The University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarship (UoADS) is a competitive scholarship scheme in 4 rounds each year. This is what you can get:

To maintain the real value of the UoADS, from 2024 onwards an annual Consumer Price Index (CPI) adjustment will be made to your stipend. This will come into effect on 1 January each year.

The CPI adjustment reflects the November Monetary Policy Statement, put out by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ). In that Statement, the Reserve Bank forecasts the expect annual CPI movement for the following year. You can find the Policy Statement on the RBNZ site (just search for ‘November monetary statement’). We use the annualised December forecast for the following year, and adjust the UoADS stipend accordingly.

When we make the annual adjustment, we also take into account any difference between the current year’s CPI forecast and the actual CPI movement in that calendar year. That way, the spending power of the stipend is maintained.

Why do we use the RBNZ forecast?  The RBNZ’s forecast is a crucial component of the Bank’s monetary policy decisions, and thus is critical to the economy of New Zealand. Using their November forecast for the following year means we’re using the most up-to-date information we have, from a trusted, external source.

Why do we use the annualised December forecast?  The RBNZ provides both quarterly and an annualised forecast. As we’re setting the stipend for the entire year ahead, we use the annualised December forecast, as that accounts for the 12 month period.

Why do we use a forecast rather than an actual CPI movement?  We want to ensure that your stipend reflects anticipated costs for the year, rather than making you wait a whole year, and then ‘back paying’ actual CPI. This is particularly important if this is your final year of UoADS.

What happens if the forecast isn’t accurate?  When we set the stipend for the following year we adjust the amount to take into account any difference between the forecast for the current year and the actual CPI movement PLUS the forecast CPI for the following year. That way we can make sure that your stipend maintains its real value.

Does this mean my stipend could decrease?  Potentially, yes. If New Zealand experienced negative CPI (which has only happened once in the last 60+ years) we might reduce your stipend. But if actual CPI during any given year is below the forecast, we won’t make an adjustment during that calendar year. We will only make a negative adjustment as part of the annual review process, based on the RBNZ November Monetary Policy Statement. That might mean that the stipend for the following year doesn’t increase as much. The key point to remember is our aim to maintain the buying power of your stipend.

What does this mean for my stipend in 2024?  When we refreshed the UoADS scheme in 2023 we increased the stipend more than actual CPI. For 2024, based on the RBNZ forecast, we will increase your stipend by 2.5%. This means the stipend increases to $33,825.00 from 1 January 2024. The payment you receive on 11 January 2024 will reflect the new stipend rate (from 1 January).

It’s easy! Any student who is to be offered a place in a doctoral programme will be eligible for scholarship consideration prior to receiving their offer of place.

When you apply for your doctoral programme, you will have the opportunity to confirm whether or not you also wish to be considered for a University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarship — you don’t need to apply separately.

If you already have scholarship funding and/or don't want to be considered for this scholarship, confirm this in your application form so that your application can be processed as quickly as possible.

If you are still completing your qualifying programme and/or have not yet received your final grades from your qualifying programme, you can still be considered for a scholarship. It might mean that you receive a conditional offer for a scholarship and/or admission to the doctoral programme.

Scholarship offers will be made alongside offers of places in doctoral programmes, so if you indicate you wish to be considered for a University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarship, your admissions offer will be made as part of one of the four annual rounds below.

If you change your mind at any time during the admissions process, please let our Doctoral Admissions team know so that your admissions offer does not need to be made during one of the four annual rounds below.

2024 dates

2025 dates

There are guaranteed scholarships for:

• Māori applicants with a New Zealand university qualifying programme GPA of 7.0 or above who are offered a place in a doctoral programme
  
• Pacific applicants with a New Zealand university qualifying programme GPA of 7.0 or above who are offered a place in a doctoral programme.

• To nurture, recruit, and retain outstanding research talent (candidates and supervisors)
• To support excellent research and the creation of high-quality research outputs
• To grow Māori and Pacific research scholarship (candidates, topics, supervisors)
• To develop / strengthen relationships with Māori and Pacific communities
• To support Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity (EDI) in research (candidates, topics and supervisors)
• To strengthen, grow, and diversify the pipeline of research and external research income
• To develop / strengthen transdisciplinary research collaborations
• To boost knowledge mobilisation, research translation, and research impact
  

Each faculty/Large Scale Research Institute (LSRI)/University Research Centre (URC) will advertise their scholarship opportunities and strategies for selection on their websites:   

The University's objectives include supporting equity, diversity, and inclusion. Scholarship selection committees will consider these objectives when making their scholarship recommendations.

As an applicant to the University, you have already shared some information with us about your gender and ethnicity, and this information will be available to the scholarship selection committee.

You may have also disclosed whether you are disabled, belong to the Rainbow community, or have a refugee background. You have the option to share this personal information as part of your personal profile, at https://iam.auckland.ac.nz/identity.

If you choose to share this personal information with the University, and indicate that you would like the scholarship selection committee to be aware of your personal information when they consider your application, the scholarship selection committee will be able to access your information. This information will remain confidential to the selection committee. It will not be used by the committee for any purpose other than considering your application. If you decide not to disclose your information then the committee will only be aware of your gender and ethnicity.

Scholarships must be taken up by one of the dates prescribed in the letter of award, otherwise the Scholarship offer will be forfeited. Enrolment dates are shown in the tables above.

If you are an international student, you may need a letter confirming your funding for your visa application. You can request this letter through Student Services Online. For instructions on how to do this visit Doctoral scholarships information and forms.