PhD Scholarship in Disability History

Location: Clayton campus

Employment Type: Full-time

Duration: 3.5 years fixed-term appointment

Remuneration: The successful applicant will receive a Research Living Allowance, at current value of $37,145AUD per annum 2026 full-time rate (tax-free stipend), indexed plus allowances as per RTP stipend scholarship conditions at: https://www.monash.edu/graduate-research/future-students/scholarships/scholarship-policy-and-procedures.

A tuition fee scholarship and Single Overseas Health Cover (OSHC) will be provided for a successful international awardee.

The Opportunity

This PhD scholarship is funded as an important part of an ARC funded project Australia’s first history of disability: Making a more inclusive Australia, conducted by Dr Kate Murphy (Primary Chief Investigator), Emeritus Professor John Murphy (Chief Investigator), Emeritus Professor Alistair Thomson (Chief Investigator), Associate Professor Lorna Hallahan (Partner Investigator) and Professor Elizabeth Tilley (Partner Investigator).

The project aims to uncover the lived experience of disability in Australian families between 1945 and the

Disability Royal Commission of 2019–23, using innovative methods to co-produce data with people with disability and their families. The project expects to develop the first comprehensive, national history of disability in Australia. The successful applicant will join the research team and contribute to the wider project but will also undertake their own distinct PhD project. The details of the PhD project are open to negotiation, but it may involve a focus on particular historical sources such as memoirs, or on a particular theme such as the impacts of post-war deinstitutionalisation on people with disability and their families, or on disability and the family in relation to Culturally and Linguistically Diverse families, Indigenous families or LGBT+ families. Scholars with disability are particularly encouraged to apply.

Undertaking this PhD as part of a larger project has several advantages. First, the successful candidate will be integrated into an already successful research agenda that has been funded by the Australian Research Council. Second, the candidate will benefit from expert supervision from an interdisciplinary team of research leaders in History and disability studies, and from entering a PhD with a pre-existing structure. Finally, the candidate will benefit from being part of outcomes from the research, which may include co-authored publications (where the candidate’s contributions will be recognised through co-authorship), funded symposia, and future grant applications.

Monash University is the largest university in Australia and regularly ranks in the top 100 universities worldwide. Monash has six globally networked campuses and international alliances in Europe and Asia. The applicant will be based in the School of Philosophical, Historical and Indigenous Studies (SOPHIS) at the Clayton campus in Melbourne.

Candidate Requirements

The successful applicant will have an excellent academic track record in History, and preferably the history of the family and/or disability. Applicants must hold an Australian (or equivalent international) Honours or Masters degree, with a significant research component and with first-class honours/H1 awarded.

In its assessment, the selection committee will prioritise applicants with lived experience of disability.

Details of eligibility requirements, including English-language proficiency skills, to undertake a PhD in the Faculty of Arts are available at https://arts.monash.edu/graduate-research/application-process/.  Applicants should ensure they familiarise themselves with these requirements before deciding whether they should apply.

Scholarship holders must be enrolled full-time and on campus. Please note: applicants who already hold a PhD will not be considered.

The successful applicant will be expected to enrol by mid-January 2027.

Enquiries

You are required to discuss your research proposal with Dr Kate Murphy, School of Philosophical, Historical and Indigenous Studies, Email: kate.murphy@monash.edu before you submit an application.

How to Apply

Applications shall comprise:

• A cover letter that includes a brief statement of the applicant’s suitability
• A brief research proposal not exceeding 750 words in length that fits within the broad project aims and objectives, and demonstrates some understanding of the area of research
• A curriculum vitae, including a list of any published works, conference presentations and relevant work experience
• A full statement of academic records, degree certificates and official grading system (if available), supported by scanned copies of relevant certified documentation
• English language proficiency test results (if applicable)
• Names and contact details of 2 academic referees

Once you have discussed your proposal with Dr Kate Murphy, please submit your application via My.App and upload all supporting documentation in pdf format:

• Select Admission Only as the Application Type
• Select ‘Yes’ to indicate that you are applying for a scholarship for this research and enter “PhD Scholarship in Disability History” as the scholarship you are applying for under Research Program Funding of the application
• Select Dr Kate Murphy as the proposed main supervisor (final supervision arrangements to be confirmed upon appointment).

Application Close: Sunday 13^th September 2026, 11:55 pm AEST