Merlie Ivy Merchant Medical Research Scholarship

About

Mrs Merlie (Merl) Ivy Merchant (Donor) (1921-2013) was a fiercely independent woman who graduated from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1957. Throughout her career Merl worked as a librarian for Telecom. Upon retirement, she continued to work as an honorary librarian for the Lyceum Club, the Naval and Military Club and the RSL. She remained a lifelong and active member of the Lyceum Club where she spent a lot of time expressing her opinions and discussing social ideas. Merl was a socially progressive woman and very committed to social justice and equity. She was also passionate about animal welfare and wildlife conservation.

Merl’s bequest to the University is committed to public health research, particularly as it benefits women, and veterinary research. The fund will provide a scholarship to an enrolling PhD student who demonstrates research potential and intends to undertake research in the detection and management of cardiovascular disease. The PhD scholarship will support the Future Health Today collaboration between University of Melbourne and Western Health. It is a proactive digital health intervention that uses data from health records to automate the detection of chronic disease to provide new opportunities for early intervention and improved health outcomes.

Benefits

Total benefit: $114,639 Fortnightly stipend at RTP equivalent per annum pro-rata over 3.5 years.

_{Disclaimer: The benefit amount for this award is approximate. It will be confirmed at the time of awarding and determined by the committee according to the terms of the award.}

Eligibility

To be considered for this award, students must:

• Hold a degree in a relevant health field (Medicine/nursing/allied health/public health) and
• Satisfy the Faculty's entry requirements for PhD, including minimum academic achievement of first class honours or equivalent.

Selection

The award will be offered to the student based on:

• Academic merit, determined by the WAM achieved in Doctor of medicine, or equivalent;
• A professional written reference;
• A Curriculum Vitae (CV) including extracurricular activity; and
• The performance at interview for shortlisted candidates.

Candidates will be scored out of 100 on their performance at interview. The WAM and interview score will be combined to give an overall score to determine the successful applicant.

Scholarship information flyer (PDF 116.2 KB)

Application

Step 1: Review:

1. Review the Selection Criteria and consider your eligibility for this scholarship
2. Review the PhD entry requirements for the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne

Step 2: Applicants to complete the application form and submit by 5pm on the closing date.

Application form 2020 (DOCX 2.0 MB)

Submit Applications as a PDF attachment to: siouxzy.morrison@unimelb.edu.au. Please include “Merlie Ivy Merchant Research Scholarship” in the subject line of the email.

Outcome

Applicants will be contacted via email regarding the outcome of their application within 4-6 weeks of the closing date.

Enquiries

Email enquiries to: Siouxzy Morrison, siouxzy.morrison@unimelb.edu.au Program Manager, General Practice

More information

The recipient must provide an annual update by mid-Dec (mid-Jun in final year) on the progress and impacts of their research which will go to the donor or living relative if applicable. A ONE page report should include CV-like entries: presentations given (when, where, conference, title), working papers or publications achieved (with a 100-250 word summary of each publication in fairly plain English), making clear to the donor what they have achieved as a result of their support.

As per Graduate Research Scholarship terms and conditions:4.12 If the recipient has provided false or misleading information, or does not adhere to the terms and conditions of the scholarship, and as a result, the recipient was awarded or continued to receive the scholarship, the scholarship may cease and the recipient may be required to repay any scholarship benefits, to which the recipient was not entitled, to within 14 days of being requested to do so by the University.