Advancing innovative and socially responsible business education, scholarship and practice in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.
Griffith Business School supports our research trainees to strive for greater heights in academic excellence, innovation, and impact. We have created an environment where nothing less than a first-class research journey is provided, where people at different stages of their career can build research profiles and thrive equally.
Training the next generation of researchers remains a priority, but with an enhanced focus on how research skills acquired from a PhD can improve career prospects outside of academia.
Our PhD candidates
Griffith University’s 2023 PhD Candidate Experience Survey showed that our current cohort had an overall satisfaction level of almost 83 percent. Our current cohort of PhD candidates is an inclusive community of like-minded researchers and is very much representative of the society in which we operate.
89% average completion rate
52.4% female
47.6% male
78.9% full-time
21.1% part-time
51.1% international
48.9% domestic
68.9% Brisbane
31.1% Gold Coast
Your opportunity
An industry PhD scholarship is designed to support the alignment of projects co-designed by aspiring researchers, academic supervisors, and industry. During their studies, our PhD candidates have the chance to develop professional networks and highly desirable skills in communication, resource management, and teamwork.
Our industry partners receive dedicated and sustained research on a problem of practical significance to them, along with the option of securing an intern as part of the scholarship offer.
Austrade is pleased to be collaborating with Griffith University to ensure the research and skills available within their PhD program can be made available to support Commonwealth policy objectives, such as those outlined in the THRIVE 2030 national visitor economy strategy.
This “win-win” partnership offers a pathway to support academic researchers in establishing careers in industry and industry-based researchers to work in university settings. The outcome is increased two-way mobility and skill-building in research collaboration, translation, and commercialisation.
Whether you are a private enterprise, government department, or not-for-profit organisation, there are several flexible funding arrangements available. The most common is summarised below:
Industry Funding | University Funding | Internship Opportunity | Remote Candidature Option | Flexible Enrolment Available | 6 Month Extension Possibility | Direct Entry Requirements (or Equivalency) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
$35,000 per year for 3 years | $15,000 per year for 3 years | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Honours – Class 2A |
Don’t meet the direct entry requirements? Griffith Business School has established equivalency guidelines for those people with more of a background in industry, where their prior study, work experience, and professional outputs can be combined as a pathway to admission.
My industry partnership with the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS) has been instrumental in not only connecting me with research participants and leading industry professionals, but also in enabling me to translate and share the practical applications of my findings to a broader audience outside of academia. During my PhD I also had the opportunity to work more closely with the organisation through a three-month internship where I was able to apply the skills that I had developed throughout my studies to tackle real-world problems in an industry setting.
Joseph Nolan – QAS (SPIKE) Research Scholar & PhD Candidate
Intellectual property
Griffith University will be the custodian of the project intellectual property (IP) created through the industry doctoral research project. The candidate will own copyright in their thesis. Requests to fully restrict publication of results will not be accepted, however an embargo period may be considered. The external organisation is provided a license to the intellectual property for internal use.
Industry partners who wish to own project intellectual property are required to collaborate on full commercial research and pay commercial rates. Commercial projects can be organised with assistance from Griffith Enterprise. For partners seeking a commercial license to the project IP, a commercial agreement can be negotiated and organised by Griffith Enterprise once the project intellectual property is developed.
If the external organisation wishes to commercialise a research output arising from an industry doctoral research project, then Griffith and the external organisation will negotiate in good faith and enter into an agreement, separate from the scholarship agreement, that governs the relevant commercial arrangement. Griffith Enterprise are available to assist academics in negotiating and securing such commercial arrangements.
Tax status
The Australian government’s Research and Development Tax Incentive provides a benefit through a tax offset calculated according to the expenditure a company incurs on research and development activities. Generally, all research projects undertaken with universities would be eligible if a company spends over $20,000 a year on all their research and development activities combined (not just one project).
The exact benefit will depend on the company’s size + percentage of spending on research and development (relative to sales) + profit and loss position. When a company conducts a project with a university, they should be looking at overall expenditure: not just the money paid to the university but also their employees’ time and the cost of any other resources contributed to the project. Professional advice should be sought to prepare appropriate statements.
Contact us
If you have any questions about industry PhD scholarships please contact us: