ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an insight into Australian doctoral education in the early twentyfirst century, as a case study of the global changes in doctoral education policy. It presents findings from a national study on the doctoral education experience (Neumann, 2003) in the context of emerging government policy on doctoral education. It demonstrates the state of rapid transition in doctoral education and highlights the diversity and flexibility of the Australian doctoral education scene. Change has been triggered by altered federal government funding policy on higher education. Universities must adapt from a time of funding enrolled doctoral places to an era of competitive performance-based allocations calculated on actual doctoral completions. The challenge for universities and the country is that diversity not be sacrificed in the process as university management is tempted to adopt risk minimisation strategies under the pressures of more competitive funding and narrow outcomes-based performance measures.
