Toronto and Melbourne Research Training Group
The Toronto and Melbourne Research Training Group, comprised of researchers and jointly awarded PhD candidates between the University of Melbourne, Australia, and the University of Toronto, Canada. The group is multi-disciplinary in nature.
Recruitment is currently underway for our inaugural cohort of 12 joint PhD candidates. All candidates are fully funded and will commence at the University of Toronto in 2021, to complete their coursework requirements. Candidates will all spend a minimum of 12 months at each institution to complete their research.
Candidates in the program must meet the entry requirements of both Universities to be accepted.
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How to Apply
REGISTER YOUR INTEREST Applicants for Toronto and Melbourne jointly awarded/dual PhD projects should: Identify a project of interest Register their interest via an email to the project supervisor based at the University of Melbourne, including the following information: Name, contact details Joint PhD project of interest Cover Letter, CV and Transcript Any supporting documentation Note, all applicants are required to meet the entry …
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Discovery of invertebrate attractants and toxins from diverse Actinomycetes
This PhD project will be based at the University of Toronto with a 24 month stay at the University of Melbourne. Project Description: Actinomycete bacteria are prolific producers of an astounding array of small molecules, known as specialized metabolites. These chemicals feature prominently in clinical medicine as antibiotics, antifungals, immunosuppressants and anticancer agents, and many also have effects on other organisms, including …
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Effector-Effector Interplay and Coxiella Pathogenesis
This PhD project will be based at the University of Melbourne with an initial stay of 18-24 months at University of Toronto. Project Description: The bacterium responsible for Q fever, Coxiella burnetii, causes disease by replicating to high numbers inside human cells. In order to achieve this Coxiella has evolved to become an innovative cell biologist. The pathogen establishes a replicative vacuole …
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Defining the zinc homeostasis mechanisms of Klebsiella pneumoniae and their role in host-pathogen interaction
This PhD project will be based at the University of Melbourne with an initial stay of 18-24 months at University of Toronto. Project Description: Klebsiella pneumoniae is a globally significant multi-drug resistant pathogen. Our recent studies investigating the chemical biology of this bacterium have identified numerous uncharacterised pathways involved in the acquisition of the essential metal zinc from the host. This project will …
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Data and Image Analysis of Arthritis Progression
This PhD project will be based at the University of Toronto with a 24 month stay at the University of Melbourne. Project Description: The Integrative Cartilage Research Group headed by Associate Professor Kathryn Stok at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Melbourne, and Assistant Professor Andy Kin On Wong in the School Public Health at the University of Toronto are …
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Time-lapsed Imaging of Arthritis Progression
This PhD project will be based at the University of Melbourne with an initial stay of 18-24 months at University of Toronto. Project Description: The Integrative Cartilage Research Group headed by Associate Professor Kathryn Stok at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Melbourne, and Assistant Professor Andy Kin On Wong in the School Public Health at the University of Toronto …
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A computational analysis of library classification through time
This PhD project will be based at the University of Melbourne with an initial stay of 24 months at University of Toronto. Project Description: This PhD project jointly offered by the University of Toronto (UofT) and the University of Melbourne (UoM) will provide training and research opportunities for a student applicant in the area of computational cognitive linguistics. The student will work …
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Targeting Efficacy in Public Health Insurance Programs in India
This PhD project will be based at the University of Melbourne with an initial stay of 18-24 months at University of Toronto. Project Description: Meaningful and inclusive progress hinges on the availability and access to health for all. The World Health Organisation contends that Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is achieved when “all people and communities can use the promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative …
Current Toronto-Melbourne Joint PhD research projects scheduled to commence in 2021 and 2022 are listed below.
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Development of a Soil-Specific CPT Interpretation Method for Partially Drained Penetration
This PhD project is based at the University of Toronto with a 16 month stay at the University of Melbourne. Project Description: University of Toronto and University of Melbourne will be co-admitting an outstanding PhD student to conduct leading-edge research on an important geotechnical problem regarding interpretation of in-situ state of silty materials such as mine tailings. The successful applicant will be …
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Effect of partial drainage on plate anchor capacity in sand
This PhD project is based at the University of Melbourne with an initial stay of 20 months at the University of Toronto. Project Description: University of Melbourne and University of Toronto will be co-admitting an outstanding PhD student to conduct leading-edge research in offshore geotechnical engineering. The successful applicant will be admitted into a program that includes stays at both institutions, with …
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A computational analysis of conceptual combination through time
Project Description: This joint PhD project from the University of Toronto (UofT) and the University of Melbourne (UoM) will provide training and research opportunities for a student applicant in the area of computational cognitive linguistics. The student will work under the joint supervision of faculty members from both institutions and spend two years at each institution. The proposed PhD project will develop …
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Subacute Rehabilitation Outcomes in Childhood Stroke: Clinical metrics and neural mechanisms
This PhD project is based at the University of Toronto with a 12-24 month stay at the University of Melbourne. Project Description: Speech, Language and Swallowing Outcomes in Childhood Stroke Background: Pediatric stroke is a leading cause of mortality and long-term morbidity. Significant progress has been made in understanding outcomes of pediatric stroke in the last two decades. Long-term adverse outcome from pediatric …
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Recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic: Experiences from Vulnerable Groups
Project Description: This PhD project will investigate the pandemic recovery for vulnerable populations with the potential for a cross-national comparison across the US, Australia and Canada. Students working on this project will work within a highly successful team of top scholars from the University of Toronto and University of Melbourne Sociology Departments bringing clear strengths in data collection, survey analyses and …
Dr Hayley Newton
Hayley Newton is the academic lead of the Toronto-Melbourne Research Training Group. She is an Associate Professor in Microbiology and Immunology in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and the project lead on Effector-effector interplay and coxiella pathogenesis. She collaborates with Dr Alexander Ensminger who is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Toronto.
Dr Shiao Huey Chow
Shiao Huey Chow is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Infrastructure Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering and IT with research interests in offshore geotechnics. Along with Yinghui Tian, she is the UoM co-project lead on Effect of partial drainage on plate anchor capacity in sand. Both Shiao Huey Chow and Yinghui Tian collaborate with Dr Mason Ghafghazi who is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering at the University of Toronto.
Dr Yinghui Tian
Yinghui Tian is an Associate Professor in the Department of Infrastructure Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering and IT with a research background in geotechnics. Along with Shiao Huey Chow he is the UOM co-project lead on Development of a Soil-Specific CPT Interpretation Method for Partially Drained Penetration. Dr Mason Ghafghazi, who is an Assistant Professor in Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering at the University of Toronto, is the project lead.
Dr Sacha Pidot
Sacha Pidot is a Senior Lecturer in Microbiology and Immunology in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and the project lead on Discovery of invertebrate attractants and toxins from diverse Actinomycetes. He collaborates with Professor Justin Nodwell who is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Toronto.
Dr Christopher McDevitt
Christopher McDevitt is a Professor in Microbiology and Immunology in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and the project lead on Defining the zinc homeostasis mechanisms of Klebsiella pneumoniae and their role in host-pathogen interaction. He collaborates with Dr Trevor Moraes who is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Toronto.
Dr Kathryn Stok
Kathryn Stok is an Associate Professor in Biomechanics in the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering and IT along with Katie Davey the UOM co-project lead on Understanding the pathogenesis of postmenopausal knee osteoarthritis at the subchondral bone and cartilage interface using MRI and CT imaging. Dr Andy Kin On Wong is the project lead; he is an Assistant Professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto.
Dr Katie Davey
Katie Davey is a lecturer in the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering and IT and the along with Kathryn Stok the co-project lead on Mechanisms driving osteochondral remodeling in a postmenopausal animal model using longitudinal contrast enhanced micro-computed tomography. Both Katie Davey and Kathryn Stok collaborate with Dr Andy Kin On Wong who is an Assistant Professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto.
Dr Lea Frermann
Lea Frermann is a Lecturer in the School of Computing and Information Systems in the Faculty of Engineering and IT and the UOM project lead on A computational analysis of conceptual combination through time. She collaborates with project lead Dr Yang Xu who is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto.
Professor Charles Kemp
Charles Kemp is a Professor in Psychology in the Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and the project lead on A computational analysis of library classification through time. He collaborates with Dr Yang Xu who is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto.
Professor Angela Morgan
Angela Morgan is a Professor of Speech Pathology in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and the UOM project lead on Subacute rehabilitation outcomes in childhood stroke: clinical metrics and neural mechanisms. She collaborates with project lead Dr Deryk S Beal who is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Toronto.
Professor Ajay Mahal
Ajay Mahal is a Professor Health Economics and Health Systems Research in the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and the co-project lead on Targeting efficacy in public health insurance programs in India.
Associate Professor Sumit Kane
Sumit Kane is a Principal Research Fellow in the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and the co-project lead on Targeting efficacy in public health insurance programs in India.
Both Ajay Mahal and Sumit Kane collaborate with Dr Beverley Essue who is an Associate Professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto.
Associate Professor Leah Ruppanner
Leah Ruppanner is an Associate Professor in Social and Political Sciences in the Faculty of Arts and UOM project lead on Recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic: Experiences from Vulnerable Groups. She collaborates with project lead Professor Melissa Milkie who is a Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Toronto.
The IRTG Coordinator team consists of:
- Petra Van Nieuwenhoven
The team works with the project leads on operational activities, including recruitment and the end to end graduate research lifecycle processes for joint PhD candidates. Please direct all your enquiries to jointphd-admin@unimelb.edu.au.