Leave

You do not need to submit a Leave Form to the Graduate Research School for periods of annual recreation leave of less than four weeks taken within Australia, however you do need to notify your school and supervisor.

If you intend to travel overseas you must submit an Overseas Travel Form to the Graduate Research School.

Approval of all overseas leave is conditional on students having submitted the Research Proposal and any other milestone reports such as Confirmation of Candidature, Annual and Interim Reports, Travel Award Reports, which are due at the time of or during the proposed leave. 

Types of leave:

• Maternity leave
• Parenting leave
• Overseas leave and travel
• Sick leave
• Paid professional development leave

If you are a scholarship holder, please discuss all applications for leave of more than four weeks with a scholarships officer as it may be more appropriate to apply for a suspension of candidature/scholarship.

Maternity Leave

You can apply for a total of 12 months maternity leave for pregnancy and childbirth or adoption of a child. Maternity leave results in a formal suspension of your candidature and can be approved in addition to the one year suspension allowed during your candidature.

Further leave of up to one year may also be approved for any subsequent pregnancies.

Scholarship holders

Scholarship holders who have held a scholarship for at least 12 months may be eligible for up to 12 weeks paid maternity leave in addition to the normal duration of the award. You will continue to receive scholarship payments and the original end date of your scholarship will be extended. This leave is not available for all scholarships, so please check the conditions governing your award.

Scholarship holders may also apply for unpaid maternity leave. 

Parental Leave

If you are the primary carer of one or more children, you may apply for up to a year's parenting leave during your candidature.

Parenting leave will result in a formal suspension of candidature.

If you have already had maternity leave, you will not be eligible for parental leave.

Scholarship holders

Scholarship holders who are not the primary caregiver, but have completed 12 months of their scholarship, may also be eligible for up to 10 days paid parenting leave anytime in the 3 months immediately after the birth of or placement of an adopted child to their partner. You will continue to receive scholarship payments and the original end date of your scholarships will be extended. This leave is not available for all scholarships, so you must check the conditions governing your award.   


Overseas leave and travel

You need to submit an Overseas Travel form to the Graduate Research School if you intend to travel overseas to attend conferences, undertake fieldwork, conduct research or take annual recreation leave. The form should be submitted at least 4 weeks before your intended travel, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

If you are receiving a scholarship, applications for paid overseas leave for recreation or research will not normally be approved within the first six months of commencement of the scholarship or prior to the submission of the Research Proposal. However, exceptional circumstances will be taken into account, so if you need to travel overseas within the first six months of your candidature, please discuss this with your supervisor.

Approval to undertake fieldwork or conduct research outside Australia is only granted where it can be demonstrated that it is essential for the completion of the course. If you travel overseas without approval, your scholarships may be suspended or terminated.

Please consult the University's Travel Policy before booking overseas leave, particularly where any period of overseas leave is not related to your research.
 
If you are receiving a scholarship, your application for paid overseas leave must be approved by the Scholarships Committee.

To inform the Graduate Research School of your overseas travel plans, use the Overseas Travel form.

You should also access a Healix membership card. UWA has an agreement with Healix to provide extended medical and safety assistance to staff and students undertaking study-related international travel. Download the Healix Travel Oracle Mobile app for easy access to emergency assistance when you are travelling. 

Sick leave

If you are sick for an extended period and unable to work on your research, you may want to apply for suspension of your candidature. Please discuss this with your supervisor.

Paid Sick Leave

Scholarship holders may take up to two weeks' paid sick leave each year. For medically substantiated periods of illness lasting longer than two weeks, some scholarship holders may be eligible for up to a total of 12 weeks paid sick leave which is additional to the normal duration of the award. 

This leave is not available for all scholarships, so please check the conditions governing your award. Periods of sick leave longer than 12 may be accessed through the suspension provisions. All paid and unpaid sick leave will result in the recording of a suspension on your academic record.

Paid Professional Development leave

If you are in receipt of a Research Training Program (RTP) stipend, and have submitted your Research Proposal, you can apply for a maximum of 4 weeks of Paid Professional Development (PPD) Leave per year.

PPD leave can be used for approved short-term professional and academic employment such as internships, organising conferences, research assistant work or teaching assistant roles (lab demonstrating, tutoring, assisting with field trips).

If you are eligible for PPD leave you do not need to suspend your scholarships and candidature, but the period of leave will not result in an extension of the original end date of your scholarships. Your stipend payments will continue during the PPD leave period.

If you are offered paid academic or professional employment (of more than 8 hours per week) which will continue for more than 4 weeks, you will need to suspend payment of your scholarships. Scholarship conditions don’t allow scholarship holders to work more than 8 hours per week, except for Paid Professional Development Leave. Please discuss any offers of ongoing employment with a Scholarships Officer and your supervisor.