Australian PhD students with bold, curious, and “limitless” ideas can now apply for the 2019 AMP Amplify Ignite program.

AMP Amplify Ignite brings academia, business and innovation together, offering PhD candidates the opportunity to pitch their research projects for the chance to win $5,000 to progress their work.

Additionally, a ‘People’s choice’ winner will be awarded $1,000. All applicants who make it to the final stage will receive $1,000. 

Ahead of pitch night the finalists will take part in a two-day intensive coaching and mentoring workshop to refine their research into a simple 150-second pitch.

On November 13, the finalists will present their pitches to a live business audience for the chance to be selected by a panel of judges as the winner.

Pictured: Samra Qraghuli, 2018 Amplify Ignite winner 

"It was a good challenge for me to step out and learn to shape and communicate my idea for new audiences."

Flinders University’s Samra Qraghuli was crowned the 2018 AMP Amplify Ignite winner for her pitch on creating a new family of antibiotics from fungi.

Winning AMP Amplify Ignite has helped Samra build linkages outside the lab and a step closer to her discoveries being used as a treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections.

“AMP Amplify Ignite was the first opportunity for me to meet with people from pharmaceutical companies and people from businesses that could help me bring my research closer to helping others,” said Samra.

“While I was completing my PhD, my research discussions were with my supervisor and fellow students. It was a good challenge for me to step out and learn to shape and communicate my idea for new audiences. It was also really exciting to be exposed to different ideas and hear from people studying from a diverse range of fields, from architecture to stem cell research.”

Applications are now open to PhD students currently enrolled at an accredited Australian tertiary institution and undertaking research, or recent PhD graduates. For more information and to apply, visit: amp.com.au/amplify/ignite-2019