The 2025-2026 co-funded Summer Studentships have been announced.
The 2025-2026 Summer Studentships co-funded by Diabetes New Zealand Research Foundation New Zealand (DNZRF) and the New Zealand Society for the Study of Diabetes (NZSSD) have been announced.
Each of this year’s six award recipients each receive $7,500 to carry out a 10-week research project with a focus on diabetes. The recipients are:
· Rachel Lee from Auckland University of Technology
· Lauren Price from The University of Auckland
· Marcus Ward, Yosh Patel, Hasnula Babaranda and Tom Christie from The University of Otago.
This year the students will research:
· The FLIP-IT Trials First Step to Full Automation A 6-Week Comparison of Patch-APS and Commercial AID
· Audit of complications screening for the Paediatric and Adolescent Diabetes service 2024 and 2025
· An Evaluation for the Improvement of Psychological Input in the Counties Manukau Young Adults with Diabetes Service
· Exploring self-reported risk of falls and foot health among Māori and non-Māori older adults at risk of diabetes foot disease Insights from the DaSH Study
· Measuring the expression of Heart enriched microRNAs in Diabetic individuals
· Preventing type 2 diabetes in women after a pregnancy with gestational diabetes
DNZRF Chair, Sir Ralph Norris says “working to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes and supporting those with the condition is an enormous challenge. But we know that health research changes lives. We are happy to be supporting these students in their research”.
NZSSD President Dr Jo McClintock says, “Summer studentships are important to ensure we have current knowledge and tools to provide the best possible healthcare for all New Zealanders living with or at risk of diabetes – now and into the future.”
The recipients will present their research at the NZSSD Annual Conference in May 2026.
