From 2013, the best PhD Thesis Award has been combined with the best Masters Thesis Award in the best Post Graduate Thesis Award
Previous Winners
| Year | Recipient / Thesis title |
|---|---|
| 2012 | Tran Thi Thanh Nhan, UWA Determinants of Investment in Rural Households in Vietnam |
| 2011 | No prize awarded |
| 2010 | Marc Mariano, UNE Farm-Level Efficiencies, Productivity and Technology Adoption in Philippine Rice Farming |
| 2009 | Cameron Murray, QUT New insights into rebounds effects |
| 2008 | No thesis submitted |
| 2007 | Vongpaphane Manivong, UQ The Economic Potential for Smallholder Rubber Production in Northern Laos |
| 2006 | Francis Herbert D’Emden, UWA Adoption of Conservation Tillage: An Application of Duration Analysis |
| 2005 | Bodrum Nahar, UNE Trade Liberalisation and its Impact on the Rice Sector in SAARC Countries with special reference to Bangladesh |
| 2004 | Peter Tait, Lincoln Uni Unit-Pricing: Minimising Christchurch Domestic Waste |
| 2003 | Emma Moran, Lincoln Uni An analysis of the costs of the New Zealand threatened species programmes |
| 2003 | Jing Zhang, UWA Valuing recreational fishing in WA using a random utility model |
| 2002 | Ben Henderson, UWA Efficiency in Western Australian Broadacre Agriculture: A Comparison between Data Envelopment Analysis and Stochastic Frontier Analysis |
| 2001 | Nicholas J Berger Modelling structural and policy changes in the world wine market into the 21st century |
| 2000 | No prize awarded |
| 1999 | Sallie James, Adelaide Uni An Economic Analysis of Quarantine and Food Safety Issues Following the SPS Agreement |
| 1998 | Kai Chen, UQ An Economic Evaluation of the Two Farmland System in Shandong Province |
| 1997 | Sally Marsh, UWA The Adoption and Diffusion of Lupins (Lupinus angustifolius) in Western Australia: A Case Study of the Impacts, Costs and Benefits of Agricultural Extension |
| 1996 | Richard Ball, Lincoln University The Diffusion of Energy Efficiency Innovations among Residential Consumers |
| 1995 | K Donohue, UWA Bioeconomic model of shark fisheries in south-west Australian Waters |
| 1994 | C J Cunningham, Melbourne Uni Type Basis Risk and the Potential for Woolgrowers to Effectively Hedge Using the Sydney Futures Contract |
| 1993 | Inman Sugema, UNE The Dynamics of Macroeconomy-Trade-Agriculture Linkages in the Australian Economy: An Application of Error Correction Models of Cointegrated Relationships |
| 1992 | Aileen Murrell, UWA Does the Producer Benefit from Price Stabilisation? An Empirical Analysis of the Australian Wool Corporation’s Reserve Price Scheme |
| 1991 | Chris Grace, UNE Management of a Top Processing Firm and Demand for Wool at Auction |
| 1991 | Gary Stoneham, UQ An Economic Analysis of Soil Erosion on the Darling Downs |
| 1990 | J Kelso, UNE An Evaluation of Consumer Preference Changes for meat in the United States |
| 1989 | I Havrila, La Trobe University Product Characteristics and Pricing of Woollen Garments at Retail in Melbourne |
| 1988 | C E Johnson, Sydney Uni The Japanese Beef Market: An Economic Assessment of its Structure and Institutions |
| 1987 | P A Cashin, Melbourne Uni The Australian Wheat industry as a Partial Case Study in Deregulation |
| 1986 | K Wang Optimal Policies for Stabilising Pig Prices in Taiwan |
| 1985 | Md. Jaforullah, UNE Supply Response of Sugarcane in the Mill Zones of Bangladesh – An Econometric Study |
| 1984 | R Collins, UQ The Management of Multiple Activities in National Parks under Conditions of Congestion and Ecological Irreversibility |
| 1983 | A W Tunstall, La Trobe Uni The Storage and Pricing of the Victorian Apple Crop |
| 1982 | R J Myers, UNE An Econometric Evaluation of Australian Wheat Pricing Policies |
| 1981 | D P Godden, UNE An Economic Evaluation of Property Rights for Plant Varieties with Special Reference to Plant Variety Rights in Australia |
| 1980 | R R Boffey, UWA An Integration of Ecological and Economic Criteria for Pest Control: A Dynamic Model Applied to Selected Apple Pests in Western Australia |
| 1979 | E M Fleming, UNE Induced Innovation and Factor Relationships in Australian Agriculture |
| 1978 | J M Alston, La Trobe Uni Supply Response in the Australian Orange Growing Industry |
| 1978 | Wong Chee-Yoong, UNE Risk Analysis in the Appraisal of Large Irrigation Projects in Developing Countries -: A Malaysian Case Study |
| 1977 | J C Naughin, La Trobe Uni Retail Meat Marketing Margins in Victoria: A Trading Accounts Approach |
| 1976 | P B Paul, Sydney Uni Characteristics and Adjustment Problems of Former Farm Operators |
| 1975 | W Bates, UNE Technological Change and the Substitution of Capital for Labour in Australian Agriculture |
| 1974 | W Hind, Sydney University The Economics of Primary Schooling in Rural Areas of New South Wales |
| 1973 | D P Vincent, Melbourne Uni Rural Credit and Farm Vability: A Study of the Shelford Soldier Settlement Scheme |
| 1972 | N J Thomson, Adelaide Uni The Incidence and Effects of Death Duties on Woolgrowers of South Australia |
| 1971 | No Thesis Submitted |
| 1970 | T G MacAulay, Melbourne Uni An Economic Study of Small Dairy Farms in South Gippsland, Victoria |
| 1969 | No Thesis Submitted |
| 1968 | P A Cassidy, UQ Optimum Location, Number and Size of Beef Slaughter Plants in Queensland |
| 1967 | R R Officer, UNE Decision Making Under Risk: A Brief Examination of the Bayesian Approach and an Empirical Study of Utility Analysis in Agriculture |
| 1966 | A S Watson, UNE Wheat Stabilisation Policy: A Supply Study |
| 1966 | I R Wills, Melbourne Uni Beef Cattle Production in the Western District of Victoria |
| 1965 | Margaret Waugh, ANU The Economic Effects of U.S. Public Law 480 (Title 1) Exports on India |
Purpose
The Best Masters Thesis Award is intended to recognise the most outstanding Masters thesis in the field of agricultural and resource economics.
Amount of Award
The winning thesis will receive a $500 cash award and a certificate to be presented at the Society’s Annual Conference dinner.
Eligibility
All theses accepted (that is, examined and approved) by Australian and New Zealand universities during the 12 months ended 30 September, for the award of a Masters degree. ‘Accepted’ in this sense means approved by the Faculty concerned, irrespective of the date of conferring of degrees.
Membership of the Society is not a necessary condition of entry.
Entries
Only one thesis may be submitted by any one Department.
The thesis must be submitted by the Department Head at the University at which the thesis was submitted. Three copies of the thesis plus examiners reports and written agreement to the nomination are to be forwarded by certified mail or courier to the AARES Central Office by 12 November. Electronic copies of the thesis will not be accepted.
Department Heads should indicate the relative importance of the thesis in the degree program.
Selection Criteria
The Prize will be made on the basis of academic merit within the field of agricultural and resource economics.
The system and specific criteria for judging the award are up to the committee.
General
In the event of one or more theses being judged to have equal merit, the Prize may be shared. The Society reserves the right to make no award in the event that no entry is judged to be of sufficient merit.
Entries submitted which are considered ineligible by the Prize Committee because they are beyond the field of agricultural and resource economics will be returned to Departments prior to consideration of the comparative merit of other entries.
The decision of the Council of the Society will be final and no correspondence will be entered into with entrants or department heads on behalf of entrants. Submission of a thesis for the Prize implies acceptance of all the conditions of the Prize.
Instructions to the Prize Committee
Ideally, the Committee should finalise their decision prior to the Conference and advise the Federal Secretary of the result so that he/she can prepare a cheque and certificate for presentation at the conference dinner.
The Committee includes three members. Normally, one member is replaced each year, so the usual length of tenure of a member is three years. Normally, each member chairs the Committee in their third year as a member.
Masters Thesis Prize Committees
| Year | Committee Members |
|---|---|
| 2012 | G. Doole (Chair) / E. Fleming / A. Mugera |
| 2011 | P. Tozer (Chair) / J. Mullen / G. Doole |
| 2010 | P. Tozer (Chair) / J. Mullen / G. Doole |
| 2009 | D. Marsh (Chair) / R. Duncan / P. Tozer |
| 2008 | Q. Huang (Chair) / D. Marsh / R. Duncan |
| 2007 | R. Duncan (Chair) / Q. Huang / D. Marsh |
| 2006 | F. Scrimgeour (Chair) / S. Lumley / R. Duncan |
| 2005 | S. Lumley (Chair) / M. Morrison / F. Scrimgeour |
| 2004 | M. Morrison (Chair) / M. Burton / S. Lumley |
| 2003 | M. Burton / M. Morrison / S. Lumley |
| 2002 | P. Winter (Chair) / R. Beard / M. Burton |
| 2001 | D. Peterson (Chair) / R. Beard / P. Winter |
| 2000 | K. Bicknell (Chair) / D. Peterson / R. Beard |
| 1999 | D.J. Pannell (Chair) / K. Bicknell / D. Peterson |
| 1998 | D.J. Pannell (Chair) / K. Bicknell / D. Peterson |
| 1997 | |
| 1996 | G. Hertzler (Chair) / C. Brown |
| 1995 | S. Martin (Chair) / G. Hertzler / C. Brown |
| 1994 | J. Webber (Chair) / C. Brown / G. Hertzle |