CQUniversity and ARC PhD Scholarship

Status

Open Now

Opens

Closes

Scholarship Value

$AU38,000 per year

Length of Scholarship

3 years / 3 EFTSL

Number Available

2

Funding Type

Research

Join a cutting-edge research team at CQUniversity's Appleton Institute in Adelaide, tackling a critical challenge facing modern workforces: on-call work.

 

Are you ready to shape the future of safety in essential workforces? Join a cutting-edge research team at CQUniversity's Appleton Institute in Adelaide, addressing a critical yet under-researched challenge of modern work: on-call work and its impact on sleep, fatigue, and safety.

This fully funded PhD scholarship, likely commencing in January 2027, offers the opportunity to:

  • Work in a world-class sleep laboratory alongside leading researchers in sleep, fatigue, and workplace safety to conduct a controlled laboratory study examining the effects of repeated overnight call-outs on sleep disruption and recovery.
  • Contribute to addressing a major national issue, with fatigue-related harm in on-call workers costing >$2.25 billion annually.
  • Generate high-quality experimental evidence to inform fatigue risk management strategies and industry guidance.
  • Improve safety, wellbeing, and operational outcomes for on-call workers and the communities they support.
  • Complete a PhD while developing a strong foundation for a research career. 

The successful candidate will be embedded within the Appleton Institute’s internationally recognised sleep and fatigue research program and contribute to a high-impact, externally funded project. This laboratory-based research will provide critical new insights into the acute effects of overnight disruptions, advancing scientific understanding and supporting safer work practices across essential industries.

Eligibility Requirements:

  • Completed a Bachelor’s Degree with Honours I or IIA, a Master’s Degree (with a significant research component), or an equivalent qualification, in a relevant field (public health, psychology, sport and exercise science, etc.).
  • Australian or New Zealand citizen, permanent resident of Australia, or an international student (tuition fees for international students will be waived).
  • Approved for admission to a Doctor of Philosophy program at CQUniversity.
  • Able to enrol full-time as an internal candidate at CQUniversity’s Adelaide campus.
  • No prior Commonwealth or CQUniversity-funded research scholarship, unless terminated within six months.
  • Not receiving an equivalent award or scholarship that provides more than 75% of the stipend rate.
  • Capacity and willingness to work outside standard office hours for the purpose of collecting research data (including at night or weekends).

Desired Skills:

  • Strong writing and communication skills.
  • Excellent planning and organisational skills with the ability to work independently and in a team, meet deadlines, and prioritise tasks.
  • Willingness to travel for data collection or conferences, potentially nationally or internationally.

Submit your Expression of Interest (EOI) by emailing the supporting documentation to Dr. Madeline Sprajcer at m.sprajcer@cqu.edu.au as soon as possible. For additional information, you can reach out to Dr. Sprajcer via the same email address. Join our collaborative and innovative research team and contribute to impactful workplace health and safety research!

Applicants will be notified of the outcome via email.

Send a brief CV and a 250-word statement about your interest in the scholarship to m.sprajcer@cqu.edu.au.