Higher Degree by Research Internships
PhD Internships
Completing an internship during your research degree is an opportunity to enhance your research capabilities, acquire practical research skills in an industry setting and cultivate transferable employability skills. It also helps establish professional networks essential for a successful career in industry.
There are two types of industry internships for PhD students:
- Independent Internship
- Embedded Internship
What will I do on an internship?
As a PhD intern you may participate in or coordinate any of the following activities:
- data collection and analysis
- identifying and/or practicing specific research methodology
- conducting literature reviews
- lab, field work or clinical trials
- utilsing industry clientele as research subjects
- translating research into practical solutions
Internship criteria
You can undertake a PhD internship as defined by the at any point during your course provided it meets the following criteria:
- your internship is agreed in writing with the industry partner within the first 18 months of your HDR candidature commencing
- your internship duration is at least 3 months (60 full-time equivalent days*) and can be completed consecutively or throughout your degree
- your research area and/or research skills are broadly related to the internship project
*A full-time equivalent day is defined by the industry standard. Where no industry specific standard exists, it is defined by the (7.6 hours per day).
“Participating in a Higher Degree by Research Internship was an incredible experience. It provided a valuable opportunity to collaborate with industry leaders, expand my professional network, and enhance visibility within my future field. Working at the allowed me to translate my PhD skills into practical applications alongside a dynamic team, which will undoubtedly benefit my future endeavours.”
Joseph O’Connell, PhD Candidate
Joseph O’Connell, PhD candidate 2024. Read more about the research Joseph is doing in UC’s Newsroom
Embedded Internship
An Embedded internship is embedded into your research project with outputs included as part of your thesis. Your internship project is co-designed with you, your supervisor and the Industry Partner in the early stages of your candidature and may be a continuation of an honours/masters project.
Embedded internship steps
Step 1: Explore opportunities
Discuss opportunities to embed industry in your research and leverage existing UC industry partners with your supervisory panel. Together you may be able to identify projects already in progress or collaboratively design bespoke projects that align with your research goals.
Once you have identified opportunities you and your supervisor should meet with the industry partner to discuss the initial opportunity.
Step 2: Letter of intent
Request from the industry partner to sign the letter of intent and provide this to the Graduate Research School. The letter of intent also provides talking points to discuss with the partner before a legally binding agreement is signed.
If you would like a copy of the letter, contact Graduate Research.
Step 3: Internship written agreement
The Graduate Research School will arrange a Host Organisation Work Integrated Learning Agreement (HOWA). This is a legally binding document between UC and the industry partner agreeing to the internship conditions including payment and ownership of Intellectual Property (IP).
You will be required to sign documents relevant to the agreement.
Step 4: Internship preparation
Before commencing your internship, you must complete the Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Ready Module in UCLearn. Detailed guidance can be found in the WIL Ready Guide.
Step 5: Internship engagement
Throughout your internship, engage with your supervisor to discuss your experiences and explore opportunities to apply your internship insights to your research. This phase is pivotal for enhancing transferable skills and consolidating your research knowledge.
Step 6: Reporting and Documentation
You are required to notify Graduate Research School upon completion of your internship.
You will also be required to log your internship upon completion for government reporting purposes using the end-user reporting form in myUC.
Still Unsure Where to Begin?
Reach out to Graduate Research for personalised assistance and guidance.
Independent Internship
An Independent internship is an opportunity to utilise and enhance your research skills within an industry environment, working on a project designed to meet an organisations specific research needs. The internship may align closely with your research area or introduce you to a new industry to apply and enhance your cross-disciplinary knowledge and expand your professional network.
How CareersUC can help
CareersUC plays a crucial role in supporting HDR students to maximize their chances of securing internships. They offer personalised assistance to help students prepare for interviews, refine resumes, and develop strategies for presenting internship project proposals to industry partners. The team provides valuable perspectives and insights to help HDR students effectively apply their research skills in a professional environment, enhancing their employability prospects upon graduation.
Independent internship steps
Step 1: Explore opportunities
Are there any organisations you're keen on collaborating with? We encourage PhD candidates to proactively approach and propose internship projects directly to organisations they're interested in. Your supervisor may also suggest organisations of interest.
To discover internship opportunities, access CareersUC support and view the steps on completing an independent internship, login to CareerHub.
Industry Engagement Reporting
The Australian Government requires all higher education providers to report on end-user industry engagement to the Department of Education Tertiary Collection of Student Information (TCSI). PhD candidates can report on industry engagement during and upon completion of their candidature. End-user engagement reporting is through the myUC Student Portal.
The following can count as industry engagement:
- A Higher Degree by Research internship (paid or unpaid)
- Field work with the industry partner (paid, unpaid and part of the candidate’s research)
- Collaborative research agreements with an industry partner
- Co-funded scholarship with an Industry partner
- Being a supervisor outside of the 91Porn for any point of your candidature
- Employment in your field of research