Mavis and Ivan Rowe Prize for Retinal Diseases Research

Key scholarship details

Application status

Open for applications

Applications open

5 Jun 2026

Applications close

15 Sep 2026

Benefit amount

Up to $3,664

Eligible study level

Graduate research

Eligible student type

Domestic and international students

Benefit duration

One-off

Summary

The Mavis and Ivan Rowe Prize for Retinal Diseases Research is awarded to students who undertake research in retinal diseases so they can attend the annual conference of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists. Preference is given to students conducting research regarding age-related macular degeneration.

About the donor

David Wiesenfeld Pty Ltd donated to the University to memorialise the late Mavis Hilda Rowe and Ivan Claude Rowe, the parents of Alison Margaret Wiesenfeld, a director of the donor.

Benefits

This prize provides a one-off payment of approximately $3664 (depending on the annual gift income).

Eligibility and selection criteria

Eligibility

To be considered for this prize, you must:

Have successfully enrolled and commenced a higher degree by research (PhD or Master of Philosophy) at the University of Melbourne and at the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA)
Be researching a project that relates to eye health, the treatment of eye disease or the prevention of eye disease (preferably in age-related macular degeneration)

Selection criteria

The prize is offered to the eligible candidate(s) ranked highest by the selection panel based on their application. Candidates will be ranked on a competitive basis on the following criteria:

Type of presentation (i.e. oral or poster)
Research output to date
Year of candidature
Application for other travel funding
Relevance to research in age-related eye disease

The selection committee will take into consideration the applicants’ previous academic records and achievements in their deliberation. Preference is given to students conducting research regarding age-related macular degeneration.

Conditions

Recipients of the Mavis & Ivan Rowe Scholarship are expected to complete a post-travel report within one month of returning from the Conference attended.

The Mavis & Ivan Rowe Scholarship can be used to supplement other travel awards (except for Harold Mitchell Award or scholarship travel allowance).

Application

How to apply

Annual calls for application will be announced internally to students studying at Ophthalmology, Department of Surgery; CERA.

To apply, you must submit a completed application form along with their supporting documents, which must include a copy of their (proposed or accepted) abstracts, a statement in support and may include a letter of recommendation from their supervisor.

As part of the application, students must submit a statement of support (between 500 and 1,000 words) demonstrating:

A desire to find better detection and/or treatment for eye disease.
Detailed understanding of the subject of their research, explaining the need for research to be undertaken in this area.
Why they feel their research will benefit from attending a conference.

To apply, please contact education@cera.org.au

When will I know the outcome?

The prize will be awarded upon recommendation by the Head of Ophthalmology, Department of Surgery.

The information listed here is subject to change without notice. Where we have listed information about jointly run scholarships programs, please also see our partners' websites. Information describing the number and value of scholarships awarded is indicative.

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