CSIRO Mineral Resources 2026/27 Discovery Postgraduate Student Internship Program

Acknowledgement of Country 

CSIRO acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land, sea and waters, of the area that we live and work on across Australia. We acknowledge their continuing connection to their culture and pay our respects to their Elders past and present. View our vision towards reconciliation. 

Program highlights

• Contribute to cutting-edge mineral resources research with CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency.
• Gain hands-on experience with world-class expertise, equipment and technologies.
• Build your research career through mentorship, collaboration and scientific networks.

About CSIRO 

As Australia's national science agency, CSIRO is solving the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. Many of our iconic innovations were once considered impossible until someone, just like you, joined us and took on the challenge. 

Visit CSIRO.au for more information.

The Opportunity 

The Discovery and Resource Characterisation Program, part of the Mineral Resources Business Unit at CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) in Australia, is pleased to announce our annual global call for applicants for the CSIRO Discovery Postgraduate Internship Program (DISIPA), running from September 2026 to June 2027.

This program provides exceptional postgraduate students with the opportunity to gain hands-on research experience through a CSIRO internship. Projects align with the Discovery Program's research priorities, including Mineral Mapping, Mineral Exploration, Artificial Intelligence, Orebody Knowledge, Geodata Analytics, and Critical Metals. This year, we have six internship grants available.

Internships are typically 12 weeks in duration, with the option to extend to 16 weeks where required to satisfy university course requirements.

Successful applicants will receive a living allowance of approximately AU$2,000 per fortnight.

In addition, interns may be eligible for:

• up to AU$500 to support attendance at a domestic or international conference; and
• reimbursement of up to AU$1,000 towards one return flight to the internship location for students based outside the internship location. This reimbursement will be provided after the internship has commenced.

Of the six internships available, four are based in Kensington (Perth, Western Australia), and two are based in Clayton (Melbourne, Victoria). Interns will be expected to be based at the nominated project location unless otherwise specified in the project description or agreed with CSIRO.

Visa costs and any additional travel, accommodation, or living expenses are not included in the internship package.

Location:  Perth, Western Australia and Clayton (Melbourne), Victoria

Stipend:  $2,056.32 per fortnight

Duration: Placements are for 12 weeks (may extend to 16 weeks to suit university requirements) between September 2026 to June 2027.

Reference:  103953

We are currently accepting applications for the following project in 2026/27:

1.  Quantifying controls on preservation potential of reworked mineral systems for mineral exploration (based in Perth)
2.  Multivariate Thermodynamic Modelling and Surrogate Learning of Hydrothermal Mineral Deposits (based in Clayton)
3.  Constraining 3D magnetotelluric inversions using structural and petrophysical a priori information (based in Perth)
4.  Pathways to High-Grade Gold Ore in the Tanami Region (based in Perth)
5.  Mineral Identification using tandem LIBS-Raman analysis (based in Clayton)
6.  REE mineralisation in the Albany-Fraser Orogen, insights from in-situ Rb-Sr mica geochronology (based in Perth)

Further information on projects can be found at: PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS

Internship locations are specified for each project. Applicants should ensure they are willing and able to be based at the nominated location for the duration of the internship.

Eligibility

To be eligible to apply, you must be enrolled in a PhD or MSc degree program at any officially recognised university worldwide for the entire duration of the internship, and have the approval of your PhD or MSc supervisor to undertake the internship.

* International applicants must have the appropriate immigration approvals to allow them to take up the scholarship.

How to apply

To apply you will be required to:

1. Submit a one-page cover letter summarising your research interests, outline why the studentship project/s you have selected are of interest to you; and how this program will support your longer-term career aspirations.
2. Submit a comprehensive Resume/CV which includes your current university course, expected completion dates, and contact details of your academic supervisor. It should exclude pictures and unnecessary personal details.
3. Select your two preferred research projects for the Discovery and Resource Characterisation Program in order of preference in the ‘Job-Specific Information’ section; and
4. You are not required to provide your Grade Point Average (GPA), please select ‘Not Applicable’.

Note that all interns MUST be registered as a postgraduate student at a University DURING their internship.

Upon acceptance, interns will be assigned to a research group and provided with a supervisor to guide them throughout their internship. Interns are expected to deliver an oral presentation to communicate their research findings at the end of the program.

Conference registration fee funding support could be provided if the student presents the internship results in a conference abstract.

Applications close:  21 September 2026, 11pm AEST

Applicants will be advised of the outcome of their applications by the 19th of October 2026.