(Cth) Increase the Research Training Program Stipend Base Rate
- Naomi Kifle, Chamika Fonseka, Akash Merai, Irene Jophy, Zehra Yamac, Zoe Kromar, Mecca Setiawan, Ishika Das, Jacinda Dixon-Rielly & Abbey B.
- 1 day ago
- 8 min read
Author: Naomi Kifle, Chamika Fonseka, Akash Merai, Irene Jophy, Zehra Yamac, Zoe Kromar, Mecca Setiawan, Ishika Das, Jacinda Dixon-Rielly & Abbey Bailey | Publish date: 30/3/2026
P: The Research Training Program stipend base rate is ‘too low’.
S: The Minister for Education should amend Section 18(3) of the Higher Education Support (Commonwealth Scholarships) Guidelines 2025 (Cth) to increase the Research Training Program Stipend (refer to ‘Public Support’ section online for amount).
Problem Identification:
Section 18(3) of the Higher Education Support (Commonwealth Scholarships) Guidelines 2025 (Cth) establishes the full-time Research Training Program (RTP) indexed to $34,315 p.a. in 2026.
According to the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations (CAPA), this means that the RTP Stipend base rate ‘remains well below the National Minimum Wage (NMW)’. Universities Australia (UA) argued that this creates ‘crippling financial stress’ for students, ‘risking the nation’s future workforce and economic growth’, and prevents research degrees from becoming ‘more accessible’.
Context:
The RTP refers to an Australian Government research grant for ‘eligible Australian universities to [financially] support… domestic and international students’ undertaking higher degrees by research (HDRs). This includes research doctorates (i.e. PhDs) and research master's degrees.
The Department of Education established that universities have discretion to set any rate within this range of $34,315 and $53,608.
According to Dr Ryan Edwards from the Monash Graduate Association (MGA), graduate researchers fall in a ‘third space’ between students and staff. Jess Gardner Russell, the President of CAPA, stated that ‘full time PhD research’ is often ‘a full-time job’s equivalent of work’, with some working more than 40 hours a week.
Arguments:
The Australian Council of Graduate Research (ACGR) and UA report, ‘Investing in PhD candidates in Australia’ (2024) argued that the stipend, which falls below minimum wage, often ‘forces many [PhD candidates]… to live below the poverty line’. Interpreted from the 2025 CAPA media release, a 2026 PhD candidate working 40 hours per week equates to just $16.50 [per hour], which remains significantly lower than the national minimum wage of $24.95 per hour. ACGR noted that many PhD candidates ‘do not follow a traditional career path and often have financial responsibilities before starting their PhD … especially those with families or dependents’. CAPA stated that this leaves many ‘struggling to make ends meet in this cost-of-living crisis’. In an ABC interview, then-PhD candidate Alexandra Paton stated that an inadequate RTP Stipend meant that she was ‘earning less than [she] did when [she] was 14 at McDonald's’. She elaborated that many of her peers ‘dumpster dived for food…trying to put just a little bit of money in their savings account’.
In 2024, former ACGR President, Professor Clive Baldock, argued that an inadequate RTP Stipend could create a ‘shortfall in highly trained PhD graduate researchers’, and ‘potentially hinder innovation [and] economic growth’. The UA ‘From Fragmented to Future-ready’ report (2025) stated that ‘Australia is heading toward a sharp decline in its PhD-qualified science workforce’, with a 26% shortfall, equivalent to ‘around 12,000 people’ by 2031. The ACGR and UA report (2024) attributed ‘insufficient financial support during PhD programs’ as a key reason potential candidates decide against pursuing a PhD. The 2025 UA report further outlined that this could ‘reduce [Australia’s] capacity for scientific discovery, innovation, and teaching’, and create ‘greater reliance on foreign technologies, treatments and products’.
Advice/Solution Identification:
ACGR, Innovative Research Universities, Australian Universities Accord, CAPA, UniMelb GSA and the Department of Industry Science and Resources have all called for an increase in the RTP Stipend base rate. According to ACGR and UA, this could ‘help alleviate financial barriers’, and ‘ensure [that] pursuing a PhD is accessible to top candidates, not just those who can afford it’. Current ACGR President, Professor Louise Sharpe, further argued that this could ‘address critical workforce shortages and strengthen [Australia’s] research and innovation sectors’.
Precedent:
There is international precedent for increasing the RTP Stipend base rate. In 2025, the UK increased the minimum stipend for PhD students by 8% ‘to provide an amount at least equivalent to the take-home income from the national living wage’. Further, in 2024, Canada increased PhD stipends from $27,000 to $40,000 Canadian dollars to ‘increase the value and number of scholarships and fellowships for master’s and doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers’.
Public Support:
The following groups/individuals have called to increase the RTP Stipend base rate:
The following groups/individuals have called for specific funding targets or alignments for the RTP Stipend base rate:
Department of Industry Science and Resources - $50,000 stipend for 1,000 PhD candidates in critical areas
Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations Inc. - $42,920
Universities Australia - $36,000
UniMelb GSA - The National Minimum Wage rate
Monash Graduate Association - $35,000–$37,000
This list reflects publicly stated positions and should not necessarily be taken as endorsement of this specific brief.
News Coverage:
ABC News Radio - “PhD enrolments decline”. The episode reported on the financial struggles of PhD candidates who relied on the RTP Stipend. This broadcast featured conversations with PhD students and the CEO of Universities Australia about the decrease in the number of students applying for HDR study. By: Luke Radford and Alexandra Alvaro | 17 Jan 2025 - Listen to the episode here.
The Guardian - “PhD student Jesse Gardner-Russell earns $20 an hour. Experts say low pay is turning Australia’s best and brightest away”. This article reported on PhD students' discussion of the lack of financial support for postgraduate students in Australia. By: Caitlin Cassidy | 17 Jan 2025 - Read the article here.
Canberra City News - “PhD students living ‘in poverty,’ risking research”. This article reported that domestic PhD enrolments dropped by 8 per cent between 2018 and 2023, as stipends remained inadequate for living costs, with stakeholders calling for an increase in stipends and broader support. By: Jacob Shteyman | 17 Jan 2025 - Read the article here.
The Guardian - “Instant noodles and extra jobs: PhD candidates ‘barely scraping by’ on stipends below minimum wage”. The article reported that PhD students are struggling to make ends meet due to the low federal stipend. By: Caitlin Cassidy | 29 January 2023 - Read the article here.
Where to go to learn more:
(2024) Final Report | Australian Universities Accord - This report examined Australia’s higher education system and created a long-term reform plan. It outlined 47 recommendations for the Government to implement, including increasing the RTP Stipend base rate, to support long-term reform of the higher education sector. View the full report here.
(2026) Pre-budget Submission 2026–27 | CAPA - A policy submission that analysed Department of Education data on postgraduate funding and recommended increasing the RTP stipend base rate to align with the minimum wage to address cost-of-living pressures on PhD candidates. View the full submission here.
(2024) Investing in PhD candidates in Australia | Australian Council of Graduate Research - A comprehensive policy report that examined the sustainability of Australia’s research training system and found that current stipend levels are insufficient to meet living costs, discouraging talented candidates from pursuing PhD study. Additionally, the report called for an increase in the RTP funding cap. View the report here.
(2025) Graduate Research in Arts: Student Experiences, Challenges and Opportunities for Enhancement | Monash Graduate Association - This report examined 115 graduate researchers in the Faculty of Arts who took part in a national survey. It investigated their health, family and finances by reviewing their personal testimonies. View the report here.
Higher Education Support (Commonwealth Scholarships) Guidelines 2025 (Cth) - Section 18(3). Read the full guidelines here.
Human Perspective:
Sophie moved to Sydney to begin her PhD, supported by a Research Training Program Stipend. At first, she felt relieved to have secured funding. However, once she calculated the expenses of her small share-house room rent, groceries and transport, she realised that the stipend, spread across the year, amounted to less than what she made as a fast food worker at 15. There was little left over for emergencies, so when her car broke down, the repair bill wiped out her savings. In order to pay for the car bill and her living expenses, Sophie took on extra tutoring classes and weekend barista shifts. The added work left her exhausted, with less time to focus on her research and to write her thesis. Deadlines slipped by without her noticing, and she had to decline conference opportunities as she could not afford the travel costs or time away from her other paid work. Without family financial support to rely on, Sophie began to question whether she could continue her PhD at all. She felt disheartened that pursuing research – work that contributes to Australia’s future – required a financial sacrifice that she felt was impossible to manage.
To protect the anonymity of those involved, this is a fictionalised account drawn from an amalgamation of real-life stories, experiences and testimonials gathered during the research process for this brief. Any resemblance to actual individuals is purely coincidental.
Conflict of interest/acknowledgment statement:
The calculations regarding PhD candidate compensation are interpreted from the CAPA media release on 1 July 2025 by the authors of this brief.
Dr Ryan Edwards (Research Manager at MGA) was interviewed on 17/03/2026. His expert opinion which viewed graduate researchers as a separate space of work instead of categorising them as a ‘student’ or ‘worker’, was referenced in this brief. The quote included is shared with his consent.
Support
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Disclaimers
Please review all FORE disclaimers here.
Reference list:
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