To enhance the position of The University of Auckland as a research-led, international university, recognised for excellence in teaching, learning, research, creative work, and administration, for the significance of its contributions to the advancement of knowledge and its commitment to serve its local, national and international communities.
The University's research programmes aim to foster, publish, and disseminate research and creative work of the highest international standard. As the leading research university in New Zealand, The University of Auckland is committed to the quality and excellence of all its degree courses, including its graduate and doctoral programmes. Masters and doctoral degrees are offered in the traditional disciplines, as well as a broad range of emerging cross-disciplinary subject areas. The University provides world class academic staff, extensive library resources, excellent research facilities, and state-of-the-art information technology.
Our Department has a significant reputation for its research, both locally and internationally. Many of our staff have won national and international recognition, in the form of Fellowships of the Royal Society of NZ, the NZ Mathematical Society's annual Research Award, higher doctorates, positions on editorial boards on prestigious international journals, grants from the highly competitive Marsden Fund, invitations to speak at major international conferences, and visiting positions at major universities and academies overseas, for example. As a Department we are committed to maintaining and further enhancing this reputation for the quality of our research.
Over recent years our Department has also built up a strong postgraduate research programme, with between 20 and 25 PhD students in the Department at any time, as well as a large number of Masters, Honours and other research students.
Research and scholarship are a normal and essential part of the life of an academic, and are required of academic staff employed at the level of lecturer, senior lecturer, associate professor or professor.
According to the Department's Academic Staff Performance Criteria (August 2003), such staff of this Department are expected to:
2) have a definite plan for the continuing development of their research and scholarship,
3) participate fully in departmental seminars, both as a member of the audience and as an occasional speaker,
4) make themselves available to supervise or advise graduate students and senior undergraduate students,
5) disseminate progress reports on partly or fully completed work in seminars and lectures to this Department and other Departments or Institutions,
6) publish research results in refereed journals and refereed conference proceedings, and
7) apply for research funding to further their research.
Above these, it is desirable for staff to:
9) present invited talks at international conferences,
10) obtain research funding to further their research,
11) serve on editorial boards of international journals, and
12) have their research recognised through the award of higher or honorary degrees, or equivalent honours, fellowships of learned societies or other research awards.
Indication of merit performance in research requires evidence of criteria 1 to 8 and one or more of 9 to 12. While it is inappropriate to quantify precisely the number of publications required to satisfy 6 at the merit level, sustained activity at this level should normally result in at least 5 publications in international refereed journals or conference proceedings over the past three years. Excellence and distinction require further international recognition by way of publication at a higher rate in top quality international journals and satisfaction of at least three of the criteria 9 to 12.
The Department does not have similar guidelines or specific expectations of its prograduate research students, however some useful advice is available for graduate students (and their supervisors) at other sites, such as:
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Last updated: 26 March 2004