Top-up grant in aid for HDR candidates in SCMP.

SCMP can make a 'grant in aid' payment for such HDR candidates as meet all the following criteria.

The criteria are:

• The candidate has no current scholarship funding or their scholarship funding will run-out before the candidate submits their thesis.
• The candidate is within the university's 'on-time' period for submitting the thesis.
• The candidate has presented a draft of their HDR thesis which their supervisor has reviewed and is in agreement that the candidate's work is of a satisfactory standard and they believe the candidate is likely to complete the work for submission 'on-time'.
• The candidate will not be offered any other paid work within SCMP (as the focus of the candidate needs to be on completion of the thesis.)
• The top-up grant is NOT available to be applied directly against tuition fees

The maximum payment is $2,000 for an eligible PhD and $1,000 for a Masters by Research. The amount excludes GST. A candidate will not be considered for more than 1 top-up grant in aid. (E.G. if a candidate obtains a top-up grant while completing a Masters degree they would not be eligible to obtain another top-up grant if they subsequently become a PhD candidate.)

Procedure:

• The candidate must lodge a written application with their supervisor requesting approval for a grant in aid and confirming when the scholarship funding will cease (or stating that the candidate has never been a scholarship holder).

• The supervisor reviews the candidate's work to form an opinion as to whether or not the candidate's work is of a satisfactory standard and they have nearly completed it. The supervisor provides a written statement to the Head of Department together with the candidate's application.

• If the application is supported the Head of Department writes to the Dean confirming the candidate meets the above criteria and requesting approval for the payment. The cost is charged to the Department in which the candidate is based. (Departments need to make provision for payments in their annual budget.)

• The Dean approves (or not) and returns the documentation to the Head of Department.

• The Head of Department notifies the candidate and the supervisor of the outcome.

• Candidates who have been awarded a grant in aid will need to complete both a tax office form declaring the payment to be a non GST item, and a non-order payment form, and attach a copy of the approval for the payment. The forms can be obtained from the Finance Officer in the Divisional Office. When the forms are completed lodge them with the Finance Officer who will process them and send them to the Office of Financial Services which will make the payment to the candidate.

Queries about this may be directed to the Division Manager, SCMP.

The above grant in aid process and criteria will be inoperative after 31/12/2008. They need to be reviewed in January 2009 when the University restructures the academic organization from Divisions into Faculty based units.

Prepared by:

Phillip Corben

Division Manager, SCMP

26/3/2008