Frequently Asked Questions

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion:

How is Equity, Diversity and Inclusion going to be considered in assessing the excellence of applicants?

The MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship has been developed to align with the MBIE Diversity in Science statement.

To accomplish diversity in the MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship selection process, the selection will utilise a stratified ballot system (illustrated below). 

The Māori researcher ballot will be drawn first, until five are selected. Unselected Māori applicants who also identify as Pacific Peoples will be added to the Pacific researcher ballot. Other unselected Māori applicants will be added to the General ballot.

The Pacific researcher ballot will be drawn next and will select three applicants. Unselected Pacific applicants will be added to the General ballot.

The remaining 22 recipients will be drawn from the General ballot. The process will ensure that of the 30 total recipients, at least 15 recipients will identify as female.

Note: Full arrows denote the path for successful applications at each stage. Black dashed arrows denote the path for applications that have not been selected in either the Māori or Pacific Ballots and have been re-distributed into subsequent ballots.

The algorithm that will be used for the selection process is publicly available on github.

If at least 50% of recipients will identify as female, and gender diverse is an option on the demographics section of the application, how does the ballot process consider gender diverse applicants?

In the first ballot five applicants are drawn who identify as Māori from the applicant pool. Next three applicants are drawn who identify as Pacific Persons, including those who may identify as both Māori and Pacific Persons. We note how many of the eight selected fellows identify as female.

In the general selection ballot, the remaining applicant pool (including any previously unselected Māori and Pasifika) is sorted randomly. We then select the top applicants identifying as female and gender diverse from this list until a total of 15 female fellows are selected. In doing so, if a gender diverse candidate is randomly listed higher than the 15th female, the cut will include both the required minimum of 15 females and the gender diverse person, making the total 16. Keeping the order constant, we then go back to the top of our list, and select the top remaining fellows (which will be predominantly males and non-responders excluded from the selection above, but could also include additional female and gender diverse candidates) until the total of thirty fellows have been drawn.

Simulations of these processes using recent PhD graduates that have contacted the Society, show that the outcomes are likely to draw more Māori, Pacific Persons, and female fellows than the minimum targets (~33% of 1000 simulated rounds select seven Māori fellows, ~25% select four Pasifika fellows, and ~50% select more than the minimum fifteen female fellows). In addition, this process ensures that the likelihood of a gender diverse candidate being selected for the fellowship is not significantly different (P>0.05 from the simulations) from the rate at which gender diverse people are likely to apply for the fellowship.

How will “excellence” be equitably assessed in applications?

As per the application guidelines, excellence of applicants will be assessed based on their research capability; problem solving skills; potential to advance knowledge and impact on others, as presented in applications and supported by their referee reports. Excellence attributes have been developed following principles of inclusive excellence, and acknowledge mātauranga Māori and/or kaupapa Māori. The Assessment Panel is also expected to be diverse in composition and thinking.

Visa Status:

I have a New Zealand Resident Visa, am I eligible to apply?

Unfortunately, you must hold New Zealand Citizenship or a New Zealand Permanent Resident Visa at the time of application (application deadline 5pm Tuesday 20 April, 2021) to be eligible to apply for a MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship.

I am an Australian Citizen, am I eligible to apply?

Unfortunately, only New Zealand Citizens or New Zealand Permanent Residents at the time of application (application deadline 5pm Tuesday 20 April, 2021) are eligible to apply for a MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship.

As an Australian Citizen you can be granted a resident visa upon arrival in New Zealand. However, you can only apply for a permanent resident visa after having continuously held a resident visa for 24 months and fulfil other criteria for a permanent resident visa.

I have an Australian Permanent Resident Visa, am I eligible to apply?

Unfortunately, only New Zealand Citizens or New Zealand Permanent Residents at the time of application (application deadline 5pm Tuesday 20 April, 2021) are eligible to apply for a MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship.

As an Australian permanent resident you can be granted a resident visa upon arrival in New Zealand. However, you can only apply for a permanent resident visa after having continuously held a resident visa for 24 months and fulfil other criteria for a permanent resident visa.

Application Content:

Can I include images and/or tables in my application?

You are welcome to include images and/or tables in your application.  You must still comply to the page limits, margins and other formatting as outlined in the 'How to submit your application' section of the application guidelines.

Do I need to provide references for my one page research proposal?

You do not need to include references, however you could cite a few key papers if desired.  e.g. “As I showed in my recent paper in Journal X (2019)” or “Recent work has shown (Doe, J et al, Journal Y, 2020)” or “My collaborator J Doe will train me in the technique they have developed (Journal Z, 2015).”  You are able to include figures or tables if this helps you present your research plan, but note the page limit is still one page.

What do I do if I have fallen out with my former supervisor and I can’t ask them for a referee report?

There may be certain situations where it is not possible or appropriate for a former supervisor to provide a referee report for your MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship application.  If this is the case for you, please contact the Secretariat via email on whitinga.fellowship@royalsociety.org.nz explaining your unique situation, and we can approve the use of an alternative referee (e.g. a secondary supervisor, or a senior research colleague) if the situation calls for it.

Application Guidelines:

What does it mean that “Fellowships are awarded on an at least 0.8 Full Time Equivalent basis?”

MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowships are awarded on an at least 0.8 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) basis. Fellows can choose to either work full-time on the Fellowship, or use up to 0.2 FTE for other activities (e.g. teaching, service, administration, or other projects) with the expectation these are funded from other sources. Irrespective of the FTE the Fellow chooses to undertake (between 0.8-1.0 FTE), hosts will receive a $75,000 per annum (excl. GST) contribution towards the researcher’s salary. 

If a successful applicant wishes to work less than 0.8 FTE on their MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship Research (e.g. to allow them to work part time for the purposes of childcare or other care giving responsibilities) approval for this can be sought from the Royal Society Te Apārangi.

The guidelines state: "Applicants must have a PhD conferred on or after 01 January 2017.

• An exemption to this clause can be sought for applicants that have completed all requirements for graduating with a PhD and can demonstrate a graduation date before 30 June 2021.

• An extension to the eligibility period for PhD conferral may be sought under the following scenarios:

  • Extended sickness leave.

  • Part-time employment or career interruptions as a result of care giving responsibilities as agreed with the Society."

Does this mean that I can get an exemption to the requirement for having completed the requirements for my PhD, if I have had career disruptions during my PhD?

Unfortunately no.  We cannot preempt a university's decision about you completing the requirements for, and conferring, your PhD.   It seems that this section of the guidelines is ambiguous, so please let us clarify:

The first bullet point applies to applicants who do not yet have their PhD conferred.  Such candidates can apply to the Society for an exemption to apply, provide that they have completed all requirements for graduating with a PhD at the time of application AND can demonstrate a graduation date before 30 June 2021.

The second bullet point applies to applicants who had their PhD conferred prior to 01 January 2017 but have experienced career disruptions due to extended sickness or care giving responsibilities. 

The guidelines state: "applicants should normally not currently hold a research role, unless that role is fixed-term and due to end before 31 December 2021. Those who are employed in a technical or teaching capacity would normally be eligible if the role requires at least 80% of their time to be spent on these activities." 

What does "applicants should normally not currently hold a research role" mean?

People are not eligible to apply if they currently hold a research role.  There are two exceptions, these are:

1.       They are on a fixed term contract due to end before 31 December 2021.

2.       They are employed in a technical or teaching capacity for 80% or more of their time (i.e. less than 20% of their time is spent of research).

Is there any wiggle room on the contract end date (31 December 2021)?

The MBIE Science Whitinga fellowship is designed to support ECRs with the potential to excel in a research career who may otherwise be lost from the system due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their career path. If you are an ECR fortunate enough to have research employment contracted beyond 31 December 2021, you are not eligible to apply for this fellowship.

Portal Problems:

I am having trouble adding referee details to my application in the portal.  I can't seem to save them and it won't allow me to click the ‘Send e-mail’ button. What am I doing wrong?

There is a bit of a quirk with the portal, that can be a trick for new players.

To add a new referee you need to click the “Add” button (NOT the “Edit” button).  Type in the referee details.  Then you need to click the “Save” button.

This should make the referee appear in the list at the bottom of the screen – highlighted in yellow.

You then should be able to click the “Send Email” button.  A message will pop up saying that an email has been sent.