Professor Brian Cherry with Nick Birbilis, Deputy Dean of Engineering and Computer Science at ANU (and former student) at the ACA’s 2017 International Concrete Symposium held in Brian’s Honour 

 

 

 

The Brian Cherry Award, introduced by the ACA Victorian branch in 2009, honours the late Professor Brian Cherry of Monash University for his significant contribution to corrosion education, consulting and the Australasian Corrosion Association Inc. 

The Brian Cherry Award Forum is open to postgraduate and final year undergraduate research students studying at an Australasian University. Applicants could be studying any aspect of corrosion, including but not limited to metallic and non-metallic corrosion, corrosion management, corrosion mitigation, and corrosion protection.  

The award will be judged over two events (both conducted online):  

  • An initial 3 min thesis event 
  • A subsequent final longer style presentation forum consisting of up to four winners selected from the 3 min thesis event. 

Generous cash prizes are on offer to the top four student presenters. 

Taking part in the Forum provides students with the opportunity to present their corrosion related research work as well as showcase their talent to their peers and the Australasian Corrosion Industry – including potential employers.  

2025 Competition Details 

Prizes
1st place – $1,000 + one year student membership (valued at $40)
2nd place – $750 + one year student membership (valued at $40)
3rd place – $500 + one year student membership (valued at $40)
4th place – $250 + one year student membership (valued at $40) 

Plus, all participants who make it to the 3-Minute Thesis round will also receive + one year student membership (valued at $40). 

Application, Presentation and Award Process 

Applications close COB Monday 11th August 2025 

  1. Applicants submit an abstract of the presentation (no more than 1 page of A4, including any illustrations) to briancherryforum@corrosion.com.au 
  1. Applicants obtain permission from their supervisor and report this by completion on the attached pro-forma. 
  1. A minimum two-week gap between the Three Minute Thesis and Formal Presentation will be provided to allow finalists to prepare their presentation for the second round. 
  1. Presenters will be judged on scientific content and presentation skill. Decisions on awards will be made and announced on the night of the presentations and awards themselves will be made and issued following conclusion of the second round. 
  1. The judging panel will consist of three independent ACA members with no association with successful participants. 

Acceptance of selected abstracts
The ACA will notify success applicants during the week of the 25th August 2025. 

Presentation/Forum Dates
First Round – Three Minute Thesis
5:00–6:30PM AEST Wednesday 8th October 2025 – 3MIN THESIS ROUND – Register here

Final Round – Full Presentation
5:00–6:30PM AEST Wednesday 22nd October 2025 – FINAL ROUND – Register here

If you have any queries that are not covered here, please email this year’s award coordinators: Prof. or Dr. Julie-Anne Latham julieannelatham@gmail.com or Dr. Muhammed Awais Javed mjaved@swin.edu.au.  

Guidelines for Eligibility 

  1. Applicant must be attending an Australasian University 
  1. Applicant is either a post graduate research candidate or final year student in corrosion 
  1. If working towards a PhD, the applicant must not have submitted their thesis prior to the Brian Cherry Forum. 
  1. The applicant could be studying any aspect of corrosion, including but not limited to metallic and non-metallic corrosion, corrosion management, corrosion mitigation, and corrosion protection. 
  1. Prizes are only awarded in response to applications. If no applications have been received that are deemed by the Judging Panel to warrant an award, then no prizes will be awarded. 
  1. The Judging Panel’s decision is final. 
  1. Each award recipient provides permission for their names/images to appear in ACA publications. 

Guidelines for Abstract 

  1. It is directly related to corrosion and/or corrosion prevention. 
  1. It must discuss how the work relates to real world / industrial corrosion problems. 
  1. It is concise. 
  1. It may give a short background. 
  1. It must provide a succinct aim. 
  1. It outlines the theoretical and/or experimental work covered. 
  1. It gives the conclusions. 
  1. It may suggest further work or implications. 
  1. The material should be current. 
  1. It must not be a repeat of a conference paper already presented 

  

3-Minute Thesis Event Guidelines 

  1. Event to be run via Zoom 
  1. One single static PowerPoint slide is permitted 
  1. No slide transitions, animations or ‘movement’ of any description are permitted 
  1. The slide is to be presented at the beginning of the oration 
  1. No additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted 
  1. No props or costumes are allowed 
  1. Winners will be judged on comprehension, content, engagement and communication 
  1. Up to four winners will be chosen to go on to the Brian Cherry Award final. The winners will be selected by the judging panel. 

Brian Cherry Award Final Guidelines 

  1. Event to be run via Zoom 
  1. Each finalist will provide a 15 min presentation, with 5 min for audience questions and answers. The presentation will be of a typical PowerPoint style. 
  1. Finalists will be judged by the judging panel on both scientific content and presentation skills 
3 MIN THESIS ROUND - Register here
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