The Digital Media Research Centre (DMRC) at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is now calling for expressions of interest from prospective postgraduate research students as part of the University’s annual Scholarship Round, closing 30 September 2015 for entry in early 2016.

About the DMRC
The DMRC aims to conduct world-leading research that helps society understand and adapt to the changing digital media environment. It is a leading Australian centre for the fields of media and communication – areas in which QUT has achieved the highest possible rankings in ERA, the national research quality assessment exercise. We are actively engaged with the Asian region across all our research programs; and we have a strong commitment to research training for academic and industry researchers alike.

The Centre is based within QUT’s Creative Industries Faculty and located within the Creative Industries Precinct at Kelvin Grove – a $150 million facility for teaching, research, production and business development in media and design, visual and performing arts. This site boasts some of Australia’s most sophisticated, high-tech digital facilities, and acts as an incubator for the next generation of ground-breaking ideas, emerging and experimental artists and designers, and creative enterprise.

About the PhD Scholarships
Applicants with excellent academic track records (equal to an Australian Bachelor Degree with First Class Honours) or equivalent research experience may be eligible for competitive PhD scholarships to undertake study with us. Successful applicants will work on topics that align closely with one or more of our four research programs. The DMRC is also offering a number of additional top-ups to these scholarships for highly ranked students.

Program 1 – Journalism, Public Communication & Democracy
This program addresses the digital transformation of public and political communication. We combine state-of-the-art big social data analytics and rich qualitative approaches to develop new insights into the impact of digital and social media on journalism and the processes of opinion formation which are core to a functioning democratic system.

PhD topics for 2016
– Debates in social media spaces and their impact on public communication
– Audience feedback mechanisms and their impact on journalism
– Transformation of journalistic forms and content in the digital age

Potential supervisors – see staff profiles here.
Dr Emma Baulch (Media & Communication)
Prof Axel Bruns (Media & Communication)
Prof Jean Burgess (Media & Communication)
A/Prof Folker Hanusch (Journalism)
Dr Stephen Harrington (Media & Communication)
Dr Tim Highfield (Media & Communication)
Prof Brian McNair (Journalism)

Program 2 – Industries, Economies & Regulation
This program aims to develop an interdisciplinary framework for understanding and critically engaging with digital media industries and the digital economy. It focuses on the interaction between socio-technical innovations and legal, regulatory, educational and policy environments.

PhD topics for 2016
– Digital media and entertainment industries – national, regional and global perspectives
– Regulating digital media platforms – the roles of online intermediaries in Internet governance including human rights
– Digital copyright and innovation

Potential supervisors – see staff profiles here
Dr Emma Baulch (Media & Communication)
Dr Bridgstock (Creative Industries)
Prof Jean Burgess (Media & Communication)
Prof Stuart Cunningham (Media & Communication)
A/Prof Michael Dezuanni (Film, Screen & Animation/Education)
Prof Terry Flew (Media & Communication)
Dr Ben Goldsmith (Media & Communication)
Dr Kylie Pappalardo (Law)
Dr Kevin Sanson (Entertainment Industries)
Dr Christina Spurgeon (Media & Communication)
Dr Nicolas Suzor (Law)
A/Prof Patrik Wikstrom (Media & Communication)

Program 3 – Technologies & Practices in Everyday Life
In this program, we investigate how digital media technologies both shape and are shaped by the everyday practices of diverse users, in relation to questions of digital inclusion and participation. Our research engages with a range of contexts including education and work, gender and sexuality, cultural and media consumption, the popular cultures of digital media, and the everyday experience of place.

PhD topics for 2016
– Cultural diversity and social inclusion in digital media environments
– Placemaking, mobile and locative media
– Digital labour and workplace identities

Potential supervisors – see staff profiles here
Dr Ruth Bridgstock (Creative Industries)
Prof Axel Bruns (Media & Communication)
Prof Jean Burgess (Media & Communication)
Dr Elija Cassidy (Media & Communication)
Prof Stuart Cunningham (Media & Communication)
A/Prof Michael Dezuanni (Film, Screen & Animation/Education)
Dr Ben Goldsmith (Media & Communication)
Dr Tim Highfield (Media & Communication)
Prof Ben Light (Media & Communication)
Prof Brian McNair (Journalism)
Dr Peta Mitchell (Media & Communication/Urban Informatics)
Dr Kevin Sanson (Entertainment Industries)
Dr Christina Spurgeon (Media & Communication)
A/Prof Patrik Wikstrom (Media & Communication)

Program 4 – Digital Methods
This program focuses on the development of innovative research approaches, methods and tools grounded in and suitable for the study of digital media – from computational analyses of ‘big social data’, to close qualitative analysis of digital media platforms and practices, and critical approaches to questions of method. These approaches may be applied across any of the other three programs in the Centre.

PhD topics for 2016
– Critical approaches to big social data, data-mining and surveillance
– Methods for network, statistic and geo-visualisation
– Innovation at the interface between traditional and digital methods

Potential supervisors – see staff profiles here
Prof Axel Bruns (Media & Communication)
Prof Jean Burgess (Media & Communication)
Dr Tim Highfield (Media & Communication)
Prof Ben Light (Media & Communication)
Dr Peta Mitchell (Media & Communication/Urban Informatics)
A/Prof Patrik Wikstrom (Media & Communication)

How to apply
It is essential that you discuss your application with us well before the deadline.

Contact the Centre via email at dmrc@qut.edu.au to express your interest.

Include with your email:

1. Current CV including educational qualifications
2. Brief statement outlining which of the proposed topics interest you
3. Names of preferred supervisors (optional)

If suitable supervision for your project can be arranged, we will then work with you to complete the formal application.

General information on the University’s Annual Scholarship Round including eligibility requirements and the application process can be found here.

Closing date: 30th September 2015 (earlier enquiries essential)