You must have completed a significant research project, dissertation or thesis, at university level. You need to have completed a postgraduate bachelors (honours) degree with first class or second class (division 1) honours, or a masters degree with first class or second class (division 1) honours in a relevant field.
The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is available in approximately 100 subjects. Named doctorates are available in Clinical Psychology, Education, Fine Arts, Music, Musical Arts, and Medicine.
Grade Point Equivalent (GPE) calculator
Grades or marks achieved at other institutions are given a Grade Point Equivalent (GPE) on the University’s 0-9 grading scale. If you have overseas qualifications you will typically need a GPE of 5.5. To view an indication of your GPE, use our GPE Calculator.
Supervision and research requirements
Meeting our academic requirements does not guarantee entry. You must demonstrate an ability to research independently, and possess a high level of theoretical understanding. Acceptance is subject to staff availability for supervision, and appropriate facilities.
You must write a preliminary research proposal to demonstrate your research capability and experience. This can be prepared in consultation with your proposed supervisor.
To identify doctoral supervisors and research projects see FindaThesis, the research webpages for your area of interest or contact the postgraduate adviser for your faculty.
Named doctorate requirements
Doctor of Clinical Psychology isrestricted to New Zealand and Australian citizens and residents, and has a limited number of places each year.
Doctor of Education requires at least two years’ professional experience in education or in another professional area considered comparable by the Board of Graduate Studies.
Doctor of Medicine requires a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery, or equivalent medical degree, and at least five years experience in medical practice.
English language requirements
You must meet Postgraduate English language requirements.
Programme structure
A doctorate is normally carried out over a minimum of 3 years full-time. Our doctoral candidates work closely with at least one appointed supervisor and many work in a team of researchers.
For the PhD, you will prepare a substantial thesis of original research that contributes significantly to knowledge and understanding in your discipline, followed by an oral examination.
Your PhD thesis may include publications you have written under supervision for this degree or, for those in a creative arts or design discipline, you may present a body of creative work for assessment with your thesis. This is known as a PhD with creative practice.
You can submit an application for a doctoral programme (excluding DClinPsy and EdD) at any time of the year.
Doctoral scholarships
Guaranteed scholarships
The University offers guaranteed scholarships to new domestic doctoral and international PhD applicants who meet grade point average (GPA) thresholds in their qualifying programme from a New Zealand university.
High-achieving domestic and international students will also be considered for, but not guaranteed, a scholarship.
Find out more: University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarships
Other doctoral scholarships
In addition to guaranteed scholarships, the University offers a range of doctoral scholarships.
You can search for doctoral-level scholarships by filtering by programme type on the scholarships search tool, here: Find a scholarship.
Domestic fees for international PhD candidates
If you are a new international PhD student, you will pay the same annual tuition fee as New Zealand PhD students. To be eligible for the domestic PhD fee, you must reside in New Zealand for the duration of your doctoral programme.*
Find out more: Doctoral fees
*You may undertake research activities overseas during your doctoral programme for a cumulative total of no more than 12 months.
More information
Postgraduate prospectus
Find information about the University, our doctoral programmes and the support and services we offer.
PReSS accounts
All University of Auckland doctoral students are automatically entitled to research support funding through a PReSS account. The fund is there to help cover research costs such as attending conferences and research-related travel.
Doctoral workshops
Libraries and Learning Services offer a range of workshops to support our doctoral candidates to develop the skills they need to successfully complete their studies.
Postgraduate events
The University hosts a range of events for our postgraduate community, including doctoral-specific events like the monthly Doctoral Morning Tea.
Contact
Phone: 09 923 5025 (within Auckland)
Phone: 0800 61 62 63 (outside Auckland)
Phone: +64 9 373 7513 (if overseas)
Email: [email protected]
Find out more
How to apply for a doctorate
Doctoral application process
Doctoral application help
Apply now