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.
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)
A Hidden Story: Overseas trained doctors in Aotearoa New Zealand
Runner up
Dhanesha Nanayakkara (School of Agriculture and Environment)
Making Carrot safe from Wild Carrot
People's Choice
Sheba Culas (School of Food Technology and Natural Sciences)
2023
2023
Winner
Indika Serasinghe Mudiyanselage (School of Food and Advanced Technology)
Novel starter culture: a journey from plant to gut
Runner up
Catherine Maidment (Riddet Institute)
What digests best?
People's Choice
Chanthujan Chandrakumar (School of Psychology)
Quake Alert: Empowering Communities with Affordable Earthquake Early Warning (EEW)
2022
2022
Winner
Areef Shaik (College of Creative Arts)
Lifejacket design for Flood Events in India
Runner up
Manomita Das (Joint Centre of Disaster Research)
Communication, Community Action and Disaster Resilience
People's Choice Award
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
Capsule robot – engineering the gut
School of Food and Advanced Technology
2020 runner-up
Leadership through a Chinese lens
School of Management
2020 judges’ commendation
Nursing care for people living with diabetes in Fiji: An indigenous community context
School of Nursing
2020 judges’ commendation
‘Porn literacy’ as pedagogy?
School of Psychology
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
Mikaela Carter
Carsten James Grimm
Zené Krige
Fruit measurement horticultural device: developing trust through usability across complex systems
Daniel Luff
On LIFE within the Society-of-Captives: exploring the pains of imprisonment for real
Hanna Svensson
Evan Armando Valdes
Across borders and time: testing the competing perspectives of system justification
Summer Wright
Place, provenance, protection : alignments, challenges, and opportunities for Māori future foods
Tommy Sunpana Yotes
Prejudice toward Chinese Indonesians and the Xinyimin in Indonesia: an integrated threat approach
2024
2024
Mohammad Barzegartabrizi
Real-time measurement of fill volume in a vessel using optical and acoustical means
Emily Claire Fisher
The multimodality of creaminess perception
Achinthya Halnetti Perera
Theorising and Testing the Underpinnings of Lean Six Sigma
Hannah Rose Hawley
Investigating HDAC4 aggregation in a Drosophila model of neuronal development
Rachael Kaulamatoa
Kūkū : a re-imagined fangufangu developed through a Kakala Design Framework
Matthew Joseph Kean
Men's work : narratives of engaging with change and becoming non-violent
Yujun Ma
Deep learning for action recognition in videos
Winston Mason
Fabio Leonardo Meza Joya
Global warming responses within the New Zealand alpine radiation of acridid grasshoppers
Vani Narayanan
An ethnographic study of autistic children’s social experiences at school
Rebekah Orr
Consumer emotional engagement with plant-based meat alternatives
Baden Parr
Grape Yield Analysis with 3D Cameras and Ultrasonic Phased Arrays
Suvra Roy
Johanna Thomas-Maude
2023
2023
Gabrielle Deborah Amodeo
Life-drawing: trauma and intimacy in the essay qua drawing
Judith Beyer
Antigender fashion: the boundless possibilities of gender-fluid fashion design
Akshay Bisht
The tale of the shear-thickening mamaku polysaccharide, from forest to gut
Ellie Lynn Bradley
Samantha Jayne Brydon
Thao Thi Phuong Bui
Rupsa Chakraborty
Bruce Mark Chilton
Studies towards thermodynamically stable G-quadruplexes embedded in canonical DNA duplexes
Jacques de Satgé
Alexandra Egan
Direct economic losses of oil spills in populated and remote locations within New Zealand
Christine Elers
Theorising Māori health and wellbeing in a whakapapa paradigm: voices from the margins
Darya Fedchuk
Mercedes Rocafort Ferrer
Fraser Findlay
Lesley Ann Gray
Disaster risk reduction considerations for big bodied people in Aotearoa New Zealand
Sesimani Havea
Tongan indigenous approaches to family restoration and wellbeing
Corrin Hulls
Sidra Hussain
Evolution of cytonuclear coordination in Tragopogon (Asteraceae) allopolyploids
Jayawardana Mudiyanselage Dinesha Rajinee Jayawardana
Genetic parameters of fertility traits of cows milked once daily versus twice daily in New Zealand
Kylie Ann Legg
Physiological demands of jockeys in relation to injury risk, performance and career longevity
Junyan Liu
Tessa Ma'Auga
Movements from Pearl Rivers: Connections Flowing from Southern China to Aotearoa
Jayne Mary Mercier
Johanna Mechen
Deidre McDonald
Translating Biosecurity World-Making: Thinking with Mycoplasma Bovis in Aotearoa
Ami Moller
Huidan Niu
The politics of teacher professionalism in teacher unions: a case study of Aotearoa New Zealand
Muhammad Hammad Saleem
Deep learning-based approaches for plant disease and weed detection
Mariana Massoco Tarallo
Identification and characterization of effector proteins from pine needle pathogens
Madaleine Heulwen Trigg
From Dough to Wheat: A Postman Performance Practice with Companion Species.
Hien Thi Dieu Troung
Characterising honeys in situ by spectral methods
Robin van der Sanden
Exploring the use of social media and messaging apps to buy and sell drugs in New Zealand
Melissa Stephen
Vajisha Udayangi Wanniarachchi
Analysing underpinning patterns in social media posts that promote fat stigmatisation
Achini Shanika Weerasinghe
The impacts of occupant behaviours on energy consumption in New Zealand office buildings
Agampodi Nuwan Rumesh Weerawansha
Alvaro Sebastian Wehrle Martinez
Investigating the pathogenesis of catastrophic humeral fractures in dairy heifers in New Zealand
Benjamin Patrick Westberry
Mengxiao Yang
Study on the interactions between milk protein and digestive enzymes (pepsin)
2022
2022
Investigations into the impact of feed form and age on the standardised ileal amino acid digestibility of feed ingredients for broiler chickens
Hona Lambert Black
He kākano nō te taunuke o te hue
Samuel James Brooke
The defect modes of MoS₂: indirect double resonance Raman spectroscopy in transition metal dichalcogenides
Daniel Peter Carlisle
Using market research methodologies to advance public engagement with emerging climate technologies
Lirong Cheng
Physico-chemical properties and stability of lipid droplet-stabilised emulsions
Rose Moyra Collis
Metabolic characteristics and genomic epidemiology of Escherichia coli serogroup O145
Simone Giovanardi
The shape of penguins in four dimensions: assessing macroevolutionary shifts in a constructional morphology framework
Sara Ebony Zylka Harrison
Exploring the data needs and sources for severe weather impact forecasts and warnings
Rongyao Hu
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
Isuri Achintha Jayawardana
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
Swati Jivanji
The genetic characterisation of coat colour and patterning traits in cattle
Made Diah Lestari
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
Philip Mecredy
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
Margaret Ruth Moores
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
Alex Thomas O'Neil
Development of a molecular toolbox for multifunctional lanthanide-based supramolecular materials
Sashikumar Ramamirtham
Structure-rheology relationships of protein-polysaccharide complexes at oil/water interfaces
Angelique Varnya Reweti
Mā te whiritahi, ka whakatutuki ai ngā pūmanawa ā tāngata = Together weaving the realisation of potential : exploring the social, cultural and health benefits of whānau-centred initiatives
Raphael Isaac Spiekermann
Quantifying the performance of silvopastoralism for landslide erosion and sediment control in New Zealand’s hill country
Kathryn Maree Tiplady
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
Karin van der Walt
Better lives for all?: prospects for empowerment through marine wildlife tourism in Gansbaai, South Africa
Mingrui Yang
Towards exact numerical solutions of quantum many-body problems in ultracold Bose gases
Jony Eko Yulianto
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-ātea, Māori 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 entry”
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
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