The Wellington Doctoral Scholarship is Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington’s main award for PhD study, open to New Zealand and international students in any discipline. About 110 are offered each year on academic merit.
There is no separate form: the PhD admission application is also the scholarship application. The university considers applications in three rounds a year, closing 1 March, 1 July and 1 November, and recipients study full time in Wellington.
Benefits & funding
- NZ$32,000 stipend a year, for up to three years.
- Tuition fees at the domestic rate; international PhD candidates living and studying in New Zealand are charged domestic fees. Insurance and student levies are not covered.
- Other awards worth more than a third of the stipend may reduce it.
- Withdrawing or failing to progress normally means partial repayment.
Eligibility
- Any nationality; graduates of any university in or outside New Zealand.
- Must intend to enrol full time for a PhD at Victoria University of Wellington, or have already started one there (tenure may then be shortened).
- First doctorate only; current doctorate holders are ineligible.
- Normally a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree with distinction equivalent to New Zealand First Class Honours.
- Applicants whose first language is not English must prove English proficiency before acceptance.
- Academic staff of any university cannot hold it while employed.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.
Education required
Bachelor
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Application process
- 1Apply for PhD admission online; the same application is assessed for the scholarship, with no separate form.
- 2Two academic referees must submit their reports by the closing date.
- 3Submit a complete application by 4.30 pm NZ time on 1 March, 1 July or 1 November; late or incomplete applications are not accepted.
- 4Outcomes are emailed six to eight weeks after the closing date.
Program timeline
current round closes (4.30 pm NZ time)
1 November 2026
About six weeks after closing
offers made
next rounds close
1 March and 1 July 2027
Start
within nine months of accepting for international students, six for domestic