Connecting Graduate Research Candidates with Industry

Guides to support valuable partnerships between university research students and industry partners were developed and released in late 2018:

Collaboratively produced by the Australian Council of Graduate Research (ACGR) and the Australian Industry Group (Ai Group), the two complementary publications assist both universities and industry partners to realise the substantial short-term and long-term benefits that can be gained from graduate research student-industry engagement.

This work builds upon a research report Mapping the External Engagement of Australia’s PhD Candidates released in 2017 by the Australian Council of Graduate Research Inc. The report examines the levels of industry and end-user engagement with PhD candidates, and includes input from 11 participating universities, representing a good cross section of the sector. The research undertaken by the Melbourne Centre for Studies in Higher Education on behalf of ACGR involved a survey of PhD supervisors and candidates at 11 universities, a survey of PhD alumni from 5 universities and a further nine industry case studies.

The survey highlighted that external engagement is associated with a range of positive outcomes for PhD candidates. These candidates who engaged in deeper external engagements (i.e. paid/unpaid placements and collaborative research projects) reported greater skills development, a wider range of career ambitions and increased motivation to complete their PhDs.

The survey identified the skills that are gained when PhD candidates engage in deep external engagement during their research. The majority of those so involved appreciated the contacts, networks, insights into work experience, motivation to complete and practical skills that are generated by placements and collaborative research projects. Other benefits related to both the completion of their degrees and their transition to employment.

Related pages