UQ Fully Funded PhD Scholarships: Pacific Climate Loss 2026
The University of Queensland offers four fully funded PhD scholarships. These positions focus on co-developing solutions to climate-driven loss and damage in the Pacific. If you care about climate change and want to help Pacific Island communities, this could be your chance to make a real difference through research.
Key Benefits of the Scholarships
These scholarships cover all your costs. You get tuition fees paid, a living stipend of AU$37,500 per year (tax-free), and health cover for overseas students. You will work at the School of the Environment with top facilities and experts.
You also gain funded trips to the field. This means working with communities, NGOs, governments, and groups in the Cook Islands, Fiji, and Vanuatu. Professor Karen McNamara leads the project as your main supervisor.
What the Research Involves
Each PhD project fits your interests and skills. You co-design it with your team. The main goals include:
- Creating ways to measure climate loss and damage.
- Recording how people live through these changes and what they do about it.
- Testing local solutions.
- Sharing findings to shape policies at local and global levels.
This work blends time in the classroom, on-site visits, and policy talks. It addresses social, cultural, and justice issues from climate change.
Who Can Apply
You need strong grades in fields like geography, environmental science, Indigenous studies, or development studies. Interest in climate adaptation, community research, or policy work helps a lot. People from Pacific Islands, especially Cook Islands, Fiji, and Vanuatu, get special encouragement.
Steps to Submit an Expression of Interest
Start with an EOI. This is your first step.
Step 1: Gather your info. List your proposed supervisor, past qualifications, two referee contacts, and English skills if needed.
Step 2: Prepare documents. Upload your CV, transcripts, and degree certificates as PDFs. Name files like “LASTNAME_firstname_document-name.pdf”. Translate non-English docs.
Step 3: Build your CV. Include name, contacts, nationality, languages, ORCID ID, education, awards, jobs, research, publications, and grants. Add a short 200-word note on your achievements if you want. Skip photos or hobbies.
Step 4: List referees. Give details for at least two people who know your work. The university contacts them.
What Happens Next
Your supervisor reviews the EOI in about two weeks. They may set up a chat to check fit. If it goes well, you submit a full application with passport and more docs.
If not, try another supervisor with a new EOI. For project questions, email Professor Karen McNamara at [email protected].
Deadline and Application Link
Submit EOIs by April 15, 2026. Apply early. Go to the UQ PhD Projects page to start: apply here. More details at UQ study page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What benefits do these UQ PhD scholarships offer?
They cover tuition fees, provide a tax-free living stipend of AU$37,500 per year, and include health cover for overseas students. You also get funded field trips to Pacific Islands.
What does the research focus on?
The projects involve measuring climate loss and damage, documenting community responses, testing local solutions, and sharing findings for policy changes in places like Cook Islands, Fiji, and Vanuatu.
Who is eligible to apply?
You need strong grades in fields like geography or environmental science, plus interest in climate adaptation or community research. Pacific Islanders from Cook Islands, Fiji, or Vanuatu are especially encouraged.
What is the deadline and how do I start?
Submit your Expression of Interest by April 15, 2026. Start by gathering your info, CV, transcripts, and referee details, then apply via the UQ PhD Projects page.