What makes a world-class academic choose UNSW Sydney? For 2018 Australian of the Year, Laureate Fellow and UNSW Scientia Professor of Physics, Michelle Simmons, a number of factors influenced her move to Australia. Lifestyle, culture and Australia’s give-it-a-go spirit were all important, but one thing in particular convinced Professor Simmons to pack her bags.

"I was really looking for an ambitious university," Simmons said recently.

She found what she was looking for in UNSW. Since her arrival in 1999, Professor Simmons has been given the support required to conduct game-changing research. She was a founding member of the Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computer Technology and has been instrumental in transforming the quantum physics department into a world leader. In 2012, Professor Simmons’ team created the world’s smallest transistor from a single atom.

In 2016, Professor Simmons established Australia’s first quantum computing company, an $83 million cross-disciplinary consortium tasked with commercialising her research. Today, Professor Simmons and her team of 200 researchers are working on something even bigger: Building the world’s first quantum computer in silicon. Recently, her team produced the narrowest conducting wires ever made in silicon.

With access to unparalleled research support, world-class infrastructure, industry-leading mentors and an academic environment that has produced numerous world firsts, it is easy to see why leading researchers choose UNSW Sydney.

UNSW is a research-intensive university ranked in the world’s top 50 universities (QS rankings 2019).

We are proud to say our research facilities are some of the best in the business. From the world-leading Lowy Cancer Research Centre to the Mark Wainwright Analytical Centre, we invest in the latest technologies, spaces and equipment to support research excellence across all disciplines.

Our Sydney campus is home to 62,500 students from over 120 countries. We aspire to be Australia's global university, improving and transforming lives through excellence in research, outstanding education and a commitment to advancing a just society.

Find out more:

• About UNSW
• About our 2025 Strategy

It's no secret: Sydney is one of the most beautiful, liveable and friendly cities in the world. It is ranked:

• 9th best student city in the world (QS Best Student Cities Index 2018)
• 10th best city in the world to live and work (Mercer Quality of Living Survey 2018)
• 8th friendliest city in the world (Travel + Leisure magazine 2019)
• 5th best city for urban quality of life (Economist Intelligence Unit Global Liveability Ranking 2018)

The main UNSW campus is perfectly located in the eastern suburbs of Sydney between world-famous beaches and a bustling international city that is home to more global firms than any other in Australia.

It's just 7km to the centre of the city, and 2km to stunning Coogee Beach, while Sydney’s international and domestic airports are only 6km to the south-west.

UNSW is known for innovative and pioneering research that has global impact.

As a Scientia Scholarship candidate you will join a vibrant research community and be supervised by leading experts in your field.

Here are just a few of our research highlights:

• UNSW has more top ratings in broad fields of research than any other Australian university (2018 Excellence in Research in Australia report).
• 81 specific research subjects rated “above or well above world standard” (2018 Excellence in Research in Australia report).
• UNSW awarded the highest number of Australian Research Council Discovery Projects in Australia for three years in a row (2017, 2018, and 2019). Total funding awarded over that period was in excess of $91m.
• A 7,000-strong research community.

Find out more at UNSW Research.