Research Images category

To enter the Research Images category, you will need to create an image (photograph, painting, drawing, etc.)  that has a strong visual impact and communicates the story of your research to a general audience. You will be invited to display your image in the showcase exhibition if your submission is shortlisted.

There are two sub-categories to choose from:

• Own Creation: you have created this image yourself
• AI-Generated Image: this image has been created entirely using AI image generation models

• Winner (Own Creation): $750 voucher
• Winner (AI-Generated Image): $500 voucher
• Runner-Up (Own Creation): $500 voucher
• Runner-Up (AI-Generated Image): $250 voucher
• People’s Choice Award: $300 voucher

Winning entries will be selected by a panel of judges invited by the School of Graduate Studies. Entries will be judged according to:

• Visual Impact: composition, colour/lighting, presentation
• Emotional Impact: originality, distinctiveness and "wow factor"
• Representation of Research: how well the image communicates a story and relates to the research it represents

1. Entry is open to currently enrolled doctoral candidates.
2. Only one entry per person per category is allowed.
3. To enter, an online entry form should be submitted (including a FileSender link to a high-resolution JPG of the image) by the deadline provided.
4. Shortlisted candidates will be notified.
5. The School of Graduate Studies will print all shortlisted images in A2 format.
6. The image must not have been published elsewhere, nor entered into any other competitions.
7. Entrants must declare that consent has been given by any person featured in an image.
8. For the Own Creation category, entrants must be the sole creator and copyright holder of all submitted images; they must have personally created the image using their own skills, equipment,  and creative input; and the image must not have been generated, enhanced, or substantially modified using artificial intelligence tools.
9. For the AI-Generated Image category, entrants may use AI image generation tools but must comply with all copyright and ethical obligations; disclose which AI tools were used in their submission; and confirm that any prompts, additional elements, or modifications they contributed are their original work.
10. The judges’ decision is final.
11. Images will be displayed online on Figshare.
12. All entrants are expected to be present at the Interactive Exhibition and Prizegiving on Thursday 13 November.
13. The School of Graduate Studies reserves the right to review the image and ask entrants to modify it to ensure it meets the standards of the University of Auckland’s health and safety, research ethics, and equity policies, or to preserve the researchers’ intellectual property rights.
14. If there are fewer than five entries in the Research Image category, the People's Choice voting will not be opened.