This medal is awarded annually to the PhD student at an Australian or New Zealand University who is judged to have completed the most outstanding thesis of the past two years whose work was undertaken at and acknowledges the Australian Synchrotron, or the Australian National Beamline Facility (ANBF), or whose work acknowledges and was undertaken under the auspices of the International Synchrotron Access Program (ISAP) or the ASRP.

Nominations are invited for the 2017 ANSTO, Australian Synchrotron Stephen Wilkins Medal, which will be awarded to the candidate producing the most outstanding thesis and whose degree was awarded, but not necessarily conferred, in the period 1 July, 2015 – 30 June, 2017. The awardee will receive a monetary prize of $3,000 funded by a bequest from the Wilkins family and by ANSTO to support career development.

Conditions of the Award

·      Applicants are able to nominate themselves; however, a letter of support for their application is required from their PhD Supervisor(s).

·      To be eligible, applicants must have completed their PhD while enrolled at an Australian or New Zealand University and must have been awarded their PhD within 2 years prior to 30 June of the current year. Applicants may still apply if their PhD has been awarded but not conferred within this time period.

·      Nominations are assessed by a Medal Selection Committee appointed by the Director of the Australian Synchrotron, ANSTO.

·      The award is made to the PhD student at an Australian or New Zealand University who is judged to have completed the most outstanding thesis of the past two years whose work was undertaken at and acknowledges the Australian Synchrotron, or the ANBF, or whose work acknowledges and was undertaken under the auspices of the ISAP or the ASRP.

·      Synchrotron radiation techniques should have made a major contribution to the thesis.

·      If the Medal Selection Committee is unable to identify a thesis of sufficient quality amongst the applications submitted, an award will not be offered. 

·      If the Medal Selection Committee identifies a number of high quality applications in addition to the Awardee, they may offer a “Highly Commended” certificate.

·      The Awardee must be available to attend the ANSTO User Meeting to receive their award and present their work in a plenary session.

·      ANSTO may publicise successful candidates.

Application Details

There is no application form.  Applications can be submitted by either printed or electronic versions, and must include the following:

·      Three copies of the thesis along with evidence of the thesis being passed.

·      A cover letter providing an overview of the research undertaken during the PhD candidature of the applicant, their academic achievements and future plans for their research career.

·      Letters of support from the candidate’s PhD supervisor and Head of Department or School describing the significance of the work and the contribution it has made to the relevant field.

·      Copies of the examiners’ reports.

·      A list of publications resulting from the thesis.

·      A copy of the applicant’s CV.

ANSTO will retain one copy of the successful thesis if submitted in hard copy.  All other copies will be returned to the applicants at the end of the selection process.

The Medal will be presented to the chosen candidate at the ANSTO User Meeting 22^nd - 24^th November 2017.  The winning candidate will be invited to attend the User meeting and present a talk on their research.  

Any queries should be emailed to [email protected]

Applications should be forwarded to:

Professor Andrew Peele

Director

Australian Synchrotron, ANSTO

800 Blackburn Road

Clayton, Victoria 3168

Application deadline – Close of Business Monday 16^th October 2017