The Alliance of the University of Aberdeen and Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia, celebrates the graduation in Aberdeen of the first cohort of students to complete their postgraduate degrees through an important collaboration launched four years ago.
Aaron Tung, Ashleigh Angus, and Paulina Dzianach, all PhD students with a ‘home’ registration at Curtin University were jointly supervised by staff at the University of Aberdeen through the Aberdeen-Curtin Alliance, which launched in early 2017.
Aaron and Paulina will today (Friday, July 23) graduate in Aberdeen, while Ashleigh will graduate in Perth in September. They join Craig Moir (School of Engineering), who had a ‘home’ registration at Aberdeen and received his degree last year.
The Aberdeen-Curtin Alliance was established with the aims of enhancing learning and student experience; creating a rich environment for research and innovation; providing international presence to a wider audience and creating synergies in areas of mutual strength to leverage both university brands on a global stage.
Both Aberdeen and Curtin are situated in the energy capitals of their respective continents and have established themselves as leaders in energy-related and many other areas of research.
University of Aberdeen Senior Vice Principal Karl Leydecker congratulated today’s graduands.
“Today is a day of celebration for all the students who have worked so hard over the past three to four years to complete their PhDs, as well as for the academic staff at both ends of the partnership who have equally shared the responsibilities of research supervision.
“This past year has of course been extremely difficult for all concerned, with the many challenges thrown up by Covid, but it is testament to the hard work and commitment shown by all these students that they are now graduating today. We look forward to keeping in touch with the graduates as they move on to the next stage in their lives and careers and as the impacts of their research spread across their areas of endeavour.”
Curtin University Provost, Professor John Cordery, said Curtin was delighted to see the first cohort of students graduating from the Aberdeen-Curtin collaborative PhD programme.
“The collaborative PhD program has been one of the signature elements of the strong alliance between our two great universities and has been highly successful in bringing together researchers and students from both institutions to work on important issues facing global society,” Professor Cordery said.
“That the program has continued to flourish during the Covid-19 pandemic is testament to the huge commitment of the students and their supervisors and to the strong bond that has developed between our institutions. I would like to wish all the graduating students every success as they enter the next stage of their careers.”
The joint PhD offering of the Alliance has so far seen notable successes even before the graduation of students including, for example, the production of conference papers, a novel and an anthology, and publications in international journals. The scheme has exposed students to a rich international research environment with supervisors at both universities forging strong, global relationships.
Future graduations can expect to see more of the 34 Aberdeen-Curtin Alliance PhD students receive their degrees with research spanning fields as diverse as the green economy in tourism, hydrokinetic turbines, and the widening of access to medical degrees.
More information about the Aberdeen-Curtin Alliance can be found on the website at http://aberdeencurtinalliance.org/