Placements

Discuss participation with your principal advisor

When applying to participate in an HDR Placement, formal endorsement from your principal advisor is a requirement; you can request this through my.UQ dashboard.

Make sure your advisor understands that the purpose of an HDR placement is to develop transferable skills, and therefore may not be directly related to your thesis topic. You should discuss how you will comfortably manage the workload of a Placement alongside your candidature. In some cases, your principal advisor may be able to make some introductions to organisations on your behalf.

Consider these important factors

• Attend a Placement Information Session before you start to seek a Placement opportunity.
• Placement commencement cannot be approved until a specific legal document (UQ Placement Agreement) has been fully executed between the Graduate School and the Host Organisation. The Graduate School will need to facilitate the Placement Agreement process and will advise you when that has been done.
• We recommend allowing no fewer than two months for the approvals process.
• A Placement is not an employment contract, and you cannot be paid to undertake a Placement.
• You will be required to submit a reflective report on completion of your Placement. 
• Participation will be assessed against the HDR Graduate Attributes and the final outcome will be included on your academic transcript.
• You must demonstrate your suitability for a Placement. Participation is not guaranteed, and offers may be subject to
  • school approval
  • advisor endorsement
  • your progress and conduct
  • the quality of your application
  • your suitability for the role
  • appropriate project scope
  • a successful interview with the host organisation
  • participation in CDF Career planning sessions.
  • Placement commencement date - Must be within a week of submission date if placement is being undertaken post submission and must be fully approved prior to your thesis submission. 
• The HDR Placement program is open to approved HDR candidates from any discipline. Non-cognate Placements are encouraged so that you can demonstrate the transferable skills you have gained through your research degree.
• Unless otherwise stated, any advertised Placements are open to International and Domestic students enrolled in a PhD or MPhil program.
• In some circumstances advertised Placements may be restricted to particular student groups. Any restrictions will be shown on the Placement advertisement.

Attending an information session will give you an overview of the Placement program, projects, possible funding options, and the approach required to secure an approved Placement.  (A CDSE information session is held immediately prior to the Placement session for those interested in the scholarship extension.  Registration for the CDSE session is here).

2021 Dates (Registration links will be available here shortly.  All Sessions will be held via Zoom until further notice)

• Friday, 28 May 
• Friday, 25 June 
• Friday, 30 July 
• Friday, 27 August 
• Friday, 24 September
• Friday, 29 October
• Friday, 26 November
• Friday, 17 December

Contact the Graduate School

Once you have attended a Placement information session and have decided to pursue the option of undertaking a Placement, contact the Graduate School to discuss your proposed activity and the next steps and request the resources required to start your approach.

From time to time, the Graduate School has advertised placement opportunities (see below), however most students prefer to source their own. You may choose to find your own placement opportunity and work with us to ensure it meets UQ Graduate School placement guidelines. It is important to plan ahead as it can take several months to ensure all administrative requirements are fulfilled once a placement location has been found. You should start preparing as early as possible, and at least three months prior to your thesis review milestone. 

The host organisation that you propose should

• be a medium or large, reputable industry organisation;
• not be an academic institution; and
• must be able to offer an immersive experience and adequate supervision while you undertake meaningful work within that organisation,
• and must hold appropriate levels of Public Liability insurance (And Professional Indemnity insurance where applicable).

Placements will not be approved for High Risk Destinations (DFAT Level 3 or 4). 

Once you have identified your proposed host organisation, it would need to be deemed appropriate by the Graduate School, as you will need to develop in conjunction with that organisation, a placement project proposal that the Dean will review before endorsing.

On request, the Graduate School will provide you with the resources required to start the process of securing formal approval for the placement. 

The HDR placements program has had many organisations participate in hosting HDR candidates over the past few years. Below is a selection of organisations who have successfully partnered with our candidates.

You do not have to choose an organisation from this list. It is merely to give you an idea of the options that may be available to you.