Student Research Opportunities
Undergraduate and graduate students contribute to the Clark Center’s research on Australia and New Zealand. They collect and analyze evidence, develop research skills, and help communicate findings. Several of the Center’s graduate research assistants and teaching assistants first joined its research teams as undergraduate interns.
Since 2013, the Center has worked with more than 100 undergraduate research interns. It has also supported undergraduate and graduate West Scholars since 2021. Students have collected data for projects on the High Court of Australia, the New Zealand Supreme Court, question time in the New Zealand Parliament, Australian cafés abroad, and New Zealand’s critical minerals policy. Findings from this work have been presented at meetings of the International Political Science Association, the Comparative Agendas Project, and the Australian and New Zealand Studies Association of North America.
Many student researchers major in Government or International Relations and Global Studies, but students from any major are welcome. The Center has also hosted research interns from the University of Sydney while they were studying abroad at UT Austin.
The Fall 2025 West Scholars with Steve and Susan West and Clark Center Director Dr. Rhonda Evans. From left: Casey Pack, Kayleigh Kan, Deborah Chu, Bhavik Menon, Hannah Berns, Susan West, Steve West, Rhonda Evans. Photo: Rhonda Evans.
West Scholars
The Clark Center established the West Scholars Program in 2021 with support from Steve and Susan West’s Endowed Scholarship for New Zealand Studies. The program promotes the study of New Zealand in the United States while giving undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to develop academic research skills through the Center’s projects.
Through document and data collection and regular team meetings, scholars receive instruction in research design and data analysis. They also develop skills in writing, communication, and project management. Scholars receive a stipend funded by the endowment and may earn course credit. Each cohort typically includes one Graduate West Scholar and two or more Undergraduate West Scholars.
West Scholars’ work currently focuses on a study of the New Zealand Supreme Court, examining media coverage of its decisions and the legal and political factors that shape which cases reach its agenda. In addition, West Scholars have contributed to research on critical minerals in New Zealand. Scholars work directly with the Center’s director, Dr. Rhonda Evans, who teaches in the Department of Government and studies law and politics in Australia and New Zealand. In December 2024, support from the Wests enabled Dr. Evans and Graduate West Scholar Sydney Svagerko to travel to New Zealand for fieldwork and interviews.
Steve and Susan West meet annually with the West Scholars. In 2024, they announced a new gift commitment to augment the Endowed Scholarship for New Zealand Studies. The Center is grateful for their continued support.
Dr. Evans leads a meeting of the undergraduate research team.
Undergraduate Research Interns
Research interns devote seven to ten hours a week to the Center’s research projects and attend weekly meetings. They participate in data collection and coding. Interns can earn course credit through various programs on campus, including the Bridging Disciplines Program, Liberal Arts Honors, and the Department of Government’s Research Internship Program. Paid positions have also been available.
Graduate Research Opportunities
The Center employs graduate students as research assistants and Graduate West Scholars. It has also employed graduate students as teaching assistants for courses connected to the Clark Center, such as the Great Barrier Reef May Term. Graduate students can also apply for funding through the Clark Center Small Grants Program to support their dissertation fieldwork and conference travel related to research on Australia and New Zealand.
Clark Scholars Program, 2013 to 2025
Each year, undergraduates designed and carried out independent research projects. See the list of past Clark Scholars.
Students interested in current research opportunities should contact Dr. Rhonda Evans.