Well my girlfriend is Australian so i'm wanting to move to australia anyway. but i want to do a PhD in biomedical science, i'm going to have to apply for one as an overseas student to do one in Aus i think so i'm looking at applying for a scholarship (i cant afford to pay for it). anyone done this before? any advice on the subject?

Have looked at doing a post grad and regardless of scholarships it is a VERY expensive.

Its possible to get fees paid if you're doing research that is of interest for it.

I did a PhD in Aus that was paid for, I paid nothing for Uni fees and got some living allowance. Try googling the JASON website - it lists all post-grad scholarships in Aus. Also check the individual Uni websites.

Good luck.

A PhD is very much an academic qualification, so the value is reflected from the institution where the PhD is gained.........

I did a PhD in the UK, i attended a top institution, so worth it. Choose your Uni very carefully. A PhD from Bath UK is very different from say an ex polytechnic.

In your field i would go for the US or the UK.

Cheers Keith

So a PhD from an Aussie Uni is low class and the equivalent of an ex-UK polytechnic? I don't think so. I agree about choosing your institution for IRS research and academic excellence but to assume a US or UK uni is better is ridiculous. My Physiology PhD from UQ is just as good as if I'd done it in the UK.

Your assumption, you cannot quote me...................


Again your opinion, not mine.

The individual has a choice, my choice may differ from yours, but my outcome may satisfy me but not you, its all about our own realisation of what we want to use our PhD for and where we want to carry out our further research or work?

Cheers Keith

Australia has some good unis but the rankings reflect reserach and man of the universities in Australia lack behind the UK and US.

Doing PHD's is very uncommon here although you can be awarded a salary if you do one.

The uni you choose is not necessarily as important as the supervisor you pick. Do you have any idea of the area of biomedical science you want to do a PhD in? There are so many to choose from. Pick a supervisor that has a very good publication record and also some history of winning NHMRC and ARC grants and who attends conferences regularly. Email them and discuss the topic. Do not mention scholarships at this stage. Get a feel for the supervisor and find out how many students have successfully completed. Talk to those students if you can and find out what their thoughts were. I know a few supervisors who should never be allowed to have any students as they are just too half-assed. Some unis offer overseas scholarships but they are very competitive. If you don't have an H1, or an H2 (i) then you probably won't get into biomed. One way round that is a MSc and publications.

Any idea of which part of the country you'd be looking at?

Only partially true- thought not entirely disagreeing with you. A research degree from any institution is valuable if the research is excellent and ground breaking compared to bland research from a high calibre university...

This is exactly what my opinion is. I'm currently doing my PhD in Melbourne and found my colleagues are doing very good in their fields...though they did not complete their PhD from a top ranked uni. Apart from this, I believe, choosing your supervisor is as important as choosing the uni itself.

To OP: you can send me PM if you have any specific questions!

Thanks for the advice so far. I'm looking at melbourne (where my gf lives) and i would be able to live with her, so i'd even be happy with just a fee remission scholarship if need be.

I have a few areas i'm particularly interested in (cancer biology, virology, proteomics) but i'd take a less inteesting topic if i could go to the right place.

I'm currently doing a masters at the university glasgow (i'm on course for a top grade) and i did my undergrad at bristol (2.1) so hopefuly i'm qualified enough.

I think it seems like talking to possible supervisors is the first thing i should be doing? maybe sending them a cv?

You don't have to take a less interesting topic- you just have to convince a supervisor that your topic is interesting, the first thing to do is look at the potential supervisors in the department/faculties and contact them. Don't send them a CV, email them and have an idea of the kind of research you want to do and then try and get them on side, just a quick few paragraphs with the areas of interest should be enough to whet the appetite. Normally in these circumstances they would email you back saying whether they were interested and forwarding you on to someone they know who might be. I wouldn't email more than 1 or 2 people at a time- it looks bad (at least my friends think so, they're uni lecturers and professors).

Your academic background seems solid enough but it is just a case of finding a suitable super.

Good luck!!

I totally agree with Drell on this one.

I completed my PhD at a Melbourne Uni and I'm now working as a postdoc in cancer research and totally loving it. I would work for my boss regardless of which uni he was at, which goes to show that the people are the most important.

Good luck James and feel free to pm me as well.

Safaet, good luck with your PhD.

mate I thought you enquired about taxi driving or security work when you come to Aus? Nothing wrong with that mate but not exactly using your PhD skills especially a supposedly good PhD