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Curtin University
Research

Guidelines for research students

Preparing your application for candidacy

A guide to preparing your application for candidacy

This guide was originally developed with the assistance of a Distance Education New Initiatives Development Grant in 1998 from Curtin University, with Professor Léonie Rennie as Project Team Leader. The team comprised Darrell Fisher, Joan Gribble and Peter Taylor from the Science and Mathematics Education Centre, and Jill Downie and Pat Rapley from the (then) School of Nursing. The materials have been revised and extended by Léonie Rennie and Tania Lerch. This guide contains advice for completing the Application for Candidacy form as well as preparing the Summary of Proposed Research Program.

Download: A Guide to Preparing Your Application for Candidacy

If these materials are used in another context, please acknowledge them as "Rennie, L. J., & Gribble, J. (2006). A guide to preparing your application for candidacy (Rev. ed.). Perth, Western Australia: Curtin University".

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Guidelines for preparing the candidacy proposal - Humanities and the Centre for Aboriginal Studies

The Humanities Office of Research and Graduate Studies (R&GS) runs workshops throughout the year. The Research Skills Workshops focus on assisting HDR students to prepare their candidacy proposals. This includes workshops on research design and thesis construction, objectives, methods, creative production and research methods, developing a web presence during candidature, finding research literature and ethics.  Other workshops conducted by R&GS include copyright and plagiarism, working with your supervisor and the emotional journey of a postgrad student. For more information on the workshops see http://hgso.curtin.edu.au/student_info/workshops.cfm or email Stephanie Bizjak or Julie Lunn at rgsworkshops@curtin.edu.au. Where available, presenters powerpoints and handouts will be added to the workshops web page. R&GS also run a Career Workshops series, see the above link for more information.

Further information for Humanities HDR students on preparing candidacy proposals and applications for ethics approval is available in the FactPack: A Guide for Humanities Higher Degree by Research Students (pages 19-24). The FactPack is available online through the Humanities Office of Research and Graduate Studies at http://hgso.curtin.edu.au/student_info/factpack.cfm.

R&GS holds copies of exemplary candidacy proposals from each of the enrolling areas across several areas/disciplines - students are welcome to visit the office to read through these examples (some of which are available below). The Humanities Office of Research and Graduate Studies is located at 209.425 and is open from 8.30am-12.00pm and  1.00pm-4.30pm Monday to Friday.

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Summary of proposed research program examples

A number of past and present Curtin research students have kindly allowed their summaries of proposed research program to be placed on this website for candidates to use as examples. We are building up this stock of examples.

We wish to thank Judith Cousins, Pat Forster, Mahsa Ghaeli, Matthew Grant, Zhao Guochun, Allan Harrison, Lynlee Hobley, Jacqui Hodder, Christina Houen, Christine Howitt, Andrew King, Paul Newhouse, Bev O'Connell, Hesty Utami Ramadaniati, Anthony Rickards, Jean Robertson, Jill Slay, Wendy Speering, Gerard Tripp, Grady Venville, Anne Williams, Sally Wilson, Joan Winch and Sharon Zuiderduyn for permission to use their work.

Aboriginal Studies

Agribusiness

Biomedical Sciences

Chemical Engineering

Education (from Science and Mathematics Education Centre)

Geology

Humanities (from Social Sciences)

Mechanical Engineering

Nursing

Pharmacy