Program Overview

Doctor of Philosophy (Indigenous)

Overview

The Doctor of Philosophy (Indigenous) is a postgraduate research degree that allows students to develop confidence in navigating Indigenous and non-Indigenous standpoints, creating new approaches to complex issues. The program is designed for high-performing university graduates and features a supervised project of original research at its core.

Structured Support

• Progress your research through a series of structured intensives
• Receive guidance from an extended advisory team
• Develop your research skills with the support of highly experienced advisors

Research Excellence

• Research topics that benefit community
• Contribute to a changing agenda in Indigenous research

Fast Facts

• Location: JCU campuses or study centres, including online options
• Commencing: March, July, October (online, Townsville, Cairns)
• Fees: Indicative, annual cost of your course (currently displaying fees for 2025, subject to change)
• Duration: 4 years full-time
• Entry Requirements: Previous research qualification or equivalent

Course Detail

What to Expect

• Develop confidence in navigating Indigenous and non-Indigenous standpoints
• Create new approaches to complex issues
• Receive guidance from an extended advisory team
• Develop your research skills with the support of highly experienced advisors

Contribute to a Changing Agenda in Indigenous Research

• Develop a proposition that contributes to existing understandings through the completion of a PhD (Indigenous) thesis
• Identify a novel approach to explore a real-world issue
• Develop a research question, design and implement your project, and analyze the findings

Influence the Future of Indigenous Communities in the Tropics

• Choose from a broad range of research areas to suit your professional qualifications and interests
• Research areas include:
  • Indigenous studies
  • Indigenous knowledges
  • Indigenous cultures
  • Indigenous education
  • Indigenous community development
  • Indigenous intersections with other disciplines
  • Other research topics relating to Indigenous peoples and Indigenous ideas

Career Opportunities

• JCU Doctor of Philosophy (Indigenous) graduates are internationally recognized as experts who can navigate Indigenous and western ideas to generate innovative responses to complex challenges
• Pursue careers in policy, public service, corporate organizations, not-for-profit sectors, media, research, and education
• Continue your independent research through postdoctoral research or research fellowships

Handbook

• Visit the JCU Course and Subject Handbook for more information

Fees and Scholarships

• JCU, with the support of the Australian Government’s Research Training Program, will cover the costs of tuition fees for Australian citizens/permanent residents and New Zealand citizens
• All candidates can also apply for a competitively-awarded stipend to help with living and tuition costs
• A Student Services and Amenities fee is payable per subject up to a maximum amount per year

Pathways to JCU

• Entry into a Doctor of Philosophy degree requires a Bachelor’s Degree with at least Honours 2A, a postgraduate qualification with a supervised research component of at least one semester full-time equivalent, or a Master of Philosophy
• Students who do not meet these admission requirements may be eligible to enroll in the Master of Philosophy (Indigenous)

How to Apply

• To be eligible for entry, applicants must have attained at least one of the following:
  • a Bachelor’s degree with at least Second Class, Division A (Honours) in a degree program that included a total of at least a semester of supervised project work, the results of which contributed to the Honours grade
  • a postgraduate qualification which included: (a) supervised research component(s) of at least one semester or equivalent and resulted in the production of output(s) graded at the equivalent of Distinction or better, and (b) at least one research methods subject
  • a Research Masters degree, where at least two-thirds of the degree consisted of a supervised research component and resulted in the production of a thesis or equivalent
  • enrolment at this or another Australian university in a higher degree by research for the equivalent of at least 0.5 EFTSL with demonstrated satisfactory performance in the supervised research component(s)
  • a combination of qualifications, research training, and experience, considered equivalent to the above by the Dean of the College to which the Candidate is applying, e.g., senior authorship of at least one peer-reviewed publication plus completion of an appropriate research methods subject

Real Stories

• Student: Georgia Storm, Master of Philosophy (Indigenous)
• Lecturer: Dr. Ailie McDowall, Higher Degree by Research Coordinator, Indigenous Education and Research Centre
• Senior Lecturer: Dr. Vincent Backhaus, Indigenous Education and Research Centre

Real-World Experience

• A local focus: From corporation to nation
• Learn more about the program’s real-world applications and research opportunities.