Doctoral application help

Find assistance on this page with completing the different sections of your doctoral Application for Admission.

You can begin the application process for your doctoral study by logging into your Application for Admission.

As you navigate through your application, you can select ‘Next’ to go to the next page, or ‘Save and Exit’ to save your information and return to it later.

The final page will show a summary of the information you have submitted, and will have a ‘Submit’ button. This will submit your application for processing by the University. If you do not complete all required sections of the application, the 'Submit' button will not appear. 

1. Personal summary

In this section you will need to provide personal details including name, address, telephone numbers and date of birth.

English language qualifications

You are required to state your first language. If your first language is not English or Māori, you may need to provide evidence that your fluency in the English language meets the admission standards of this University.

  • English language qualifications – IELTS/TOEFL results are only valid for two years from the date of the test
  • New Zealand citizens and Permanent Residents are deemed to have met the English language requirement

For more information, see Postgraduate English language requirements.

2. Academic history

Please enter your prior tertiary qualification(s) (either completed or in progress). Remember that entry to a doctoral programme normally requires one of the following:

  • A masters degree awarded with a University of Auckland equivalent B+ grade
  • A bachelor honours degree awarded with a University of Auckland equivalent B+ grade

3. Programme Selection

English language proficiency

This question will not appear for all applicants. IF you have completed an English language test, you will be asked what test you have taken and when.

Programme type

Select either "Named Doctorates" or "PhD."

Major/Specialisation

Please note that, for named doctorates, only one subject area is available, and that subject will pre-populate in the "Major/specialisation" field.

For the Doctor of Philosophy, select your chosen subject using the search function.

Intended Start Date

You can start your doctoral programme in any month of the year. The doctoral year runs for 12 months from the date you enrol, which is always the first of any month. Please state the year and month you would wish to begin. This date may be amended, with your agreement, at any time.

Please note that your intended start date should be no more than nine months after the date you submit your application. If your intended start date is more than nine months after your application date you will be asked to withdraw your application and reapply closer to your intended start date. 

Campus

If you do not know which campus is appropriate, choose “City”.

Study load

Please note that part-time enrolment is only available for New Zealand students. For more information please visit Doctoral Full-time and Part-time Enrolment Policy and Procedures.

Research topic

In the free-text field, please enter your proposed research topic. This should be a descriptive title of the research you would like to undertake. The title would normally be no more than 150 characters.

Proposed supervisor

If you have someone in mind as a potential supervisor, you can nominate that person here. It could be a supervisor you have already contacted, or you have seen their research on a department website.

You are not required to have organised a supervisor yet. The department will contact you to confirm or discuss available supervision.

Financial Support

You are not required to provide information about proposed funding, but it is useful to signal such information here. If you intend to apply for a scholarship or tutorship, you can make applications for these separately.

Off Campus Doctoral Research

If you click “Yes”, a new question will appear:
Do you intend to perform any off-shore doctoral research? 

International students and NZ Permanent Residents, please note that eligibility under the Domestic Fees policy is based on residence in New Zealand. If you are outside of New Zealand for more than 12 months (accumulated) of your doctoral programme, you will be required to pay the full international tuition fee.

Transferring

If you are currently registered for a PhD at another university, you will be required to withdraw from registration at the other university. You will need to provide a statutory declaration concerning the nature and extent of the research done, and the supervision received at the other university.

Creative Practice Component

Some programmes may also require a creative component such as a portfolio or performance. Please check the website of your faculty or department for any additional information they may require.

4. Supplementary Programme Information

Proposed thesis title

In the free-text field, please enter your proposed thesis title. The title would normally be no more than 150 characters.

Proposed supervisor 

If you have someone in mind as a potential main supervisor, you can nominate that person here. It could be a supervisor you have already contacted, or have seen their research on a department website. 

You are not required to have organised a supervisor yet.The department will contact you to confirm or discuss available supervision.

Funding

You are not required to provide information about proposed funding, but it is useful to indicate such information here. If you intend to apply for a scholarship or tutorship, you can make applications for these separately.

Off-campus Research

If you intent to undertake research outside of New Zealand, you will be asked to indicate how many months you will be outside of New Zealand for.

International students and New Zealand Permanent residents must note that eligibility under the Domestic Fees policy is based on residence in New Zealand. If you are outside of New Zealand for more than 12 months (accumulated) of your doctoral programme, you will be required to pay the full international tuition fee.

Prior doctoral study

If you are currently registered for a PhD at another university, you will be required to withdraw from registration at the other university. You will need to provide a statutory declaration concerning

  • the nature and extent of the research done
  • the supervision you received at the other university

Scholarly creative component

Some programmes may also require a creative component, such as a portfolio or performance. Please check the website of your faculty or department for any additional information they may require.

Professional membership (optional)

If you have membership in a professional body and feel that it is relevant to the programme and/or subject you have chosen, you are welcome to enter that information here.

International framework agreement

You can notify us that you plan to undertake research as part of an international framework agreement by providing details in the free-text box.

Referees

If you have not studied at the University of Auckland within the past five years, you must arrange for two confidential referee reports. You need to acknowledge this requirement before moving to the next page.

Supporting documents
You are here required to upload electronic versions of various documents. These are needed by academic staff to assess your qualification for entry to the programme, to provide you with appropriate advice, and to match your research interests with those of a potential supervisor.

For more information, see Documents to support your application.

Academic Transcript
This is the academic transcript or record of your highest tertiary qualification (as named in the Tertiary Education page). You may also upload here the transcript of any other qualification(s) you believe to be relevant or would wish to have considered. It is important that you include the grading scale of the tertiary institution that you have studied at. This should be uploaded as part of your academic transcript.

Statement of Research Intent
A brief one-page statement, in the form of an abstract, using the Statement of Research Intent template. Once you have completed your statement, save it as a Word document.

For the document template and more information, visit Statement of Research Intent.

5. Supporting documents

You are here required to upload electronic versions of various documents. These are needed by academic staff to assess your qualification for entry to the programme, to provide you with appropriate advice, and to match your research interests with those of a potential supervisor.

For more information, see Documents to support your application.

Academic Transcript

This is the academic transcript or record of your highest tertiary qualification (as named in the Tertiary Education page). You may also upload here the transcript of any other qualification(s) you believe to be relevant or would wish to have considered.

It is important that you include the grading scale of the tertiary institution that you have studied at. This should be uploaded as part of your academic transcript.

English language proficiency

This is a copy of the results for any English language test you have taken. An example of an English test is IELTS.

Statement of Research Intent

A brief one-page statement, in the form of an abstract, using the Statement of Research Intent template. Once you have completed your statement, save it as a Word document.

For the document template and more information, visit Statement of Research Intent.

CV

Please include all your complete and incomplete study. You should also include a list of your publications, if applicable.

6. Review

On this page, a summary of the programme you are applying for is displayed. You can edit any of your application information by selecting the relevant page number at the top of the page. 

You must complete all mandatory fields before you are able to submit your application. 

Once you have submitted your application you will be taken to your application overview page. Here you can check the status of your application(s) and review your “Things you need to do” list. 

Need more help?

If you experience any difficulties in accessing the Application for Admission system, or in completing or submitting your doctoral application, contact our Student Support Team.