Program details

We invite applications from suitably qualified candidates who are interested in undertaking a MPhil or PhD in science communication and research that seeks to explore and enrich the relationship between science and society.

See the CPAS Research themes to understand the kinds of research we do at CPAS.

See the list of CPAS academics to identify a potential supervisor whose research interests align with yours. Note that not all academics may have capacity to take on new supervisees.

CPAS has an internal review process of all interested applicants before they are invited to make a formal application to the university.

Scholarships

 Note that approval of your expression of interest by CPAS does not guarantee an offer of admission to the University nor a scholarship.

If you wish to be considered for an ANU PhD scholarship, you should seek to submit the package of documents (outlined below) to CPAS at least a month before the scholarship deadline.

International students: Submit all documents to CPAS by July 31st

Domestic students: Submit all documents to CPAS by September 30th

Application Process

If you do not wish to be considered for a scholarship, you should submit the package of documents to CPAS at any time for consideration

To submit an expression of interest in the CPAS PhD/MPhil programs:

1. Fill out and submit this inquiry form
    
2. CPAS’s HDR Convenor (da.hdr.cpas@anu.edu.au) will contact you to request further information, and an up-to-date CV.
    
3. The HDR Convenor will request that you draft a research proposal. Your draft proposal should be a maximum of 2000 words and include the following sections:
   1. Working title
   2. Summary of proposed project: maximum of 200 words.
   3. Background to the research: a fully referenced discussion of the gap or problem your research seeks to address.
   4. Project aim: a detailed argument, based on sound research principles and literature, for what you aim to achieve in your research project to address that gap or problem. Include any draft research questions here.
   5. Proposed methods: Explain the kinds of methods you propose to use to undertake the project. Give an indication of any travel or other costs that you anticipate may be required.
   6. Originality statement: Briefly summarise, with references, what is original about the proposed project, and how it fits with existing published studies from relevant fields.
   7. References:  Formatted using any recognised referencing system.
   8. AI statement: A declaration in either of the following formats:
      1. “I did/did not make use of generative AI in the production of this research proposal. I acknowledge that submitting written text produced by generative AI and claiming it as my own is a breach of academic integrity.”
      2. Where generative AI has been used, please also include an additional statement: “I acknowledge the use of [e.g. Copilot; ChatGPT; etc.]. The prompts I used were [list of prompts]. The output was used and/or adjusted to [explain use].”
          
4. You may already have a potential CPAS supervisor in mind and you may wish to discuss your draft proposal with them. 
    
5. The HDR convenor will let you know when your draft proposal is ready to proceed to the next step.
    
6. CPAS staff will review your documents and decide if we would like to invite you to make a formal application to the university. Depending on the meeting schedule, this process can take up to two months, although it is often quicker.
    
7. If your expression of interest is approved, you may then proceed to submit your full application to the University by clicking on the “Apply” button on the PhD or MPhil pages

Research Topics

Again, see the CPAS Research themes to understand the kinds of research we do at CPAS. For further inspiration, check out some recent publications from CPAS academics.

Examples of research topics include, but are not limited to:

• Climate change and energy communication, energy transition
• Data infrastructures for environmental decision making
• Ethics of science communication
• Health promotion/health communication
• Imagining the future of science and technology
• Informal science learning (including science centres, science shows, hands-on learning)
• Innovation, technology and the economy
• Knowledge and transformative change for sustainability
• Machine Learning and AI for Science and Health Communication
• Misinformation and disinformation in science
• Responsible innovation
• Science and Humour
• Science communication and (Popular) Art and Aesthetics
• Science communication and international development
• Science communication and public intellectualism
• Science communication for advocacy/activism
• Science in Popular Culture/Cultural Meanings of Science in Popular Entertainment and Performance
• Science policy advice mechanisms and public reasoning