Scholarships
Supporting future leaders in Antarctic research
Antarctica New Zealand works with a number of generous sponsors to award scholarships to postgraduate research students. These scholarships provide a means for new talent to enter New Zealand’s Antarctic research community. The scholarships are awarded annually, and include a stipend and logistics support to conduct or participate in research in Antarctica. The awards are competitive and attract students of a very high calibre.
Antarctica and the Southern Ocean - valued, protected, understood
Antarctica New Zealand recognises the value of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean as a unique environment for scientific research. We are committed to supporting the next generation of Antarctic scientists to make valuable contributions to the international knowledge base and understanding of Antarctic and global ecosystems and processes.
The Postgraduate Research Scholarship Programme is designed to support talented researchers to get off to the best possible start in their research careers, focusing on Antarctic and Southern Ocean systems. Antarctica New Zealand is generously supported in this scholarship programme by Ella Yelich-O’Connor and New Zealand Post.
Antarctica New Zealand Postgraduate Scholarships
Applications for the 2024 scholarships have now closed
Key dates:
Register your intention to apply by Monday 18 March 2024
Applications and references are due by 5pm, Monday 25 March 2024
Ella Yelich-O’Connor Antarctic Doctoral Scholarship
Ella Yelich-O’Connor (Lorde) spent just over a week at Scott Base in 2019; visiting scientists in the field, learning more about Antarctica’s role in the global earth system and the impact climate change is having on the frozen continent. Following her trip, she has created a memoir and photo-book filled with photos and essays called ‘Going South’. Proceeds from the sale of the book fund the Ella Yelich-O’Connor Antarctic Doctoral Scholarship. The scholarship supports research that advances understanding, and promotes protection of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. In her own words, ‘this harsh environment feels eternal, but is dangerously vulnerable’.
- For doctoral research
- Stipend of $20,000 per annum over two years (total of $40,000); and
- Logistics support for one season of fieldwork in Antarctica (subject to programme availability, fieldwork must be aligned with an existing Antarctic field event)
New Zealand Post Antarctic Scholarship
New Zealand's presence in Antarctica is important to our nation and New Zealand Post has a long association with the continent – ever since Sir Edmund Hillary was postmaster at Scott Base in 1957. Supporting up-and-coming New Zealand scientists through this scholarship is a key way that New Zealand Post continues its close association with the white continent.
- For master’s or doctoral research
- Stipend of $10,000 over one year; and
- Logistics support for one season in Antarctica (subject to programme availability, fieldwork must be aligned with an existing Antarctic field event)
Important information on how to apply
2023 Scholars
Ella Yelich-O’Connor Antarctic Doctoral Scholarship
Meghan Duffy
University of Otago
Linking Antarctic temperature with Southern Ocean primary productivity
Meghan's research focuses on reconstructing past changes in the biological pump of the Southern Ocean. The biological pump refers to the process by which marine organisms performing photosynthesis capture CO2 from the atmosphere, allowing carbon to be stored in the deep ocean. The efficiency of this carbon sequestration process is known to change over glacial-interglacial cycles, yet the driving processes behind this change remain poorly understood. Meghan will use sediment geochemistry and fossils of microscopic algae from a Southern Ocean sedimentary archive to reconstruct changes in marine productivity and oceanographic conditions over the last 1.3 million years. These detailed paleoclimate reconstructions will then be correlated with East Antarctic ice core records to better understand the link between broader Southern Hemisphere climate and the productivity cycles of the Southern Ocean. Understanding how this system operates over long timescales in essential to predict its future behaviour under variable climate conditions.
Ella Yelich-O’Connor Antarctic Doctoral Scholarship
Nikhil Hale
Victoria University of Wellington
Circumpolar Deep Water vs Ross Sea Polynya: Past and Present
Polynya are open areas of ocean surrounded by sea ice, that are important for sea ice production and also biological productivity. Nikhil's research focuses on understanding the activity of the Ross Sea Polynya (RSP), and the response of Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) to polynya activity. The RSP is characterised by the intense production of sea ice and High Salinity Shelf Water (HSSW), and plays a critical role in Ross Sea ocean circulation. At present, the presence of HSSW shields the Ross Ice Shelf cavity from the intrusion of warmer CDW, thus preventing rapid basal melting of the Ross Ice Shelf. However, this shielding function could vary in the future due to the rapidly changing climate, and we lack the understanding of how RSP activity will contribute to changes in Ross Sea circulation. Therefore, Nikhil will be studying RSP activity in the warmer and colder climates of the past, to better understand current and future RSP activity, and the likely response of CDW.
New Zealand Post Antarctic Scholarship
Tamara Pletzer
University of Otago
Assessing the Impact of Atmospheric Forcing on Hydrological Connectivity of Glacial Meltwater in McMurdo Dry Valleys: A Hydrometeorological Modelling Approach
The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) is home to a unique ecosystem that depends on freshwater from glacial melt for survival. Understanding the future of this ecosystem amidst a warming climate hinges on comprehending the intricate hydrological narrative of meltwater—from atmospheric conditions and glacial melt to runoff, stream flow, and the lakes at the valley floors. Tamara will use this scholarship to implement a fully distributed hydrometeorological modelling system in the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) in order to determine spatial and temporal changes in the hydrological connectivity of glacial meltwater in response to atmospheric forcing. To do so, the modelling system will be adapted to this extreme environment and tested over a melt season. Then it will be used to assess the sensitivity of the MDV to changes in atmospheric forcing to better understand potential tipping points for future meltwater generation and streamflow.
New Zealand Post Antarctic Scholarship
Ronja Stelzer
University of Waikato
Characterisation of two nuclease proteins from Antarctic psychrophiles
The soils of the McMurdo Dry Valleys are home to a highly diverse group of bacteria, that are specially adapted to survive the harsh conditions that prevail. Extreme conditions include cold temperatures, high levels of UV radiation, multiple daily freeze-thaw events, extreme dryness and low nutrient availability. All of these conditions are damaging to bacterial genetic material - DNA. Therefore, it is likely that these microbes have specialised DNA repair mechanisms. Ronja will be investigating nuclease proteins, which are a key component of one of these DNA repair mechanisms. Nuclease proteins function by removing damaged sections of DNA. The project will use a variety of lab-based techniques to better understand the role that nuclease proteins play in DNA repair. Conditions in the Dry Valleys are often compared with conditions on the surface of Mars, so understanding the survival of microbes in the Dry Valleys may provide insight into the survival of microbes in extreme environments.