Graduate Women WA has established these awards to assist women enrolled in higher degrees by research to enhance the quality of their research and project.  For 2025, GWWA is proud to announce the following six awards

• Current Students

• Centre for Aboriginal Studies
• Faculty of Business and Law
• Faculty of Health Sciences
• Faculty of Humanities
• Faculty of Science & Engineering
  • Science courses
  • Engineering courses
  • Western Australian School of Mines (WASM)

• Higher Degree by Research

• Australian Citizen
• Australian Permanent Resident
• New Zealand Citizen
• Permanent Humanitarian Visa
• International Student

• Merit Based

1. Graduate Women WA Open Bursary – [Value up to $5,000] 

This bursary is open to women of any nationality enrolled for a higher degree by research in any area of research.

2. Graduate Women WA Open Scholarship – [Value up to $5,000] 

This scholarship is open to women who are enrolled for a higher degree by research in any area of research. Applicants must be Australian citizens or holders of Australian permanent resident visas. 

3. Graduate Women WA Bursary (Research in Science) – [Value up to $5,000] 

This bursary is open to women of any nationality enrolled for a higher degree by research in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics or Medical/Health areas. 

4. Graduate Women WA Bursary (Research in Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, Economics) – [Value up to $5,000]

This bursary is open to women of any nationality enrolled for a higher degree by research in Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences or Economics.

5. Graduate Women WA Scholarship (Research in Education or Childhood Development) – [Value up to $5,000] **

This scholarship is open to women enrolled for a higher degree by research in Education or Childhood Development. Applicants must be Australian citizens or holders of Australian permanent resident visas.

6. Graduate Women WA Scholarship (Research in Social Justice and Social Justice Law) – [Value up to $5,000] **

This scholarship is open to women enrolled for a higher degree by research in the areas related to Social Justice Law, Indigenous Studies or Gender Studies. Applicants must be Australian citizens or holders of Australian permanent resident visas.

** In the event that a targeted scholarship is not awarded, an equivalent valued scholarship may be awarded in another research field.

For all Awards

Women currently enrolled in a higher degree by research at a university in Western Australia.

You do not need to be resident in Western Australia

Awards are NOT open to candidates enrolled in honours, coursework masters or diploma courses.

Applicants must have had their research proposal approved formally at the university in which they are enrolled.

Applicants must not be in full-time employment.

Applicants may only ever hold one award bearing the name Graduate Women WA however designated. 

For scholarships

An applicant must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident within the meaning of the Australian Citizenship Act 2007. (Documentary evidence will be required in the form of a copy of a Birth Certificate, Passport or Visa Document) 

For bursaries

All women of any nationality are eligible. 

General Conditions

Awards are to fund a specific academic purpose that will assist a woman to enhance the quality of the higher degree for which she is enrolled. All items must be specific to the proposed project/activity and not expenses that would normally be covered by the funding of the current PhD program.

Travel overseas or interstate: A rationale for the travel proposed must be given. While conference funding is a valid purpose for the awards, applicants are advised to ensure that they establish a detailed case showing how this will enhance their degree. A request for conference funding will be strengthened if it is linked to other activity (e.g. laboratory visit, skills development course).

The fellowship may be used for the applicant’s travel expenses relevant to the proposed project but cannot be used to cover any costs associated with travel or support for dependants.

Your budget should include a quotation of current cost of air fares, or other forms of travel, accommodation and conference registration.

Your travel budget can include a per diem of $100 for each day associated with conference attendance/fieldwork to cover meals, ground transport costs and other incidentals.

Equipment costs and costs of experimental materials must be specific to the project and must not include any infrastructure or equipment items which would normally be necessary for the current PhD program – for example, a laptop or iPad would not normally be approved but a software package specific to the project would be acceptable.

Living expenses are not automatically approved, but may be accepted if a case can be made for them – for example, if the applicant is in part-time employment, it may be necessary to forego some or all of that income in order to undertake fieldwork.

Payments or gifts to experimental subjects specific to the project may be approved if justified, but should not be a major part of your expenses.

Awards will not be made for professional editing.

.

Graduate Women WA and the Trustees reserve the right not to make an award or to award less than the applicant has requested.

The decision of Graduate Women WA and the Trustees is final and no further correspondence will be entered into. No feedback on unsuccessful applications will be provided.

Awards are made on condition that a full acquittal with original receipts for all expenses will be provided on or before 31 December 2026. Receipts are not required for expenses covered under an approved budgeted per diem allowance.

Unexpended funds must be returned to Graduate Women WA Education Trust.

Selection Criteria

Awards will be made on the grounds of: 

demonstrated academic achievement 

the purpose for which the money is to be used, in particular, the extent to which the award will assist the applicant to enhance the quality of the higher degree for which she is enrolled.

Applicants are advised to apply only after completing at least one year’s fulltime equivalent of their candidature to be competitive. 

Application Procedure 

Applications, including supporting documents, are to be submitted by combining all documents into a single reduced size PDF or Word file, and lodged by email to:  scholarships@graduatewomenwa.org.au. Please do NOT send this documentation in the form of separate attachments.

The application form is available as a Word document on the Graduate Women WA website.

One set of application documents will be considered for all relevant awards.

The completed application form must as a single document be accompanied by:

A list of the documents that make up the application.

Scans of the applicant’s certified academic record(s)

Proof of enrolment for a higher degree.

Proof of Citizenship/ Permanent Residency, as required

Applicants must request two referees to email a referee report form, available from the GWWA website, directly to the Awards Convener at the Graduate Women WA office, scholarships@graduatewomenwa.org.au before the closing date. One of the referees must be the applicant’s principal supervisor. This form is available as a Word document on the Graduate Women WA website.

Applicants are responsible for checking that references have been sent and received by the closing date.  Referees’ reports may be verified.

Applications received after midnight AWST 27 June 2025 will not be considered.  Do not leave your submission to the last moment as internet communications can often be disrupted or delayed. While every attempt is made to clear the email box regularly, the GGWA mailbox can become overloaded with last minute applications, particularly in the 24 hours before the deadline.

For general enquiries about awards and eligibility, contact Emeritus Professor Jane Scott at jane.scott@curtin.edu.au

Applications will be acknowledged by email.  Should you not receive an acknowledgement within one week of lodging your application you are responsible for contacting office@graduatewomenwa.org.au