r/AusAcademia

In my fourth year of Chemical and Biomolcular Engineering of undergraduate. I did my research in CRIPSR during the time and have been building my portfolio towards pursuing biotech or basically therapeutic with editing, biomolecules etc. Hence, I've been debating on a PhD cause I have heard it opens more doors that way. Was wondering if ut is possible to work a couple years and directly start a PhD? Or would I need a masters?

Plus, what G.P.A or resume do yall typically aim for building in general? Not really for admissions per se but curious abiyt how UGs that like research work

Lastly, how is the work life balance? Because as much as I want to do research I am hesitant to spend years of struggle and not have a good financial outcome. Or to sacrifice my mental health during a PhD

I am joining the PhD program at Monash Business School this month. The stipend is decent. But want to build some financial buffer as well. Can students get RA/TA positions at the Faculty?

What are the other options in the jobs market?

Hello,

I’m a recent computer engineering graduate.

My GPA is 2.97 (it’s almost a “Very Good,” but it’s actually a “Good”) — I graduated in 2025.

I’ve observed and developed about 40% of the skills needed for good research (using Zotero and some note-taking techniques, even writing my first research paper—I’ve taken some steps toward my goal).

I will do my best to write a research paper for my bachelor’s degree to improve my academic record, which will make it easier for me to apply to a master’s program in artificial intelligence.

Is it difficult to get a scholarship given all these details?

Do you have any advice?

Thanks for your time

Hey guys, how is everyone doing with Sem 1 ending and grade release?

I’m a 3rd year mechanical engineering and computer science student. I’m making this post because I’m a bit paranoid about finding an internship, as my GPA is currently 4.22. I’m honestly pretty worried about finding an engineering internship because I know it can be hard to land one.

I’ve failed 3 subjects before and I’m a bit delayed in my course, but I recently realised GPA is cumulative over the years and not semester-based. I have slowly been pulling my GPA up after years of slacking and just passing, but yeah, I’m trying to take it more seriously now and have aimed higher.

Does anybody have any tips for finding internships or placement? I’m planning to work on some projects over the semester, but any other advice would be greatly appreciated from fellow engineering students or anyone experienced with this.

Kind regards.

Hi I'm Korea high school student and I consider studying abroad, Australia for university.
Actually I'm really bad at english now, the text that I wrote may be hard for you to understand..im sorry
Anyway, I want to study at the University of Australia and I'm consider the major for the chemistry. But I worry about my job after graduate chemistry department... is it really hard to get a job..? Should I choose the chemical engineering department..?
I ask you because there are no communities where I can get information about this at Korea.. I know it is dumb question but please give any tip for me t d
Thank you for reading my post and Sorry if I didn't follow the community rules. I'm new to reddit and I'm not used to it.😭

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Please help me. I'm an indian woman currently pursuing PhD in computer science and engineering from indian university. I will be getting married and moving to Australia this year.

What are the careers I can pivot into ? Is academia good for me or should I go into IT industry. I have 7+ years experience as lecturer in academic spaces.

Late 20s Aussie here.

I completed my masters degree in environmental science and sustainability about 5 years ago and have been working in thinktanks and government ever since. I've always been passively interested in doing a PhD in the climate/sustainability space (more on the social sciences side - e.g. climate communications, or behaviour change for climate action).

I've been employed by the uni I did my masters at as a sessional marker for the last 5-6 years, marking a subject or two every year - subjects which I completed during my masters. That has helped me stay in touch with some of the content and lecturers from my masters.

I feel like doing a PhD has always been on the cards for me at some point - I love learning and the study environment. I published a peer-reviewed paper through my masters degree.

However I don't know if I want to work in academia - I might want to work in higher education (I'm a bit bored in my government job currently). I might just want to do my PhD to upskill and keep learning things.

I've accepted that doing a PhD would mean a significant pay cut. I currently earn about $115k pre-tax at my government job which is a great salary. I do have a mortgage on my apartment though so I do have to properly think about the finances of this decision. It might end up being a work 3-4 days, study part-time kind of situation.

Anyway - early days so just keen to hear if anyone has any advice or things to consider, or any experiences of people who've worked their day job while completing their non-lab PhD.

I am an MBBS doctor from Pakistan with 2.9/4.0 CGpa, 4 research publications, 3.5 years work experience as MO. Can I get into fully funded MPhil or PhD here in Australia? I am currently a dependant (student visa).

Hi all, my husband and I are moving to Melbourne in Dec. I got a job at a g8 and they sponsored my 482 as well as 186DE (waiting).

My husband is coming as my dependent and he and I are a bit worried about his career prospects. He’s in the social sciences, currently a postdoc where we are. He is ok doing food deliveries or whatever is needed to tide us through the first months (since I’m only coming in at level B) but of course that is not ideal.

How difficult is it to get sessional / casual work for him? Any advice on how or when to start looking for opportunities?

Many thanks in advance!

Hello good people

I was recently interviewed by a professor from the Murdoch University and he agreed to supervise me for a PhD in Information Technology. Yes, I am an international student. Also he advised me to apply for the RTP stipend application starting from July 1, 2026.

I am from Bangladesh having 3.37/4.00 cgpa with two peer reviewed conference papers (1 international) and one is ongoing.

My question is, is this a good profile for me to get an admission at MU considering professor's approval for supervision?

Hi all,

I'm already employed and hold a bachelor's in a STEM field, but I'm keen to go back to university to study something purely for interest's sake. I'm specifically drawn to:

- Ancient history

- Ancient civilisations

- Archaeology

- Religion and theology

Ideally I'd like a degree that marries these together rather than treating them as separate silos. I'm especially interested in "pre-flood" civilisations and in how religion and mythology shape the way we interpret the past.

At the moment I'm reading a lot about a pattern I find fascinating: how many unconnected civilisations share the idea of "giants" who once roamed the earth, often described as the offspring of gods and humans. You see versions of it in the Hebrew Bible (the Nephilim), in Greek mythology, and in other ancient traditions. Whether that reflects cultural diffusion, shared human imagination, or later borrowing is exactly the kind of question I'd love to study properly.

Since I already have a degree and would be doing this part-time around work, I'm open to postgraduate options (a grad cert or master's) as well as undergrad.

If anyone can point me in the right direction: programs, departments, or even good entry-level reading, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!

Any tips on how to approach supervisors when asking them if they are willing to take you for Phd. I dont know if there is something wrong the way I email that supervisors dont reply. Lol. Help me pls!

Well I don’t know what I’m in for here. Looking for advice broadly.

I landed an ongoing role at an Australian university teaching a while back and in order to get promoted I need to do a PhD I’ve been accepted for a start next year. I know of about 7 colleagues at different universities in the same position. Seems nuts to me but it is what it is.

I’m worried I’m 32m single working a full time job and now also doing a PhD and I have no idea what the process is. Help meh!

Hey all,

I recently submitted my Expression of Interest (EOI) for a PhD program at the University of Melbourne. Before applying, I contacted one of the professors, requesting her supervision. She said that my project was interesting and encouraged me to apply. She explained the EOI submission process and shared all the links and details with me. However, she didn't mention that she would review my research proposal or provide feedback on it. Because of that, I didn't share the full proposal with her. Also, the university website stated that I didn't need a supervisor's approval before submitting my EOI, so I went ahead and submitted my EOI along with my research proposal without her feedback.

I nominated two supervisors in my application, but I didn't contact the second supervisor at all. The professor I spoke with also never mentioned that I needed to contact the other nominated supervisor before applying. She simply told me to submit the application, so I did.

Now I'm really confused because I keep seeing people say that a supervisor's approval is mandatory before submitting an EOI. Did I make a mistake, or is it acceptable to submit the application first and discuss supervision afterward? I am also freaking out because sharing the proposal with her wouldn't have been an issue; I just didn't want to bother her with emails after she had explained the entire process to me.

Hi can I have your opinion on this?

I have a research master degree from the Netherlands (Vrije Universiteit Amsteram). My GPA and thesis grade is a bit so-so (not exceptional, but not bad either, a little above average). However, I have five publication as first author. Four are published in Q1 journal (one of them is single author), and one is published in Q2 journal. All of those papers are published in the journal with impact factor larger than 2. The reason why I am able to do this is because academics in my home country (not the Netherlands) typically recruited from Master graduate, allowing me to have an opportunities to do an independent research after receiving master degree. I have secured supervisory team, my project is super align with them, and I have secured an offer from Macquarie (because initially I plan to use them to apply for other scholarship but unsuccessful, therefore I am planning to apply for scholarship only for this iRTP/iMQRES).

Do you think this profile is strong enough?

my_qualifications-

Did LLB from a Mid Tier Central University in India with 6.8 CGPA (conservative marking system)
Currently Pursuing LLM from a Category 1, NAAC A++ ranked Central University (CGPA Awaited)
Aiming to Publish Research papers and continue research in the confluence of Environmental law and human rights.

To gain greater exposure in research, I wish to pursue an MPhil/Masters by research work in Australia.

I am seeking people who have a firm authority over this subject to give me an insight into the realistic possibility of my aim. I have understood the entire supervisor match task and have identified Professors relating to my sphere, and will keep refining my proposal and research portfolio.
What I am still unable to comprehend is the probability of rejection in the Visa policy, since I've heard a lot about it being very strict.
I do come from a middle-class background, but we do have assets to put as collateral for an education loan and living funds if needed, and apart from that, I do think I am a genuine person and will be able to convey that in my Visa applications.

Having said all that, I still wish to get a second opinion, and that's why I am here.

Helloo! I’m currently in Year 12 in Australia and I’m really interested in pursuing a career in medical science. I’ve fallen in love with immunology, so I’m planning to complete a Bachelor of Science majoring in immunology, and completing honours and maybe even a masters afterwards. I’ve been doing a lot of research into different careers, but I’m still a little confused about the differences between roles like medical scientists and immunologists

I was hoping to get some insight into what the day-to-day life is actually like for someone working in these fields — what kind of tasks you do, what your work environment is like, and what education/pathway you completed to get there. Do you enjoy the work-life balance and career opportunities? What is the pay like? (if you feel comfortable sharing!)

A lot of what I’ve read about medical scientists seems to focus more on hospital diagnostic lab work, whereas I think I’m more interested in the research side of things, like studying pathogens and immune responses.

Would really appreciate hearing about your experiences or any advice!

Hi everyone. I am an undergraduate honours student in Electronics and Computer Systems at RMIT University in Melbourne, currently in my third year with a GPA of 3.8/4.0. I have built up a publication record across several top-tier venues and am looking for advice on how to strategically position myself for PhD applications in machine learning and scientific computing. All of my published works are either first-author or single-authored papers, which I hope demonstrates independent research capability.

My accepted works include several papers at flagship ML conference workshops (ICML and ICLR), as well as oral presentations at specialized AI venues. These cover topics like physics-informed learning, anomaly detection, and computer vision for scientific applications. I currently have two main-track submissions under review: one at NeurIPS and another at a B-level ML conference. Additionally, I have two works submitted to Q1 journals in scientific machine learning and applied AI. My research sits at the intersection of neural operators, physics-constrained learning, and scientific ML. I have also contributed to open datasets and have formal reviewing experience for flagship conference workshops.

I would appreciate advice on a few specific points. First, given this profile, should I be targeting direct PhD admits or should I strongly consider research masters programs as a stepping stone? Second, how much weight do admissions committees place on main-track versus workshop papers for an undergraduate applicant? Third, is it advisable to reach out to professors now with papers still under review, or should I wait for decisions? Fourth, are there specific fellowship programs or labs known for taking undergraduates with strong publication records directly into PhD programs? Any guidance from current PhD students, professors, or recent admits would be greatly appreciated. I am particularly interested in programs in the US, UK, Australia, and Europe.

Thank you in advance.