Background to the Award
The Bragg gold medal for the best Ph. D. thesis by a student from an Australian University was established in 1992 as an initiative of the South Australian Branch, to commemorate Sir Lawrence Bragg (in front on the medal) and his father Sir William Bragg.
There is a three stage selection process
1. Each Australian University may nominate one candidate. These nominations are submitted to the State Branch committee.
2. The State Branch committee selects the best thesis from their state (two from NSW and VIC) and send this to the Hon Secretary at P.O. Box 16, Willetton, WA 6955.
3. A national judging panel is appointed, which selects the national winner.
Conditions of the Award
1. The medal is awarded annually to the student who is judged to have completed the most outstanding Ph. D. thesis under the auspices of an Australian university, whose degree has been approved, but not necessarily conferred, in the thirteen months prior to the closing date for applications to the State Branch (i. e., from the beginning of July 2005 to the end of July 2006). No candidate may be nominated more than once.
2. The medal will be presented to the chosen candidate at the Congress in even numbered years, and in odd numbered years at a function to be arranged by the AIP Branch of the state of the candidate’s university The medal will not be awarded in absentia; the candidate must be available for the presentation at a time which is mutually convenient. Reasonable expenses in attending the presentation will be met by the Council of the AIP.
3. Only one medal shall be awarded; there is no possibility of a dual award. If the selection committee considers that none of the theses submitted reaches an appropriate standard, no award will be made.
4. The nomination made to the secretary of the local State Branch should include a citation from the thesis supervisor justifying the nomination by addressing the four selection criteria in item 7. Supporting documentation should include Referees’ reports.
5. The state nominations submitted for national judging shall be accompanied by three copies of the thesis to assist in the selection process.
6. There shall be a Bragg Medal Selection Committee, appointed by the Executive, which shall determine the candidate for the award of the medal from the State finalists nominated by the Branches.
7. In making its decision, the Bragg Medal Selection Committee will take into account
• the overall quality and significance of the work.
• the level of originality or creativity exhibited.
• the intrinsic difficulty of the project.
• the level of independence and objectivity of the candidate.
Mindful of the need to retain a balance between experimental and theoretical theses, the committee will pay particular attention to factors that may lead to either group being unduly advantaged or disadvantaged.
Time Line: Nominations from the universities should reach the secretary of the local State Branch by July 31. The selected nominations from the State Branches, accompanied by three copies of the thesis, the citation and referees’ reports, should reach the Honorary Secretary at P. O. Box 16, Willetton, WA 6955 by September 19.
The announcement of the winner of the 2006 Bragg Medal shall be made by the end of January the following year.
The Bragg gold medal for the best Ph. D. thesis by a student from an Australian University was established in 1992 as an initiative of the South Australian Branch, to commemorate Sir Lawrence Bragg (in front on the medal) and his father Sir William Bragg.
There is a three stage selection process
1. Each Australian University may nominate one candidate. These nominations are submitted to the State Branch committee.
2. The State Branch committee selects the best thesis from their state (two from NSW and VIC) and send this to the Hon Secretary at P.O. Box 16, Willetton, WA 6955.
3. A national judging panel is appointed, which selects the national winner.
Conditions of the Award
1. The medal is awarded annually to the student who is judged to have completed the most outstanding Ph. D. thesis under the auspices of an Australian university, whose degree has been approved, but not necessarily conferred, in the thirteen months prior to the closing date for applications to the State Branch (i. e., from the beginning of July 2005 to the end of July 2006). No candidate may be nominated more than once.
2. The medal will be presented to the chosen candidate at the Congress in even numbered years, and in odd numbered years at a function to be arranged by the AIP Branch of the state of the candidate’s university The medal will not be awarded in absentia; the candidate must be available for the presentation at a time which is mutually convenient. Reasonable expenses in attending the presentation will be met by the Council of the AIP.
3. Only one medal shall be awarded; there is no possibility of a dual award. If the selection committee considers that none of the theses submitted reaches an appropriate standard, no award will be made.
4. The nomination made to the secretary of the local State Branch should include a citation from the thesis supervisor justifying the nomination by addressing the four selection criteria in item 7. Supporting documentation should include Referees’ reports.
5. The state nominations submitted for national judging shall be accompanied by three copies of the thesis to assist in the selection process.
6. There shall be a Bragg Medal Selection Committee, appointed by the Executive, which shall determine the candidate for the award of the medal from the State finalists nominated by the Branches.
7. In making its decision, the Bragg Medal Selection Committee will take into account
• the overall quality and significance of the work.
• the level of originality or creativity exhibited.
• the intrinsic difficulty of the project.
• the level of independence and objectivity of the candidate.
Mindful of the need to retain a balance between experimental and theoretical theses, the committee will pay particular attention to factors that may lead to either group being unduly advantaged or disadvantaged.
Time Line: Nominations from the universities should reach the secretary of the local State Branch by July 31. The selected nominations from the State Branches, accompanied by three copies of the thesis, the citation and referees’ reports, should reach the Honorary Secretary at P. O. Box 16, Willetton, WA 6955 by September 19.
The announcement of the winner of the 2006 Bragg Medal shall be made by the end of January the following year.
