Frequently asked questions

Previously awarded programs can apply to Round 2023-24 however they will be considered as new applications. The limits on number of successful programs that CIs can be named on will still apply.

If any funding remains unallocated after Round 2023-24, the Next Generation Graduates Program (NGGP) may consider expansions to awarded programs at a later date.

For Round 2023-24, the list of eligible regional universities, headquartered or based in regional Australia, includes:

• CQUniversity Australia, headquartered in Rockhampton, Queensland
• Charles Sturt University, headquartered in Bathurst, New South Wales
• Federation University, headquartered in Ballarat, Victoria
• Southern Cross University, headquartered in Lismore, New South Wales
• University of New England, headquartered in Armidale, New South Wales
• University of Southern Queensland, headquartered in Toowoomba, Queensland
• University of the Sunshine Coast, headquartered in Sippy Downs in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland
• Charles Darwin University, headquartered in Darwin, Northern Territory
• James Cook University, headquartered in Townsville, Queensland
• University of Tasmania, headquartered in in Hobart, Tasmania.

The CSIRO NGGP team carefully considered this topic by searching for existing definitions and lists of regional universities from reliable sources, seeking feedback from relevant stakeholders, and taking into account data including the Department of Education’s higher education equity groups tables.

The list of 10 eligible regional universities for Round 2023-24, was decided upon as it is a defensible list and is based upon reputable sources including the Regional and remote higher education: a quick guide – Parliament of Australia (aph.gov.au).

No. An eligible regional university must be a member of the consortium for the Regional Stream, but they are not required to lead.

It is expected that universities and partner organisations will build a cohort by identifying a real-world challenge that has the potential for many student projects, where each student contributes to solving the challenge (including from multi-disciplinary perspectives) and where the sum of the student projects is greater than the parts.

A cohort of students is a group of students, an expected minimum of 10, who are working on related projects that tackle a real-world challenge.

When enrolling through a cohort program, the students are expected to collaborate with each other and to utilise peer-to-peer learning, expanding on their different backgrounds and experience to provide a richer research environment.

Chief Investigator (maximum of 6 per consortium program)

• CIs will commit a minimum of 0.05FTE of their time and take responsibility for the overall research program and intend on providing supervision for one or more students within the program

For the Regional stream in Round 2023-24 applications should include at least one CI from an eligible regional university (as listed in Guidelines).

Investigator (maximum of 20 including the CIs per consortium program)

• Investigators will commit to providing support for the program and form part of student supervisory teams.
• Investigators include designated people from partner organisations.

An individual investigator (Chief Investigator or Investigator) may be named on no more than three applications (including previously awarded) across all rounds of funding. Consideration should be given to capacity to deliver if more than one application is successful.

Yes! It is expected that applications will come from research collaborations and therefore we would anticipate multiple applications from universities based on disciplines and research groups.

Application for Round 2023-24 will be via an online application platform - this will be accessible from 11 September 2023 on this page.

A DOCX application form template is also available from our website. This template is only provided to you to assist you in brainstorming your proposed consortium program with your team of investigators/partners. It is recommended that the Primary Contact of your proposed consortium program submit the application when ready.

The scholarships are offered to eligible postgraduate students pursuing an Australian Qualification Framework (AQF8 – AQF10) qualification at Honours (AQF8), Masters (AQF9) or PhD (AQF10) level.

Master of Philosophy (MPhil) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) scholarship holders must enrol in a full-time degree.

For students at other levels, this is at the discretion of university and supervisor as to the ability of the student to undertake their research program in part time study.

Notes

1. Masters Programs at AQF9 where the second year research component qualifies for an RTP
2. One EFTSL research project similar to honours that is part of a coursework masters degree
3. 2% Indexation will be applied to stipends for Master of Philosophy and PhD students to be covered by CSIRO contribution, each Financial Year.
4. PhD training allowance is $5,000 per year for three years only.

This allowance is for the provision of training opportunities in adjacent skills and capabilities relevant to the student’s research project. Examples of activities that will be supported include short courses, workshops, conferences, networking and collaborations.

The NGGP seeks to bolster diversity and reduce the barriers to entry for candidates. Participation Support Funding may be made available to support students with some of the costs of caring, accessibility and mobility needs to access the NGGP activities, events and exchanges, or to support students who have Indigenous cultural responsibilities. Funding will be subject to review of individual circumstances and annual limits.

Students cannot hold an RTP and use NGGP as a top up however universities are able to provide additional top-ups to the NGGP scholarship if desired.

To be eligible for a NGGP scholarship, applicants must be domestic students as per the Higher Education Support Act at the time of award. Domestic students include:

1. Australian citizens,
2. Australian permanent residents,
3. a person entitled to stay in Australia, or to enter and stay in Australia, without any limitation as to time; or
4. a New Zealand citizen.

Students will be recruited by the Universities. All students will be approved by both University and Industry partners prior to enrolment.

Host universities will be asked by the NGGP to assess the candidate’s eligibility and notify the NGGP of the outcome. If the student is eligible, based on both the University’s requirements and those of the NGGP, the student will be provided a CSIRO NGGP Student Agreement that will be signed between the Student, CSIRO and the enrolling university to enter the Consortium Program.

As part of the application process, each Consortium Program is required to outline their proposed student recruitment strategy along with plans to recruit a diverse cohort of students.

Each university undertakes student recruitment, endeavouring to recruit a diverse range of students. Each university is required to provide CSIRO with a copy of their recruitment strategy as soon as practicable after execution of the Program Funding Agreement.

CSIRO/Data 61 will assist by publicising the details of successfully awarded Consortium Programs via our website, and interested students are encouraged to contact the listed Chief Investigators (contact details accessible via hyperlinks) to discuss available opportunities.

All students (Honours, Masters by Coursework, Master of Philosophy and PhD) will apply to the host university to participate in a specific awarded Consortium Program and follow the University’s enrolment procedure.

The process for enrolment will be as per the host university’s requirements. Students will commence in the NGGP after the students have been onboarded at the university. The onboarding and early activities will differ depending on the Honours, Masters or PhD training programs.

Yes. Leave entitlements of students who hold the NGGP scholarships are unaffected and will follow the entitlements in line with the policies of the host university and RTP guidelines.

The themes of the cohorts will bind the students and collaborators together, making it larger than a single research project. The students will be recruited in cohort groups cross-institutionally, the size of which will be dependent on demand from industry partners, scale and scope of the research questions and alignment with national priorities. We expect multiple universities will collaborate and assemble a cohort of students (minimum of 10 students).

The intent of the NGGP is for students with varying backgrounds to come into a cohort-based, industry driven, multi-disciplinary environment, enabling peer-to-peer learning and ‘baking-in’ an entrepreneurial mindset.

The coursework is structured around these seven units of study:

All Students undertake the Core Units (delivered in six week blocks bi-annually)

• Data Centric Engineering (Core)
• Ethics, Innovation and User-Centred Design (Core)

MPhil and PhD students will undertake two of the additional units (delivered in six week blocks bi-annually)

• Probabilistic Machine Learning (Artificial Intelligence)
• Deep Learning (Artificial Intelligence)
• Cyber Security and Data Privacy (Emerging Technologies)
• IoT and Blockchain (Emerging Technologies)
• Quantum Technologies (Quantum)

Students must register and complete the coursework component of the NGGP within the first 12 months of receipt of a scholarship.

During the coursework, students will engage with a national cohort of peers from diverse disciplines. This cohort-driven learning approach fosters critical thinking, develops cross-cutting skills, and encourages collaborative solutions.

Teaching for each unit will combine lectures, practical activities, and hands-on workshops. Lectures will cover the mathematical, computational, and foundational aspects for each topic. The practical activities will be self-guided, providing students with clear instructions and a structured walk‑through to consolidate and practice the techniques presented in the lectures. Workshops have been designed to bridge content between units and provide an environment where students can practice and analyse solutions to real-world scenarios.

Lecture, activity and workshop materials will primarily be accessible to students online.

Students who receive a scholarship are expected to undertake their training in Australia and endeavour to remain in Australia for two years following completion of their degree.

Students receiving a NGGP Scholarship must commit to maintain contact with the CSIRO for up to two (2) years, for reporting and evaluation of outcomes relating to the program, and each university will use reasonable endeavours to assist CSIRO. Students may be asked to engage with CSIRO/NGGP team to provide updates on their experience, which could include survey, testimonials, interviews and clips for socials, and in some instances may be asked to present/promote the program in person (e.g. university events) or online.

Universities, with respect to each student enrolled, are expected to arrange access for the student to all necessary equipment, infrastructure, and any other requirements to enable conduct of the project. In addition, industry partners are expected to provide appropriate facilities and space for student placement activities.

We will encourage universities and industry partners to offer remote or mixed attendance for students with specific needs.

The locations of the students will be dependent on their supervisory arrangement and how the project is designed to be carried out. Students are encouraged but not required to sit with their cohorts at CSIRO offices in major cities in Australia.

The selected students will be co-supervised by a host university supervisor, industry supervisor and CSIRO supervisor (dependent on chosen project), and will spend time working directly with industry partners. Students will have a CSIRO “research supervisor” if the consortium program/project selected involves a CSIRO investigator.

Consortium Programs should consider a diverse mix of Chief Investigators, Investigators (including Early Career Researcher participation) and Partners who will be involved in supervision of students.

All students are required to complete an industry placement with the industry partner of their Consortium Program. The commencement date and timing of the placements for individuals in a cohort may vary on a project basis depending on requirements set by the industry and university partner(s). The industry placement will be decided in collaboration with the student, the supervisor and the industry partner to ensure that it is appropriate for all parties.

Examples of industry placements are as follows:

• PhD student Melissa is working on a machine learning project with a large consulting company. After commencing the project Melissa met with her University supervisor and partner supervisor to discuss the placement where it was decided that she would spend one day per week with the consulting company working on her project.
• PhD student Paul is developing new machine learning methods with applications in geosciences, his industry partner will be a government agency that oversees Australia’s geological resources. Discussions between Paul, his University supervisor and the government agency determined that Paul would be best placed to work for the first year with his University supervisor on the foundational aspects of the project and then he would work with the government agency one week/month for the second and third year of his candidature.
• Masters student Rose is working with a mining company to identify and build areas of automation within one of their mines. Due to the workplace health and safety, logistics and intellectual property considerations of Rose accessing the mining site in regional Australia she must undertake placements for 2-3 weeks at a time to maximise her impact and align with mining operations.

Universities generally have insurance that covers students who are undertaking placement activities. Please check with your University partner/s to ensure they have the appropriate insurance in place.

Data61/CSIRO will centrally collect and manage funds from DISR and industry partners, and distribute to university partners to pay the stipends to students. The host university is expected to offset the tuition fees for Domestic Higher Degree by Research students (Master of Philosophy and PhD). Honours and Coursework Masters students should be managed as per usual university processes.

All Consortium Programs will be covered by a Program Funding Agreement, entered into by the Universities, Industry partner(s) and CSIRO. The Program Funding Agreement basically covers the funding allocated to the successful Consortium Program and the distribution of funding from Industry partners to CSIRO and subsequently to the Universities. For a copy of the Program Funding Agreement please email Data61-NextGenGrad@csiro.au.

It basically covers retaining students’ ownership of copyright to their thesis and CSIRO’s ownership of Coursework offering and Coursework-related IP.

Yes. Once the students are recruited and enrolled at universities for a NGGP Consortium Program, CSIRO will issue a NGGP Student Agreement that will be signed by the Student, University and CSIRO. A Student Agreement is signed to onboard student to CSIRO allowing network and site access to students.

Individual Project Agreements may be developed by Consortium Programs covering project IP for which CSIRO will not be involved unless it’s a party to those projects. It is expected that the relevant Universities will lead the development of any individual Project Agreements.

For further clarification on different agreements involved within the NGGP with owners and responsibilities, please email Data61-NextGenGrad@csiro.au.

Before the commencement of any projects, the industry partner(s) must sign a Program Funding Agreement for the life of the program. In the case where an industry partner disengages, the NGGP team will discuss with the supervisors and the students if there is an alternative arrangement that can be put in place.

International industry partners will be considered on a case-by-case basis with consideration given to legislative requirements when engaging with international partners.

CSIRO is the convener, across all cohorts, for coursework, seminar series, ongoing student/supervisor/mentoring events and other networking or development events. CSIRO researchers are encouraged to take part in networking events and/or be involved with coursework related supervision, mentoring or teaching.

Alternatively, CSIRO researchers can be Investigators as part of Consortium Program applications (requires a minimum of two universities involved) and co-supervise students. Joint research supervision is encouraged with CSIRO supervisors (not just Data61). If you are interested in being a Supervisor/Investigator please ensure your Research Director is aware and supportive. If you require support, please email the NGGP team.

Additionally, CSIRO researchers may help facilitate industry collaborations with their existing university networks to provide cash contribution. NB: CSIRO cannot be the financially contributing partner.

No, they are separate scholarship programs. The NGGP is funded by the Department of Industry, Science, and Resources (DISR). To learn more about Data61 scholarships, visit csiro.au.

The NGQGP will provide up to 20 PhD Scholarships and allowances from 2024-2029 to domestic students enrolled at an Australian University. Universities are expected to form consortiums with industry participants, develop research proposals that address real world challenges with quantum technology, and bid in funding for the students. Proposals for student cohorts should focus around a real-world challenge aligned with focus areas for Quantum Technologies in Australia. The NGQGP has identified the following focus areas in Quantum Technology.

1. Quantum devices and scalable quantum computer architectures
2. Quantum Information Science and Quantum Computing
3. Quantum Sensing
4. Quantum Communication
5. Quantum Biotechnology
6. Quantum Materials

If your proposed quantum program is for PhD scholarships only, you can apply to the Next Generation Quantum Graduates Program. Alternatively, you can apply to the NGGP Round 2023-24 (Emerging Technologies includes quantum) or you may choose to apply to both the NGGP and the Next Generation Quantum Graduates Program.

If your proposed quantum program includes levels other than PhDs, you will need to apply via the NGGP Round 2023-24 for all levels other than PhD.