Q1. Where do Master’s internship students “sit” in AIMS@JCU, and how are they managed?
A1. AIMS@JCU liaises with the JCU Advancements (Master’s) group—our main contact is Naomi Gardiner. These interns are coordinated under the AIMS@JCU banner: we ask they register as AIMS@JCU student members so they can access the AIMS@JCU commuter vehicle, on-site desks, and are eligible for the student awards programme. They are not eligible for the AIMS@JCU scholarship stipend topup.

Q2. I’m an AIMS staff member with a JCU Adjunct appointment—can I co-supervise JCU HDR students?
A2. Yes. You’ll be listed as the AIMS supervisor. Even if you hold a JCU Adjunct position you cannot also be listed as the JCU supervisor. Any JCU HDR candidate that intends to study at AIMS (even if they don’t hold an AIMS@JCU scholarship) must have one AIMS supervisor and one JCU supervisor as a minimum on their advisory panel.

Q3. How do I account for student supervision in my timesheet, and does this apply if I’m P5 (non-research staff)?
A3. Use the “Student Supervision” functional duty code (typically 0.1 to 0.2 FTE). It applies to any AIMS staff member who is “research active” at AIMS—your classification band (P5, P10, etc.) doesn’t change this requirement.

Q4. What’s AIMS@JCU’s position on embedding HDR students in externally funded projects with firm deliverables?
A4. AIMS@JCU is working with AIMS legal to develop guidelines for this. It is a work in progress. The major concerns for the student are related to who owns the IP (i.e., especially if the third party owns the IP, there must be provision for the student to use the data in their thesis, and there may be an embargo on publication of the data) and milestone-risk whereby the student is expected to deliver data for payment. Once the guidelines are formalised, JCU legal will be provided the opportunity to review and ensure it meets JCU requirements. In the meantime, if you are planning to embed a student in an external project please reach out to the AIMS@JCU Research Director (Cherie) to discuss specific cases.

Q5. If an AIMS@JCU HDR project needs ship time but appropriation approvals (for 2025 - 2026) aren’t yet finalised, what should we do?
A5. Proceed as per normal—include the proposed ship time in your appropriation project proposal and get it endorsed via the usual AIMS appropriation process. Include the required ship time in the New HDR project proposal and get it endorsed via the Research Office.  The Research Manager’s sign-off commits AIMS to providing that resource. Shiptime for JCU enrolled students is considered an AIMS in-kind under the AIMS@JCU Strategic Alliance.

Q6. For non-HDR projects (Honours, short internships), is the application process different?
A6. No—the same “New HDR project proposal” form is used to provide the project outline and intent, and identify supervisors and resource requirements. Honours and intern students aren’t eligible for AIMS@JCU scholarship stipend topup, but they should still register as AIMS@JCU student members to access awards, seminars, writing retreats, etc.

Q7. When will the next AIMS@JCU post-doc cohort be recruited?
A7. We won’t recruit in 2026. Recruitment of the current five post-docs was initially delayed and then staggered. Recruitments were in 2023, 2024 and 3x 2025. The next call for applications will be for a 2027 start, followed by further intakes in 2028 and 2029 (pending Science Advisory Committee approval).