Change a supervisor

Students may request changes to their supervisory team at any stage of their enrolment. To minimise disruptions to candidature, supervision arrangements should be updated as soon as possible and, where applicable, before thesis submission.

Before submitting a change of supervisor request, students should:

1. Discuss the proposed change with their supervisory team and the Head of Academic Unit (or academic delegate, such as the Graduate Research Coordinator), unless there are compelling reasons why this is not appropriate.
2. Seek advice from the  Head of Academic Unit (or academic delegate) regarding any potential implications of the proposed change, including:
   1. the availability of suitable alternative supervisors within the academic unit, faculty, or University;
   2. the impact on their enrolment, research progress, upcoming milestones, approved research project, intellectual property (IP) arrangements, scholarship, and other funding arrangements;
   3. ongoing access to resources that may be linked to a supervisor who is leaving the supervisory team or to a grant associated with that supervisor.
3. Ensure the proposed supervisory team complies with the Graduate Research Student Supervision Policy and Procedure.
4. If adding an external supervisor, confirm with the Faculty Graduate Research Office that the proposed supervisor has an approved external supervisor ID before submitting the request.
5. If you hold a scholarship, review the RTP Scholarship Procedures to understand any potential implications of changing your supervisory team, particularly for co-funded scholarships.

Once these steps have been completed, submit a request through the Change of Supervisor form.

Approval process

Change of Supervisor requests are submitted electronically and are typically routed for approval by:

1. the Main Supervisor;
2. the Faculty Graduate Research Coordinator (or equivalent delegate); and
3. the Associate Dean (Graduate Research).

For expected turnaround times, refer to the University's standard processing times.