Auckland University of Technology offers AUT Vice-Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships to domestic and international students. Applications are open now.
Host Country | New Zealand |
Host Institute | Auckland University of Technology (AUT) |
Eligible Nationality | Domestic and International |
Amount | Tuition Fee + NZ$25,000 per year |
Duration | Three Years |
Deadlines Date | 1 December to 15 January 1 March, 15 July and 1 November |

Auckland University of Technology
The University of Auckland is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. It is New Zealand’s largest, most comprehensive, and highest-ranked university and is consistently ranked among the top 100 universities in the QS World University Rankings. Today, the University of Auckland is New Zealand’s largest university by the number of students, with approximately 40,000 students across its five campuses in Auckland.
AUT provides PhD scholarships to highly successful PhD research students at AUT University with the aim of encouraging and stimulating doctoral studies in the areas of the university’s research capacity.
Financial Benefits
The scholarship includes the following:
- Annual tuition payment (domestic rate) plus mandatory student services fee
- An annual stipend of NZ$25,000 per year
Eligibility criteria for AUT Vice-Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships
To apply for the AUT Vice Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships in New Zealand, applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Applicants must have received an offer of a place (OOP) for the doctoral program at AUT.
- Recipients of this scholarship will have excellent academic results, and strong academic references, and have demonstrated the potential for high-quality research.
- Scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit and recipients of this scholarship will usually have the equivalent of first-class honors.
- The previous study should include a research methodology thesis and an independent research project, including writing a report on that research.
- The field of study proposed by the applicant must be one where the university can offer supervision.
- Applicants should contact potential supervisors to confirm availability before applying for supervision of their proposed research.
- Preference will be given to new applicants for doctoral studies at AUT, including those currently in preliminary candidacy.
- Applicants who applied and were shortlisted but failed in the previous round are eligible to apply again only in one subsequent round.
- Applicants who failed to apply in previous rounds (not shortlisted) can only apply again if the information sent has changed.
- Applicants must meet the English language proficiency requirements listed in the Academic Document Calendar (http://www.aut.ac.nz/calendar) at the time of application.
AUT Doctoral Scholarship Applications Categories
1. AUT Vice Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships
Applicants can apply for AUT Vice-Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships at any time during the year.
a. New doctoral applicants with a GPA of 8.0 or higher in their most recent qualifying program
will be considered on a case-by-case basis for a scholarship provided by a qualifying program
was completed at a New Zealand tertiary institution and met the additional requirements
below; or
b. New Maori and Indigenous Pacific PhD students with a GPA of 7.5 or above, from their majority
a recent qualifying program will be considered on a case-by-case basis for the scholarship
provided the qualification program has been completed at a New Zealand tertiary institution and
meet the additional conditions below. Maori and Pacific natives applying under letter b.) must
be citizens or permanent residents of New Zealand.
Note: GPA for AUT Ph.D. Scholarships will be calculated using the AUT method given in the document
available from the website: AUT-Doctoral-Scholarship-Ranking-Website-version-2017.pdf.
Additional Conditions
The following additional conditions apply to the vice-chancellor’s doctoral scholarships
• Grades for the qualifying degree must be available at the time of application.
• Applicants must have an unconditional Offer of a place in the doctoral program.
• The scholarship awarded in this category must be used up within three months.
2. AUT Doctoral Scholarships
Applications open one month before the deadline.
- The three competition rounds are open to all eligible applicants, ie applicants may be New Zealand citizens or permanent residents, or international students.
- Marks for the qualifying degree must be available at the time of application. Students’ waitlists must apply in the next round.
Application Requirements for AUT Vice-Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships
It is not possible to file incomplete AUT Vice-Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships applications through the online application process. To submit an application applicants must complete all sections and request the required statements of support. Incomplete applications will not be forwarded to the selection panel. It must be the following
upload and submit with the online application:
- Academic transcript(s) for previous tertiary studies completed at another university
- than AUT
- A copy of a conditional or unconditional offer of a place
- Brief C.V. (maximum three pages)
- A two-page proposal describing the intended research using the template provided with the document online application form. The applicant will be asked to provide the following information:
- Suggested topic/title
- Rationale and significance of the study
- Key question/hypothesis/problem/problem to investigate:
- Design of the study; methodology and research techniques to be used
in studio - Research benefits
- References
Note: The proposal must be only two pages (1,000 words) plus a maximum of one page each
Reference. If a longer document is provided, you will be asked to revise the document in order to comply with the requirements.
Two academic reference statements are required for all applicants except those whose qualifying
program was completed at AUT. AUT applicants will only need to provide one referee.
Applicants may not report referees directly; nominated referees will be sent a request directly
from the online application system. Please inform your referees that they will receive an email
request for a reference statement. Applicants can submit an application without the judges’ comments.
However, the application will be considered ineligible and will not be released to the selection committees without its required reference statements.
Application Process for AUT Vice-Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships
Applications are made through the AUT Scholarship Online Application Portal available at the link below. Complete applications for AUT Vice-Chancellor Doctoral Scholarships will be forwarded to the faculty
Associate Dean Postgraduate, who will then recommend the award of a scholarship under this category, where appropriate, to be assessed on a case-by-case basis by AUT subcommittees Scholarship Committee. Applicants are informed of the result by the university scholarship office.