Applications closed
Amount

$5,000

Number available

1

Closing date

09 March 2024

Scholarship details

Donor

Dr Donald Livingstone McNair

Establishment

The intention of the scholarship is that it will support an Honours candidate whose project involves ecology, Identification, or illustration of native flora and academic pursuits aligned with the goals of The Don McNair Herbarium.

Dr Donald McNair, DSc honoris causa, University of Newcastle, lived his entire life in Newcastle. He combined a career as an auto-electrician with an extraordinary passion for plant taxonomy and ecology. He collected plant specimens within the Hunter Region, throughout NSW and interstate. His botanical training was formalized in the late 1950’s by undertaking courses offered by The University of Newcastle, the Workers Education Association (WEA) and through interactions with plant taxonomists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney.

Don McNair’s legacy to teaching and research is the donation of his herbarium now comprising 14,000 specimens to The University of Newcastle. The Don McNair Herbarium was formally opened in 2003 and Don and his volunteers worked to maintain and expand the collections until his death in 2014. He believed that his collection “will be vital in recording environmental and plant changes, particularly in response to climate change”. His donation of the Herbarium and this scholarship was designed to foster postgraduate research in plant taxonomy, ecology and botanical illustration.

For more information on this scholarship, please review the full Terms and Conditions.

Applicable to Academic achievement, Honours, botanics, ecology, conservation.


Eligibility

To be eligible to apply for this scholarship, you will need to:

  • Be enrolled in the final year of your Honours degree where your project involves ecology identification or illustration of native flora.
  • Demonstrate academic achievement through a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 5.0 or higher
  • Not have previously received this scholarship.
  • Not be the recipient of another University of Newcastle donor-funded or sponsored scholarship concurrently.
  • Be an Australian citizen, Australian Permanent Resident (includes New Zealand Permanent Residents).

Required Documentation

Required documents will be listed on the ‘Your Documents’ page of your application. The application portal accepts PDF only. A maximum of 3 PDF smaller than 5 MB can be added per document type upload field.

  • A personal statement (approx. 1 A4 page) outlining your academic achievements, career aspirations in the relevant area of study, and how this scholarship would assist you. This statement will cover all scholarships you are submitting for.
  • Up to 3 documents which demonstrate your academic achievement, such as awards and acknowledgements, participation in enrichment and travel programs or internships, academic competitions or challenges, your portfolio and/or cv.

Benefit

The scholarship provides a benefit of $5,000 to be paid as $2,500 following semester 1 and semester 2 census dates.


Selection

Selection of the scholar will be on the basis of academic merit, and assessment of the applications and required supporting documentation against the eligibility criteria.


College

College of Engineering Science and Environment


Contact Details

Admissions and Scholarships
Student and Academic Services
University of Newcastle
University Drive
CALLAGHAN NSW 2308

Phone: +61 2 4921 5000
Email: scholarships@newcastle.edu.au