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Doctoral student achievements - NgÄ angitu o ngÄ tauira kairangi

Learn about our PhD and professional doctoral students’ achievements, including the Dean’s list of exceptional theses and the Three Minute Thesis competition.

At Massey we have a reputation for excellence in our doctoral programmes. Our PhD and professional doctorate students are high achievers and many of them earn awards and other recognition for their research.

Dean’s list of exceptional theses

The Dean’s list is for theses that show outstanding research, analytical content, communication and presentation. Candidates who make the Dean’s list are considered among the best in their fields.

2025

2025

Charlotte Cantley

Mikaela Carter

Anjuli Clare

Stella Corkery

Carsten James Grimm

Zené Krige

Daniel Luff

Ludwig Petters

Ngawiki-Aroha Koaio Ataahua Rewita

Hanna Svensson

Evan Armando Valdes

Summer Wright

Tommy Sunpana Yotes

2024

2024

Mohammad Barzegartabrizi

Emily Claire Fisher

Achinthya Halnetti Perera

Hannah Rose Hawley

Rachael Kaulamatoa

Matthew Joseph Kean

Yujun Ma

Winston Mason

Fabio Leonardo Meza Joya

Vani Narayanan

Rebekah Orr

Baden Parr

Suvra Roy

Johanna Thomas-Maude

2023

2023

Gabrielle Deborah Amodeo

Judith Beyer

Akshay Bisht

Ellie Lynn Bradley

Samantha Jayne Brydon

Thao Thi Phuong Bui

Rupsa Chakraborty

Bruce Mark Chilton

Jacques de Satgé

Alexandra Egan

Christine Elers

Darya Fedchuk

Mercedes Rocafort Ferrer

Fraser Findlay

Lesley Ann Gray

Sesimani Havea

Corrin Hulls

Sidra Hussain

Jayawardana Mudiyanselage Dinesha Rajinee Jayawardana

Kylie Ann Legg

Junyan Liu

Tessa Ma'Auga

Jayne Mary Mercier

Johanna Mechen

Deidre McDonald

Ami Moller

Huidan Niu

Muhammad Hammad Saleem

Mariana Massoco Tarallo

Madaleine Heulwen Trigg

Hien Thi Dieu Troung

Robin van der Sanden

Melissa Stephen

Vajisha Udayangi Wanniarachchi

Achini Shanika Weerasinghe

Agampodi Nuwan Rumesh Weerawansha

Alvaro Sebastian Wehrle Martinez

Benjamin Patrick Westberry

Mengxiao Yang

2022

2022

Investigations into the impact of feed form and age on the standardised ileal amino acid digestibility of feed ingredients for broiler chickens

He kÄkano nÅ te taunuke o te hue

The defect modes of MoSâ‚‚: indirect double resonance Raman spectroscopy in transition metal dichalcogenides

Using market research methodologies to advance public engagement with emerging climate technologies

Physico-chemical properties and stability of lipid droplet-stabilised emulsions

Metabolic characteristics and genomic epidemiology of Escherichia coli serogroup O145

The shape of penguins in four dimensions: assessing macroevolutionary shifts in a constructional morphology framework

Exploring the data needs and sources for severe weather impact forecasts and warnings

Graph learning and its applications

Yiying Huang

Doctor of Philosophy

The sport formation and toxin production in biofilms of Bacillus cereus

Imran Ishrat

Doctor of Philosophy

Effect of Industry Changes on Quality and Sustainability in the Luxury Apparel Value Chains: The Case of Cashmere Industry in India

Effect of Kiwifruit actinidin on the digestion of gluten proteins

Eloise Jillings

Doctor of Philosophy

Rapua te mea ngaro: exploring the access of Maori to veterinary education in Aotearoa New Zealand

The genetic characterisation of coat colour and patterning traits in cattle

Multigenerational caregiving for older people in Bali : combining macro and micro perspectives to understand ageing, family, and caregiving

Michael McVeagh

Doctor of Philosophy

Efficient Markov bases for Z-polytope sampling

Do older consumers purchase differently?: the effect of age on brand awareness, consideration, and purchase

Kevin Miles

Doctor of Philosophy

Along the waterline: cameraless photography and the haptic register of nocturnal seaborne activity

Miniatures of reality : an inter-photo-textual investigation of ekphrasis of photographs

Jabin Nesaraj

Doctor of Philosophy

Understanding the population genetic structure of bovine mastitis-causing Staphylococcus aureus in New Zealand to identify potential vaccine candidates using reverse vaccinology

Development of a molecular toolbox for multifunctional lanthanide-based supramolecular materials

Structure-rheology relationships of protein-polysaccharide complexes at oil/water interfaces

MÄ te whiritahi, ka whakatutuki ai ngÄ pÅ«manawa Ä tÄngata = Together weaving the realisation of potential : exploring the social, cultural and health benefits of whÄnau-centred initiatives

Quantifying the performance of silvopastoralism for landslide erosion and sediment control in New Zealand’s hill country

The role of Fourier-transform mid-infrared spectroscopy in improving the prediction of new and existing traits in New Zealand dairy cattle

Marketa Vlkova

Doctor of Philosophy

Natural variation in bacterial gene regulation

Better lives for all?: prospects for empowerment through marine wildlife tourism in Gansbaai, South Africa

Towards exact numerical solutions of quantum many-body problems in ultracold Bose gases

The everyday conduct of inter-ethnic marriages in Indonesia: participants navigating points of tension and cultivating harmony through adaptive socio-cultural practices

2021

2021

Guanyu Ran

Doctor of Philosophy (Social Policy)

Family finds a way: experiences of multigenerational transnational new Chines immigrant families in New Zealand

Caroline Day

Doctor of Philosophy (Public Health)

Negotiating grandmothering, paid employment and regular childcare in urban Aotearoa New Zealand

Akinson Tumbure

Doctor of Philosophy (Soil Science)

The development and assessment of alternative techniques to improve the agronomic value of Dorowa phosphate rock (Zimbabwe)

Thi Thu Ha Nguyen

Doctor of Philosophy

Essays on dynamics of the housing market

Christopher Andrews

Doctor of Philosophy

Stress and reproduction in domestic cats (Felis catus) as a model for endangered felids

Malin Undin

Doctor of Philosophy

Studies of how to improve translocation outcomes of Apteryx mantelli focusing on breeding, hybrids, diversity, and telomeres

Anthony Mattson

Doctor of Philosophy

Be(com)ing men in another place: the migrant men of Gandhi Nivas and their violent stories

Branka Vasilic

Doctor of Philosophy

Supporting interprofessional collaborative practice through relational orientation

Laura David

Doctor of Philosophy

Studies on the measurement of calcium digestibility in raw materials for poultry and of digestible calcium requirement of broiler starters

2020

2020

Mahina-A-Rangi Baker

Doctor of Philosophy

Te kete tua-Ätea, MÄori modelling of the future and the kaitiakitanga of water

Mudassar Hasan

Doctor of Philosophy

Essays on spillover effects of economic and geopolitical uncertainty

Kevin Lawrence

Doctor of Philosophy (Veterinary Clinical Sciences)

The epidemiology of Theileria orientalis Ikeda type in New Zealand

Fiona McKergow

Doctor of Philosophy (History)

Colonial textile culture in mid-nineteenth century Aotearoa New Zealand

Emma Miller

Doctor of Clinical Psychology

An internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy for clinical perfectionism

Muhammad Naeem

Doctor of Philosophy

Essays on commodity market uncertainties

Khanh Nguyen

Doctor of Philosophy

Representation of autism in Vietnamese online news media between 2006 and 2016

Thi Phuoc Van Nguyen

Doctor of Philosophy

The investigation of non-contact vital signs detection microwave theoretical model and smart sensing systems

Christian Offen

Doctor of Philosophy (Mathematics)

Analysis of Hamiltonian boundary value problems and symplectic integration

Callum Rees

Doctor of Philosophy (Earth Sciences)

The hydrogeology of the Pourewa sub-catchment, Rangitikei, New Zealand

Alexander Schnack

Doctor of Philosophy

Is it worthwhile going immersive? Evaluating the performance of virtual simulated stores for shopper research

Marion Lara Tan

Doctor of Philosophy

Usability of disaster apps: Understanding the perspectives of the public as end-users

Heather Thomas

Doctor of Education (Education)

Pedagogies of presence: Contemplative education across the disciplines in Aotearoa New Zealand

Danchen Yang

Doctor of Philosophy

Epidemiological studies of bovine digital dermatitis in pasture-based dairy system in New Zealand

Syeda Kanwal Zaidi

Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering)

Effective relaying mechanisms in future device to device communication

Hooman Alavizadeh

Doctor of Philosophy

Effective security analysis for combinations of MTD techniques on cloud computing

Susan Bisschoff

Doctor of Philosophy

Dynamic assessment as an early screening tool for identifying New Zealand children at risk of reading difficulty upon school entryâ€

Nikolai Kondratev

Doctor of Philosophy

Identification of mechanisms defining resistance and susceptibility of Camellia plants to necrotrophic petal blight disease

Istvan Hajdu

Doctor of Philosophy (Agriculture and Horticulture)

Soil water modelling in hill country, New Zealand

Ashleigh Rushton

Doctor of Philosophy

But what about the men?: storying rural men’s experiences and perspectives of the 2016 Kaikoura/Waiau Earthquake, Aotearoa New Zealand

Lynsey Ellis

Doctor of Philosophy (Social Work)

Sustainable social work: a response to the climate emergency from social work education and practice in Aotearoa, New Zealand

Jess Richards

Doctor of Philosophy (Fine Arts)

Illusions, transformations, and iterations: storytelling as fiction, image, artefact

Gabriele Frigerio Porta

Doctor of Philosophy (Statistics)

Statistical models for multihazards

Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition

In the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, doctoral candidates develop their presentation and communication skills by explaining their research in three minutes to a non-specialist audience.

Developed by The University of Queensland, the competition was first held in 2008, and now more than 900 universities in over 85 countries participate.

2024

2024

Winner

Johanna Thomas-Maude (Institute of Development Studies)

Runner up

Dhanesha Nanayakkara (School of Agriculture and Environment)

People's Choice

Sheba Culas (School of Food Technology and Natural Sciences)

2023

2023

Winner

Indika Serasinghe Mudiyanselage (School of Food and Advanced Technology)

Runner up

Catherine Maidment (Riddet Institute)

People's Choice

Chanthujan Chandrakumar (School of Psychology)

2022

2022

Winner

Areef Shaik (College of Creative Arts)

Runner up

Manomita Das (Joint Centre of Disaster Research)

People's Choice Award

Haroon Jamshaid Qazi (SFAT)

2021

2021

2021 winner

Roxanne Hawi
From gimmick to game-changer: a study on the use of smartphones to expand access to higher education in sub-Saharan Africa

2021 runner-up

Morgan Heslop
Development of behavioural methods for the identification of boredom in animals

2021 people's choice

Huidan Niu
The professional role of teacher unions in NZ

2020

2020

2020 winner and people’s choice

Muhammad Rehan

School of Food and Advanced Technology

2020 runner-up

Feng (Dennis) Yue

School of Management

2020 judges’ commendation

Akisi Ravono

School of Nursing

2020 judges’ commendation

Siobhán Healy-Cullen

‘Porn literacy’ as pedagogy?

School of Psychology