The Australian Historical Association recognises the critical importance of postgraduate students to the Australian history profession, and to the intellectual and civic life of the nation. As today’s report from the University of Sydney indicates, our postgraduate students are, in the context of COVID-19 and its impacts, facing significant challenges in terms of living standards and financial security, archival and fieldwork research, and social dislocation and isolation. Overall, it is a very difficult time to be a postgraduate student.
We want to assure postgraduate students in history that they enjoy the full academic, social and moral support of the AHA and its Executive Committee. In addition to the support that is currently being provided by Australian universities to their students, we encourage any who are struggling with the impacts of COVID-19 to keep in touch with fellow members of the AHA, and to convey any concerns, issues or queries to your Postgraduate Representative, Josh Black. The AHA will be working to ensure that universities are reminded of their responsibility to support and nurture the next generation of scholars, and we will continue to prevail on the federal government to support Australia’s universities through the most serious crisis they have faced in their 170-year history.