Fellowships and Awards

The objectives of the Trust are to support research into the ecology and management of New Zealand’s indigenous grasslands but especially investigations into aspects of the sustainable management, uses, and conservation of these grassland ecosystems (eg. plant biology, sustainable production systems, plant-animal interactions, pedology, hydrology, climatology).

The Trust welcomes applications for Fellowships for post-graduate research (PhD, MSc, and Hons). Awards of other types to Fellows will also be considered on their merits.

Fully supported postgraduate Fellowships incorporate a stipend payable at rates consistent with those offered by the particular university, plus research expenses. If that rate changes during the tenure of the Fellowship the Trust will re-adjust the rate accordingly, following a request from the supervisor. Other Fellowships may be awarded to provide financial support for other components of the research, for example for operating expenses only. Applicants for Fellowships should show evidence of having applied for any applicable local scholarships, and a Hellaby decision on stipend and fees support can be deferred until the outcome of those other applications is known.

All Fellows are required to provide an annual report when requested by the Governors, typically in August. Fully supported Hellaby IGR Fellows usually have their academic fees paid and receive a contribution of $500 towards the cost of producing their thesis. In these cases a copy of the approved thesis (preferably as a pdf file) is expected.

The decision to award Fellowships is generally based on the following three criteria:

The decision to award Fellowships is generally based on the following three criteria:
Whether the research topic fits within the Trust’s objectives;
The academic record of the applicant, and;
The supporting statement of the intending supervisor(s).

If the research topic does not fit within the Trust’s objectives it cannot be funded.

Academic record requirements

Applications will be assessed on merit and normally based on the following guidelines unless other circumstances and considerations are relevant. Applications for student support other than for PhD or MSc will normally have an equivalent merit standard applied.

For PhD applicants:

a student should have a minimum of a Second Class First Division Honours degree or equivalent
the research dissertation component of (i) should be graded a minimum of B+ and have contributed a minimum of one quarter of the degree;
for 2-yr MSc students applying for entry to PhD, the research thesis component should be graded a minimum of B+;
for 1-yr MSc by thesis only, students should have an MSc with Credit or the equivalent, as a minimum (allowing for variation in terminology between universities).

For MSc thesis applicants:

students normally should have completed a minimum of a B average across their year-1 MSc papers or achieved this standard in an equivalent qualification.

Research expenses

The Trust will normally cover reasonable research costs of Fellows. It may also consider applications from post-graduate students, otherwise funded, to cover or contribute to the cost of relevant field research projects where funds are not otherwise available. Also, recognising health and safety requirements, the Trust may also consider applications for qualified student field assistants, working under appropriate supervision, to assist a current Fellow. Summer Student Fellowships of up to 10 weeks duration, to assist university or CRI staff with relevant research, will also be considered for students likely to advance in a relevant field. In these circumstances, training of student assistants would be considered as fulfilling the Trust’s objectives.

Research equipment and consumables

The Trust will also consider contributing to the cost of purchasing equipment and/or consumables necessary for a Fellow’s research project where these are not already available within the university. Any equipment so purchased will normally become the property of the university department on completion of the project. However, this equipment must be recorded and catalogued within the department, so as to be preferentially available for any future Hellaby Fellow, if it is not already in use when so required. If in use, the Trust may consider contributing to the cost of the additional items.

Travel costs and field accommodation

Applications for the cost of travel (vehicle usage, air travel etc) for research work should be itemised (for vehicles, N trips, N km per trip, N c/km; for flights, N flights, $N per flight). The Trust will pay reasonable field accommodation costs. Requests should itemise details (N nights, $N per night etc).

Meetings and seminars

The Trust normally convenes a seminar triennially, so as to involve all the researchers it funds in at least one such seminar. These are normally held in Dunedin, and are open to other interested people. The Trust covers the cost of contributors to these seminars.

The Trust will also consider covering or contributing to the costs of its Fellows attending at least one other relevant conference usually within New Zealand, to present aspects of their research towards the end of their tenure as a Fellow. Funding for such conference travel should be in a separate specific application at the time, not included in the initial application for a Fellowship.

Applications

The Trust welcomes applications for support. These are currently considered annually in August (see website home page for the next closing date). The Application Form specifies the information which should be included (project proposal, budget, applicant CV, and supporting statement from the supervisor).
Preliminary discussions may be held with any of the Trust's Governors or Research Advisers. Applications should be addressed to the Chair of the Governors (Dave Kelly, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch 8140) on or before the closing date. In special cases, an application may be considered at other times of year when received.