New Candidates
A warm welcome to our doctoral community! This page contains everything you need to know as you set off on your doctoral adventure at the University of Auckland, joining more than 3,200 talented candidates from all over the world in pursuit of excellence and impact.
Sign up for Doctoral Induction
You should attend the central Doctoral Induction within the first two months of enrolling as a doctoral candidate. The next induction is on Wednesday 11 March (9am to 3pm), and we recommend you book as soon as possible.
If you are from overseas, you may also like to consider attending the University's optional International Orientation.
Note: Booking links for Doctoral Induction and SGS Workshops will take you to Wahapū. If you don't have access to Wahapū because you are a Named Doctorate or on the Old Statute, you can book via the Doctoral Event Registration Form.
Log in to Wahapū
Wahapū is a comprehensive digital system for managing doctoral candidature. It is used by doctoral candidates, supervisors, academic heads, and all other parties involved in managing doctoral processes.
All staff and new PhD candidates on the current PhD Statute are given automatic access, normally within the first few days of candidature, and you can log on using single sign-on.
Log in to Wahapū here.
Access Wahapū support pages here.
Note: Candidates enrolled in Named Doctorates and those on the Old Statute do not have access to Wahapū.
Practical advice for new candidates
- Scholarships: If you're on a scholarship, you need to let your scholarship administrator know that you have started your doctoral programme. If you have a University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarship, you can contact the University's Scholarships Office.
- Campus card: You can collect your campus card from the University's Student Hubs on City Campus or Grafton Campus. The Student Hubs can also help you with many of your other queries.
- Email address: Learn more about setting up your student email address. You may need VPN if you're connecting from off-campus. If you have queries, contact the Student IT Hub.
- ORCID ID: If you don't yet have one, we recommend creating an ORCID ID as soon as possible. This ID will connect you with your research publications and affiliations.
- Understand your enrolment: Your enrolment lasts for 12 months from your start date. You can view your fees at Student Services Online. IF you're an international student, make sure you know how the domestic fee policy works.
- Accommodation: If you're looking for a place to stay, visit the University's accommodation web page to find out more.
- Health Services: Find out about enrolling with University Health and Counselling for comprehensive community healthcare, with information for domestic and international candidates.
- Public transport: If you're planning to take the bus, train or ferry in Auckland, you can buy an Auckland Transport Hop Card which is valid for all modes of public transport (AT Hop Card).
- Parking: If you have a car and will be driving to campus, you may like to explore the staff parking options that are also available to doctoral candidates. There are also options for bike and scooter parking.
- Campus map: If you're new to Auckland, the University's campus maps are very helpful.
- IT queries: For basic IT queries, you can contact the Student IT Hub, and for more complex IT questions, you can raise a ticket via the Staff Service Centre's IT Portal on the Staff Intranet. Note: Depending on when you join the doctoral programme, there may be a delay of a few weeks before you gaining access to certain resources such as the Staff Intranet and the Doctoral News e-newsletter.
- Meet new people: Explore ways to make friends at the University of Auckland on our Doctoral Communities web page, and if you're feeling overwhelmed, visit our Doctoral Wellbeing web page for advice.
- Confirmation Milestones: Doctoral Induction is one of the milestones you must complete in the first year of your doctorate, in order to be confirmed into the programme. Learn more about the other milestones on our Confirmation Milestones web page.
- Canvas course: You should aim to complete the online PhD Confirmation of Candidature Canvas Course within the first two months of enrolling. This, together with the Doctoral Induction, will provide you with the knowledge and tools you need for a successful provisional year.
- Policies: Visit our Doctoral Policies web page to explore key doctoral policies. You'll also find a link to the University's Policy Hub.
- PReSS: Postgraduate Research Student Support (PReSS) funding is provided by the University to assist with the provision of financial support for doctoral research that is not funded by other sources. Learn more about PReSS Accounts.
- ResearchHub: Explore the comprehensive online ResearchHub to find services, resources and people to accelerate your research.
- ResearchSpace: It's hard to write a thesis if you've never read one, so we recommend exploring ResearchSpace (the University's digital thesis repository) and having a look through a few doctoral theses from your field of study.
- Thesis by Publication: add info here...
- Confirmation Review workshop: We recommend that you attend the Preparing for your Confirmation Review online workshop within the first six months, after completing the Canvas course. This is a great opportunity to learn more and ask questions. Book early to avoid disappointment. The next available sessions are on Monday 16 February and Thursday 14 May.
Who to contact if you have a query
| Query type | Who to contact |
|---|---|
| Academic queries | Your supervisor |
| General queries | Explore the doctoral web pages Search on AskAuckland Visit a Student Hub Email doctoraladvice@auckland.ac.nz |
| IT queries | Basic IT queries: Student IT Hub Basic software: Download here Specialised software: Download here Complex IT queries: IT Service Portal for Staff Niche software: IT Service Portal for Staff |
| International queries | International Student Support team |
| Administrative queries | Group Services Administrators in your Faculty/LSRI |
| Research queries | Doctoral Research Coordinators: Auckland Bioengineering Institute Business and Economics Engineering and Design Law Liggins Institute Medical and Health Sciences Science |
Frequently asked questions
- What is Wahapū?
- Where can I get help or support with Wahapū?
- How do doctoral candidates record research outputs in Wahapū?
- How do I record doctoral supervision meetings in Wahapū?
- How do doctoral candidates keep track of training and development in Wahapū?
- As a candidate, how do I update my details in Wahapū?
- What are doctoral Milestones, and how do I manage them?
- What is the process for the doctoral confirmation review?
- How do I set up my Discovery Profile?
- How do I get a Turnitin login as a doctoral candidate?
- How do I notify the University that I plan to undertake research as part of my Institutional Framework Agreement?
