A PhD with SAFE
Monday, 10 May 2010
ECU tourism economics research student, Ghialy Yap, has recently completed her PhD, doing so on the topic of “An Econometric Analysis of Australian Domestic Tourism Demand”. Ghialy’s research investigated the primary factors that influence domestic tourism demand in Australia, as well as exploring travel characteristics in each main Australian State/Territory.
Since she graduated with a master degree in 2005, Ghialy aspired to become a researcher. With her natural curiosity and passion for applied economics and econometrics, she was determined to complete a PhD.
“Looking back, I do not think I could have achieved my goal without the support of my school and supervisor” she said. “The school and the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre (STCRC) jointly financed my PhD project for more than 3 years.”
The School of Accounting, Finance and Economics (SAFE) also provided financial support for two conference trips to both New Zealand (2007) and Cairns (2009), where Ghialy presented research papers.
“I would like to thank my supervisor, Professor David Allen, and writing consultant, Dr Greg Maguire, who guided me throughout writing my thesis and publications”.
In September 2009, Ghialy was awarded “Best PhD Student Paper Commendation” in the 18th IMACS World Congress MODSIM09, Cairns, Australia. During her PhD candidature, she published five conference papers and one journal article.
Ghialy found her doctoral studies a challenging yet rewarding experience; one which she attributed to a lot of hard work, motivation and determination.
“Like most PhD students, I encountered a lot of challenges during my PhD candidature, such as procrastination, writing block, critics and so on. But interestingly, every time I faced problems, I was able to find solutions with the support of my supervisor and my fellow research students.”
The Faculty of Business and Law aims to promote a research culture by organising seminars, research forums and conferences, as well as a strong dedication to their research students.
“The main rewarding part of doing a research degree is that I had the chance to network with new and senior researchers, as well as develop some great friends. This networking is crucial for growing as a researcher and for career development.”
Ghialy is currently a full time economics lecturer with SAFE, and is actively working on tourism economics and applied econometrics focussed research projects.
For more information, Ghialy can be contacted at c.yap@ecu.edu.au.