Applicants must: be Australian citizens and permanent residents or New Zealand citizens, or international students who are IPRS holders commencing from 1 January; hold a bachelor degree with first class honours or have demonstrated an equivalent level of academic attainment as determined by RMIT; be currently enrolled in, or have applied for, a full-time postgraduate research program at RMIT. Part-time APAs may be approved for students with exceptional circumstances e.g. for medical reasons or due to significant care commitments. Part-time scholarships are not tax exempt. Please refer to the Scholarship Guidelines for further details. Applicants are ineligible if: they are undertaking a master by research or already hold a doctorate by research, master by research or an equivalent research qualification; they are undertaking a doctorate by research or already hold a doctorate by research or an equivalent research qualification; they have previously held a Commonwealth-funded postgraduate research scholarship unless it was terminated within 6 months of the scholarship's payments; or they are currently receiving another equivalent award, scholarship or salary providing a benefit greater than 75 per cent of the APA rate to undertake the HDR.