Scholarships and Awards

The Florey is committed to providing opportunities for postgraduate education in neuroscience. Student projects for Honours, PhD and Summer studentships are outlined on our website (see student projects). The usual academic standard for admission to the Florey’s Postgraduate program is H1, although consideration will be given to individuals who are able to demonstrate:

  • previous work experience in their field (eg. as a Research Assistant)
  • a reasonable case as to why their level of skill/ability has not been reflected in their academic results.

The Florey welcomes students from Universities throughout Australia and overseas. A current enrolment via an appropriate University department is essential for postgraduate study at the Institute. A number of senior Florey scientific staff possess co-joint University appointments, but in all other instances, a secondary co-supervisor must be nominated from the Department in which you are enrolled.

Top Up /Travel Scholarships

The FNI currently provides stipend-supplement and travel funding for PhD students to assist in their academic progression. At present, this includes a $2000 per annum top-up stipend for eligible FNI PhD students. To be eligible a student must have their candidature confirmed at the end of their first year and complete a satisfactory annual progress assessment in years 2 and 3. The FNI also provides an annual $1000 travel award to support science-related travel (e.g. conference attendance). Students can use these funds annually or may choose to "accumulate" their entitlement to fund a specific trip during their candidature (e.g. to an overseas meeting/course or to visit a laboratory).

Alan & Elizabeth Finkel Awards for Neuroscience Research

For more information go to:

www.fni.edu.au/scholarships.html

Honours Students

Places are available each year in the Florey’s Honours Program to science graduates wishing to pursue further study in neuroscience. Many continue on to PhD studies at the Florey. Although students undertake all their scientific work at the Florey and are supervised by Florey scientists, they must also be enrolled through a University department, with a University-based co-supervisor. The majority of Honours students are enrolled through University of Melbourne Departments such as Physiology, Pharmacology, Anatomy and Cell Biology or Biochemistry.

PhD Students

A maximum of 10 PhD places are available each year, with preference given to self-funded students (eg. University of Melbourne Research Scholarship or Australian Postgraduate Award recipients). Students must be enrolled through a University Department, with a University-based co-supervisor. Florey supervisors and the HR Department will work with the successful applicants to facilitate these arrangements.

Summer Studentships / Vacation Scholarships

Summer Studentships are provided on merit to outstanding undergraduate science students with the aim of encouraging postgraduate study in neuroscience at the Florey Neuroscience Institutes (FNI). As such, final year undergraduates interested in undertaking an Honours year or an MSc/PhD at the FNI, are particularly encouraged to apply.


Interested students should initially contact the Laboratory Head or Scientific Team Leader in their area(s) of interest within the different FNI Divisions to discuss their suitability and the research opportunities available to them. Further details about the different research activities being undertaken at the FNI are available on this website or the ‘Neuroparkville’ website.

www.neuroparkville.org.au

Summer studentships are usually undertaken for a period of 6-10 weeks during the December to March University break, with Honours courses commencing in mid to late February each year. A minimum weekly stipend of $200 is available and is provided by the sponsoring laboratory.

Applications should be made during second semester, as at this time the list of proposed projects for Honours students for the following academic year should be available. Studentships are highly competitive and applicants are encouraged to identify potential projects and approach the relevant Laboratory Heads for expressions of interest and initial discussions, in the first part of second semester to be considered in a first priority round. Further applications may be considered later in the year, depending upon the availability of projects and funding.

For further details please contact the relevant Laboratory Head/Scientific Team Leader.

The Selection Process

Once applicants have identified a potential supervisor and project and submitted their applications, these are forwarded to the Florey’s Postgraduate Matters Committee.

All applications are reviewed by the committee, which is chaired by A/Prof Andrew Gundlach and consists of several senior Florey scientific/management staff. Only the selection committee may make a formal offer of a place within the Florey’s postgraduate program.

How to Apply

Application Procedure

The University of Melbourne Scholarships

The University of Melbourne has many scholarship opportunities on offer, the majority of which can be found on the scholarships office website. Scholarship applications are usually due 31st October. There are also opportunities to fund overseas travel for PhD students.

See www.services.unimelb.edu.au/scholarships/.

Advanced Medical Science Program

The Florey participates in the AMS program and offers one year project placements to eligible University of Melbourne medical students. The Florey’s AMS coordinator is first contact for all student queries:

Dr Colleen Thomas

AMS Coordinator
Howard Florey Institute

C/- University of Melbourne VIC 3010
Email: colleen.thomas@florey.edu.au
Phone: +61 3 8344 0182
Fax: +61 3 9348 1707

Useful Links

Students