ANU is ranked among the world’s most prestigious universities and is recognised for setting the standard in education and research on matters that will have an impact on advancing society and the world in which we live. Our graduates become the innovators and leaders of the future. For these reasons, admission to one of our HDR programs is competitive and most successful applicants are in the top five to ten percent of their class in their previous degree.

Admission to a Doctor of Philosophy degree at ANU requires:

1. An Australian Bachelor degree with at least Second Class Honours - Upper (First Class Honours is often required) or its international equivalent, or
2. Another degree with a significant research/thesis component that may be assessed as equivalent to paragraph (1), or
3. A combination of qualifications, research publications and/or professional experience related to the field of study that may be assessed as equivalent to paragraph (1).

Admission to a Master of Philosophy degree at ANU requires:

1. An Australian Bachelor degree or higher, with an overall grade of distinction or higher, or its international equivalent, or
2. Another degree that may be assessed as equivalent to paragraph (1), or
3. A combination of qualifications, research publications and/or professional experience related to the field of study that may be assessed as equivalent to paragraph (1).

Eligibility flowchart

To help you assess whether or not you are likely to be successful for admission, stipend or scholarship, please see the flowchart below. Note that even though you may meet the criteria, this is not a guarantee of admission, stipend or scholarship. The flowchart helps you to see if your experience and qualifications may meet the university requirements.

Once you have completed your self-assessment, the next step in applying to study at the ANU College of Engineering, Computing and Cybernetics is to identify a research area and a potential supervisor with whom you may like to work with. Potential supervisors are listed within each research area.  You may also like to explore availabilities in current research projects. Note that regardless of the quality of the application, you cannot be accepted into a research program without having the support of an academic that is willing to supervise you.

When contacting a potential supervisor(s), it is important that you provide information relevant to your application, including a current CV and a brief research proposal in your email. Many of our academic staff are internationally recognised and receive many expressions of interest each day. If the supervisor you have contacted is interested in speaking with you further, he or she will contact you by email. Please be patient as many of our academics are extremely busy and have regular international travel, so there may be a delay in responding to your request. If a supervisor agrees to support your application, you may proceed to submit a formal application

You can email the College HDR Administration team at research.cecs@anu.edu.au

The HDR Administration team receives a high volume of email enquiries, so it may take a few days to receive and answer to your query. In the meantime, please review the College and ANU websites to check if there is relevant information already available to you. 

Please view the pre-application tab and check the self-assessment flow chart to determine if you may be admissible. If you are considered not admissible for MPhil/PhD entry at this time, please consider completing a Masters by Coursework degree. After completing this degree, you may be considered admissible into the MPhil/PhD program. Note that even if you meet admissibility requirements, the College may not be able to accept your application due to a lack of resources or adequate supervision to support your program of study. 

All applicants, whether domestic or international, must provide evidence that their English language ability meets the minimum requirements for admission. The English Language Requirements for Students policy outlines approved methods for meeting the English requirements.

You will need to contact relevant academics in your research field. In your discussions with them, they will determine whether your background and experience is significant enough to submit a competitive application for further assessment. You will find a list of research areas on our website. Please review the pre-application tab for more information.

If believe you meet eligibility requirements and you have secured the support of an academic to supervise your study, you may submit a formal application for the Master of Philosophy (MPhil) or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) program through the ANU application portal. Please see the ANU HDR application advisory page for more information. 

A complete application includes:

• An application submitted through the ANU application portal
• A current CV
• A research proposal
• Colour copies of all transcripts and completion certificates of prior study, in original language and official English translations
• 3 complete referee reports (Referees are nominated through the application portal). 

If the HDR Administration team receives an incomplete application, we will contact the applicant and give them 30 days to provide the outstanding documentation. We recommend submitting your application at least two weeks prior to scholarship application deadlines to give your referees time to provide their references for you.

You can search for scholarship opportunities on the ANU scholarships page. There may be additional scholarship opportunities listed on the College scholarships page. You may also be eligible for scholarship opportunities external to ANU. Applicants will be considered for all internal scholarships available if they indicate on their application that they want a scholarship.

Applicants should note that our scholarship rounds are extremely competitive. In general scholarships are awarded to the top 10-15% of applicants, depending on the number of applications submitted and the number of available scholarships. 

International Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship

International students applying for this scholarship will need to have their complete application and all supporting documents including referee reports submitted no later than 31 August.

Domestic Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarships
Australian citizens, Permanent Residents and New Zealand citizens will need to have their complete application and all supporting documents including referee reports submitted no later than 31 October. 

Other scholarship round deadlines will be according to the scholarships listed on the College scholarships page.

Applications that are incomplete at the deadline will not be considered for scholarship under any circumstances. 

Documents that are not in English must be translated by a National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) translator who is registered to translate the document language to and from English. You must submit certified copies of both the original language documents and the English translation.

You will need to provide a valid reason for your delayed arrival. If your supporting supervisor supports your Change of Admit Term, please email research.cecs@anu.edu.au with evidence of the supervisor’s support. If you are eligible for a Change of Admit Term, you will receive a new offer letter within three to four weeks of the request. Please be advised that Changing your Admit Term may cause you to forfeit a scholarship that may have been awarded to you by the University. Please indicate in your email if you have been awarded a scholarship. 

Information on living in Canberra, studying at ANU, accommodation options and more can be found at the ANU Study webpage. 

The University rules governing graduate research at ANU can be found at Graduate Research Award Rules.

Domestic students (Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents and New Zealand citizens) are not required to pay tuition fees for graduate research study as they are covered by the Australian Government Research Training Scheme (RTS). International students are required to pay tuition fees unless they are in receipt of a tuition fee waiver scholarship. Information on fees can be found on the Programs and Courses page for our HDR programs. 

Domestic scholarships - A domestic (or national) student is someone who is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or a New Zealand citizen.

International scholarships - An international student is someone who is not an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or not a New Zealand citizen. All other students, including New Zealand permanent residents, are deemed to be international students.

When you submit your application for admission to a research program, you will be asked whether you wish to be considered for a scholarship. If you request to be considered for a scholarship we will consider you for all available scholarships.

Domestic - The closing date for the main domestic scholarship round is 31 October each year.

International - The closing date for the international main round is 31 August each year.

The College holds an additional scholarship round in March/April every year. Specific closing dates and further information will be available on these pages. 

Your application must be complete by the relevant closing date for your application to be considered. Incomplete applications will not be assessed for scholarship under any circumstances. There are often delays associated with collecting referee reports and other required documents, so we suggest you aim to have your application completed well in advance of this date.

International applicants can expect to be notified towards the end of October as to whether they were successful in being awarded a scholarship. Domestic applicants should be made aware of the outcome of their application in December.