A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is an opportunity to pursue a topic you're passionate about at the highest academic level.

A PhD is an independent, supervised research project that is assessed on the submission of a thesis or creative work and exegesis. This course may be undertaken in any School within ECU, provided there are supervisors available in your proposed research area, and the resources and facilities required to complete your proposed project are accessible. ECU encourages interdisciplinary research that may span two or more disciplines.

Course Learning Outcomes

• Apply communication skills to explain and critique theoretical propositions, methodologies and conclusions, and cogently present findings of a complex and original investigation to peers and the broader community
• Integrate substantial and systemic understanding of complex discipline knowledge with research principles and methods to demonstrate expertise in the field
• Take responsibility and show initiative for designing and executing original research, demonstrating capacity to generate new knowledge with intellectual independence.
• Use expert skills and authoritative judgement to adapt and implement research methodologies and conduct systematic and independent investigation of theory and/or practice at the frontier of a discipline.

Career opportunities:

Psychologist, Academic, Researcher

Possible future job titles

Psychology, clinical psychology

Psychology:

Psychology research at ECU concentrates on Cognitive Psychology, Social Psychology, Motivation & Emotion, and Clinical Psychology.

Specific postgraduate research topics are developed in conjunction with the potential supervisors, however applications are particularly encouraged from those with an interest in: Learning and skill acquisition Expertise and decision making Interpersonal communication The influence of digital media Parent-infant relationships Moral psychology Cross-cultural psychology Wellness and Mental Health Psychology researchers in the school are currently involved in projects investigating parent perspectives of interethnic relations, experiences of first year students engaged in online learning, depression in adolescents with Aspergers Syndrome and Autistic Disorder, effects of music on pain, emotional awareness, resilience in separated mothers and fathers. The School also has laboratory testing facilities that are well-equipped with computers and physiological measures (e.g., EEG, GSR, eye-tracking), a Test Library, and an off-campus Psychology training clinic.