Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Caitlin Cassidy Higher education reporter

Instant noodles and extra jobs: PhD candidates ‘barely scraping by’ on stipends below minimum wage

Minimum Wage Australia Mehreen Faruqi Australian National University Greens Universities Australia
Maddy Hoffman is a Perth PhD student who has had to rely on her partner's income to get her over the line. She is wearing a neutral-coloured dress and sitting at a dark wooden table with two books in front of her
Maddy Hoffman, a PhD student in Perth, says the current stipends offered are ‘a joke’. Photograph: Stef King/The Guardian

When Maddy Hoffman started her PhD in Perth in 2019, the stipend was $500 a week. The cheapest place she could find to rent was $300 – more than half her weekly income.

If it weren’t for her partner, she said her PhD in nuclear radiation simply “wouldn’t have happened”.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Travis Barker shares Kourtney Kardashian’s bold first move: ‘Something crazy’
Couple were friends for 15 years before becoming a couple around 2020
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
‘My dog’s built her own fashion community’: how canine companions stole the fashion week spotlight
Our four-legged friends are turning heads from Louis Vuitton to Schiaparelli – but what does their presence in the most exclusive of spaces say about the industry’s changing attitudes?
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Mystery of why big dogs age faster than small ones finally solved
Researchers analyzed the health of more than 860 dogs
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
I'm Italian American, but I Don't Celebrate Columbus Day.
The holiday brings out many of the worst excesses of identity politics.
Reason
Reason
WWE Star Stephanie Vaquer Sets Social Media Ablaze With Nude Photo Wearing Nothing but Her Championship Belt
WWE Women's World Champion Stephanie Vaquer has attracted widespread attention after sharing a revealing photograph featuring her title, days before defending it against Liv Morgan and Becky Lynch.
International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
‘Striking and personal’ self-portrait by David Bowie up for auction
Sotheby’s said the self-portrait created by the musician in 1996 will go on sale next week.
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play