Graduate research

War and conflict have defined world history. The 21st century promises to be no less turbulent than its predecessors as globalisation clashes with localism, new powers arise and the old decline, and the world struggles to adapt in the face of population pressure, climate change, and resource shortage. A rapidly changing world will demand insight, imagination, and judgement from its scholars, analysts, policy-makers and military professionals – prepare yourself with a PhD from the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre.

Founded in 1966, the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre is proud to be counted among the earliest generation of post-World War II research institutions specialising in strategy and defence. Today, SDSC represents Australia’s largest body of scholars dedicated to the analysis of the use of armed force in its political context. Our primary expertise within the broad field of Strategic Studies consists of three related research clusters: Australian defence, Military studies, and Asia-Pacific security.

We view postgraduate research students as an integral part of SDSC’s intellectual community. We are excited about working with highly motivated students who can participate in and contribute to SDSC’s research programs.

The program

The PhD program in the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre (SDSC) consists primarily of independent research on a topic developed in consultation between the candidate and their supervisor, and compulsory coursework in research design and methods.

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Am I eligible?

We are keen to hear from prospective PhD scholars. All inquiries must be directed hdrconvenor.sdsc@anu.edu.au. Please do not contact individual scholars directly. Before you contact the HDR convenor, please review the information on this page and, if you meet the following requirements, prepare an ‘Expression of Interest’.

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