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Higher degree by research (HDR) graduates are often perceived to be overly specialised and are unable to adapt to non-academic settings (Jaeger and Rudra, 2013). Universities are under increasing pressure to embed research and transferrable skills into the candidature in a flexible and meaningful way to equip graduates with the skills to succeed in a range of careers. The paper aims to study how Flinders University has embedded the Research and Employability Skills Training (REST) Program into the HDR.

REST was established to replace the workshop-based professional development program, with a structured, compulsory, comprehensive program for HDR students, based on the Vitae Researcher Development Framework (RDF). The Program aims to provide students with the research skills they need to complete their studies and the transferrable skills employers seek, through an online, supported program that helps them identify their needs, plan and control their skills development. Such a comprehensive online candidature management system has enabled Flinders to implement the RDF and successfully and comprehensively embed REST into the HDR candidature, assisting students to articulate and demonstrate their skills with documented evidence.

The Program has been running for one year, and so far, has been successful. Students are increasingly completing the initial online Skills Needs Analysis assessment component, which helps to identify their skills gaps and recommend workshops to meet their needs. Supervisors and students are engaging with the Program through structured discussion and refection of skills at each annual milestone, thanks to the help of the Inspire online candidature management system.

REST is a valuable resource for HDR students, providing them with a range of skills to progress with their research, writing and professional development training that complements, but is separate from, their degree. Providing a structured training program which follows and supports students’ candidature, and is based around the training needs and career trajectories of the student assists the students be more equipped and supported to complete on time and are well prepared for a range of career outcomes.

The Higher Degree Research (HDR) journey is known for its difficulties, complexities and challenges (Lees-Deutsch, 2020), with many students experiencing multi-faceted issues and concerns (Skopek et al., 2020). Therefore, the purpose of this research is to investigate the relationships that exist between variables, vulnerability factors and doctorial capital of candidates (n = 532) studying at Australian universities (2019).

A quantitative cross-sectional correlational research design and Bronfenbrenner's socio – ecological framework (personal, home, university, community) was utilised to collect participants' (n = 532) descriptive statistics. Bourdieu's social reproduction theory was used as a lens to examine how experiences, across the PhD candidature, are influenced by several psychosocial factors and doctoral capital.

From such a dual methodological approach, the findings from this study suggests that (1) age, (2) gender, (3) nationality, (4) financial/work status, (5) years of PhD and (6) attending postgraduate (PG) student events, go to significantly (p < 0.001) impact (positively and negatively) on students' experiences and correspondingly, impacts on their self-confidence, motivation and mental health and well-being status.

Research limitations are related to the recruitment of more doctoral students across more Australian universities. Further research is required from HDR supervisors, so as to “balance” the experiences of the PhD journey in higher education.

In order to succeed in academia and HDR programs, students need to identify with and develop the “right kind of capital” to successfully navigate fields of social and scholarly play. Investigating how the participants perceive their social and scholarly habitus is seen as crucial in helping students to develop positive dispositions relevant to being a doctoral student.

The concept of doctoral capital and well-being, amongst Australian PhD students, is under researched and requires further investigation as a precursor to developing more specific policy designs aimed at providing heightened positive learning environments/HDR programs tailored to support doctoral students.

Whilst reforms to improve PhD experiences are well established across the international literature (Geven et al., 2018; Skopek et al., 2020), evidence for Australia is largely missing. It is envisaged, that findings from this research will further assist in the development of quality policies that would go to provide effective services and support for doctoral students within Australian universities.

Achieving quality standards in postgraduate education, particularly among Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students, can be challenging. In addition to the diverse educational and cultural backgrounds of these students, thesis writing frequently involves the development of new skills associated with the comprehension of a large volume of information, critical analysis and the development of an academic writing style. Many students need support in one or all of these key areas. Universities currently provide a number of different writing support activities to address students' needs. The purpose of this study is to report on a writing support intervention that employed a specialist in academic writing to support HDR students in the business faculty.

Following a two‐year period, the intervention was evaluated to assess the appropriateness and effectiveness of this support using qualitative methods. The results of this study are presented and discussed from different angles. First, a lecturer in academic writing support outlines her observations and reflection on the value of individual consultations and students' progress. Second, the attitudes and experience of students and their supervisors to this service are discussed. This is followed by the faculty senior management view with regard to the effectiveness and efficiency of this service.

This research found that both students and their supervisors expressed satisfaction with the service offered. Also it was found that the writing quality of submitted theses is improving; the costs of thesis editing have reduced; HDR students appear to be more satisfied with and confident of their academic writing; the attractiveness of the PhD program has been enhanced, as judged by the increase in PhD enquiries and the quality of potential applicants.

The results reported here indicate that the intervention was successful. However, the sample size was relatively small and the HDR candidates and supervisors were drawn from only one faculty in one university.

The study provides some recommendations that could be taken into account by senior management and academic staff in order to set up and deliver a faculty‐based writing support service for HDR students, which would bring benefits to students, their supervisors, faculties and universities.

The value of this research is that the writing program was proven to be beneficial for universities to support research students in the development of their writing skills, which in turn, could improve the quality of thesis and ensure on time completion.

This paper aims to demonstrate the value of a collaborative research culture framework (Gasson and Bruce, 2018a), featuring trust and respect as core elements of healthy collaborations, to support the research success of higher degree research (HDR) students. HDR is a term used in Australia to reference Doctoral and Master by research programmes.

The authors propose that by positioning collaboration as part of a research culture built on trust and respect, discussion about and the development of healthy collaborative research culture will be facilitated. A healthy culture is defined as one that supports sustainable and productive collaborative research.

The applications of the framework demonstrate the role the framework can play in supporting researchers to understand, engage in and manage collaborations.

Reflection on discussions to date has led to the authors’ view that collaborative success requires a unique set of skills (i.e. skills in the development of a collaborative research culture) and that the framework provides a deliberate and overt way of supporting development of those skills.

The framework helps HDRs develop the capacity to build healthy collaborative research cultures vital for their research productivity and longer-term success as researchers.

This paper aims to respond to the need for a model of doctoral supervision that can capture and represent the focus, range and complexity of instructional intentions, practices and possibilities.

The study draws on the substantive literature on supervision and changing doctoral programs in the Fine Arts and relatively new empirical findings about supervision and learning. The authors posit a holistic model of supervision ranging across micro–macro and product–person dimensions. The model is further explained and illustrated using four supervisor cases in Fine Arts.

The model offers a heuristic for supervisors to reflect on and identify existing emphases, alignments and integrative possibilities to better understand the complexities of Fine Arts supervisory practices.

There is a dearth of research that addresses how doctoral supervisors perceive and articulate their roles and breadth of responsibilities in light of new programs and changing sectoral expectations.

To explore the conceptualisation and operationalisation of authentic assessment in work-based learning and research.

The relationship between authentic assessment and work-based learning and research is examined using a postgraduate degree program at a regional university in Australia as a case example to identify unique pedagogical features of work-based learning as they are linked to assessment.

A dynamic is created between formative and summative authentic assessment practices and the cross-current nature of learning in work and research, leading to a range of lifelong learning outcomes. A framework for such a dynamic is presented.

The pedagogy informing work-based learning emphasises developing higher-order thinking through reflective practice, developing competencies and capabilities associated with professional practice and developing academic writing and research skills to enhance professional identity at the postgraduate level for mid- to senior-career professionals. However, the relationship of authentic assessment to work-based learning and research has not been explicated in the literature and its application in post-COVID work environments has yet to be fully examined.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the dynamics of the Doctorate of Business Administration (DBA) in Australia through the lens of a changing higher education landscape. The paper reflects on issues raised in a previous analysis of DBA programmes undertaken a decade ago, and highlights persistent challenges and emerging opportunities for professional Doctorate programmes in the Australian context.

Interviews were undertaken with higher degree research directors, deans of graduate schools, and DBA programme directors from all 18 Australian institutions offering the DBA in 2013. Quantitative data on enrolments, accreditation requirements, course structures; and demographics are contextualised within a qualitative view of programme purposes, student and institutional motivations, rationales and concerns. Particular focus is given to perceptions of the difference between traditional research doctorates (PhDs) and professional doctorates, especially the DBA.

In the decade from 2003 to 2013 DBA enrolments are down but enquiries are up, indicating unmet demand. There is a shift in the players, with some smaller, regional universities dramatically increasing their enrolments, and larger, traditional institutions exiting the space altogether. Significant changes in accreditation criteria have generated a perceptual shift: where DBAs previously suffered from “academic snobbery” regarding their legitimacy, this perception is being challenged by standards which require DBA equivalence with a PhD. This shift in standards has also created some confusion amongst supervisors and candidates.

There is limited research into the DBA award or its candidates, and academic literature is generally silent on DBA supervision. This piece of research, one of very few that specifically examine the DBA, reflects on the past decade, analyses the present context and identifies emerging issues for the delivery of DBA programmes in Australia.

The purpose of this paper is to summarise the arguments developed in the PhD thesis and also to outline the journey and context from which the thesis emerged.

This paper provides a summary of key arguments in the thesis. It also provides reflections on the process of developing the thesis.

This PhD by publication process demonstrates how new philosophical thinking can contribute to the discipline literature, methodological advancements and also produce a practice tool.

Provision of a personal account of the PhD by publication journey and summary of the thesis: “Exploring the ‘lived experience’ of project work with Continental philosophical perspectives”.

The purpose of this paper is to report on a research thesis that explores how Australian state government agencies procure infrastructure projects and the extent to which they view the procurement process as an opportunity to deliver more than just a physical facility. The primary purpose of this study was to understand the practice of construction project procurement by project managers on behalf of Australian state government agencies and to explore the creation of public value through procurement.

This thesis presents results drawn from ten case studies of state government organisations that procure infrastructure; either roads or buildings. A total of 37 highly experienced project managers operationally responsible for the procurement of infrastructure within these organisations were interviewed.

The findings show that there is considerable scope for improving infrastructure procurement by Australian state governments and that broader public value creation approaches in the form of policy by‐products are either not considered or inconsistently pursued.

The broader policy implications flowing from the research findings provide valuable commentary that inform the practice of infrastructure procurement and point to areas to which improvement efforts may be directed. These areas include the challenge of developing the next generation of infrastructure procurement managers, applying non‐price criteria in a rigorous way, using prequalification registers to engage in supplier development and delivering policy by‐products as part of standard procurement approaches.

This thesis presents qualitative data focused on the perspective of procurement professionals, a group who have, hitherto, been somewhat underrepresented in the literature.