Our interdisciplinary research team comprising Dr Natalie Hendry, Prof Larissa Hjorth, Prof Ingrid Richardson, Dr Catherine Gomes, Dr Gretchen Coombs, and Assoc Prof Anne Harris (RMIT) was commissioned by the RMIT School of Graduate Research (SGR) to undertake qualitative, ethnographic research to explore HDR candidates’ experiences of belonging and connection during the COVID-19 pandemic. We developed a short report and an early literature review, and follow up report HDR Belonging: Practices & Perceptions during COVID-19 Report 2 – August 2020. This work was presented at International Education in the Time of Global Disruptions and a paper by the team Higher Degree Students (HDR) during COVID-19: Disrupted routines, uncertain futures, and active strategies of resilience and belonging was published in a special issue of Journal of International Students: International Education in the Time of Global Disruptions: COVID-19 and its Impact on International Students