Curtin University of Technology
Skip to content
Link to Curtin homepage
Curtin Office of Research & Development

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 of Technology, 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

Questions, corrections, suggestions and any other comments about the materials should be addressed to Léonie Rennie at: L.Rennie@curtin.edu.au.

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 of Technology".

[back to top]

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

The first module (six workshops) in the Faculty of Humanities' Research Skills Workshop series focuses on assisting HDR students to prepare their candidacy proposals. Notes and PowerPoint presentations from the Module, along with three guidelines (How Candidacy Proposals are Reviewed by the FGSC, Tips on Preparing a Candidacy Proposal, and AT A GLANCE-Preparing the Candidacy Proposal) can be found at the Humanities Graduate Studies Office page.

Further information for Humanities and CAS HDR students on preparing candidacy proposals and applications for ethics approval is available through the faculty's FactPack: A Guide for Humanities Higher Degree by Research Students (pages 16- 20). The FactPack is available through the Humanities Graduate Studies Office (210.228) and online (read only) at the Humanities Graduate Studies Office.

The Humanities Graduate Studies Office 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).

[back to top]

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, 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

Geology

Humanities

Mechanical Engineering

Nursing

 

trivia image

On the side

Grants from government, industry and other sources of research funding brought Curtin's total research income in 2007 to almost $57 million, with approximately 1,800 students undertaking research.