarded each year is dependent upon the scholarship budget approved by the University.
The MRes to PhD scholarships will be awarded through a competitive ranking process.
The three-year scholarship includes:
- a tuition fee offset
- a stipend valued at $38,500 per annum in 2025, indexed annually.
See more information about MRes progression to PhD.
Scholarship Rounds
Major scholarship round dates for Session 1 2025.
| Scholarship name | Applications open | Applications close |
|---|---|---|
| International Research Scholarship Round | Monday 17 June 2024 | Wednesday 31 July 2024 |
| International Road to Research Scholarship | Monday 17 June 2024 | Thursday 31 October 2024 |
| Domestic Research Scholarship Round | Sunday 1 September 2024 | Thursday 31 October 2024 |
| Domestic Road to Research Scholarship | Sunday 1 September 2024 | Thursday 31 October 2024 |
Applying for a scholarship
Applicants for graduate research scholarships at Macquarie University must meet the minimum entry criteria to the relevant course of study and should review the available courses listed for each scholarship on the scholarship search tool when considering their application.
Macquarie University assesses and ranks applicants based primarily on academic merit and research experience. Alignment of the proposed research topic with the University’s research priorities and the strength of the supervisory team may also be considered.
Learn more about the scholarship rating criteria.
Specific eligibility criteria apply to research pathway scholarships, which support Macquarie University students as they progress through the research pathway.
Macquarie University offers a range of research scholarships.
- Commonwealth funded Research Training Program (RTP) for domestic students and International Research Training Program (iRTP) for international students.
- Macquarie University Research Excellence Scholarship (MQRES) for domestic students and International Macquarie University Research Excellence (iMQRES) for international students
- Macquarie University Research Excellence Scholarships (MQRES) for Indigenous Australians
- Project-specific scholarships advertised for a specific project with a specific supervisor
- Externally funded or co-funded scholarships.
Use the scholarship search tool to search for all Macquarie University scholarships. You can also search our external scholarship opportunities that are funded or co-funded by external partners.
Note: Official Macquarie University research scholarships are only listed on the Macquarie University web pages.
New applicants to Macquarie University should follow the steps on our How to Apply page.
Applicants who are already enrolled (commenced the Macquarie PhD program in session 2 2024 only) or have received a valid Macquarie University letter of offer for a graduate research program within the last six months, must:
- download our guidelines on how to submit a Scholarship Only application
- submit an online Graduate Research Scholarship Only application form with supporting documents
- indicate the scholarship reference number under the scholarship details question.