PhD

Doctorate degrees are research degrees. The school offers two doctorate degrees. We especially welcome well-qualified candidates from other universities in New Zealand and abroad to inquire about the possibility of doing their PhD with us:

Doctor of Philosophy is for supervised research. Students work under the supervision of one or more academic staff and produce an original thesis which must be a significant contribution to scientific knowledge or understanding. The thesis is examined externally. Normally the thesis takes at least three years. Scholarships are available. PhD's can be undertaken in any research area for which staff members have expertise -- see the staff pages for details of what they specialize in. The entry requirements are normally either BSc(Hons) [first or second class] or MSc [with distinction or merit].

Doctor of Science degrees are for unsupervised research. Candidates must normally be graduates of VUW or the University of New Zealand, and cannot apply until 5 years after graduation. The degree is awarded for substantial published work that has made original contributions of special excellence.

Click here for a list of current PhD students.