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Zoe is a legal information platform. Always consult the Federal Register of Legislation for authoritative text.
Commonwealth legislation
This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.
These guidelines set the rules for the ARC Discovery Program’s five grant streams, specifying who (eligible organisations and named participants) may apply, allowable costs and funding caps, assessment steps, reporting and compliance, and how payments are made. Grants are Commonwealth-funded through the ARC; applications are reviewed by Detailed Assessors and Selection Advisory Committees, the CEO recommends, and the Minister makes the final funding decision (ss3, 4.2, 9.2–9.22, 11.20).
Applicants must meet detailed eligibility, ethics, IP, conflict‑of‑interest and reporting obligations that create administrative compliance costs and shape researcher and institutional behaviour (ss5,6,11,13,14).
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Direct links to the current provisions in Grant Guidelines for the Discovery Program (2018).
Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
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Grant Guidelines for the Discovery Program (2018)
Australian Laureate Fellowships
Future Fellowships
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
Discovery Indigenous
Discovery Projects
| Opening date: | Available on GrantConnect |
|---|---|
| Closing date and time: | Available on GrantConnect |
| Enquiries: | Researchers are required to direct requests for information to the Research Office within the Administering Organisation.<br>ARC Contacts are on the ARC website. |
| Type of grant opportunity: | Restricted competitive |
Australian Research Council Act 2001
I, Dan Tehan, Minister for Education, having satisfied myself of the matters set out in section 59 of the Australian Research Council Act 2001, approve these grant guidelines under section 60 of that Act.
Dated 13 September 2018
Dan Tehan
Minister for Education
Contents
1. Discovery Program processes
The Discovery Program is designed to achieve the Australian Government’s objectives for research and innovation.
This grant program contributes to the ARC’s Outcome 1, which is to grow knowledge and innovation through managing research grants, measuring research excellence and providing advice.
There are five grant opportunities in the Discovery Program: Australian Laureate Fellowships; Future Fellowships; Discovery Early Career Researcher Award; Discovery Indigenous; and Discovery Projects. The following process flowchart is relevant to all five grant opportunities.
The grant opportunity opens.
We (the ARC) publish the grant guidelines and advertise on GrantConnect.
You (the Administering Organisation) complete and submit an application.
We manage the assessment of all applications.
We manage the assessment of applications against eligibility criteria and assessment criteria including an overall consideration of value for money.
Your application will be assigned to Detailed Assessors to undertake in-depth assessments. You will have an opportunity to respond to Detailed Assessors’ written comments through a rejoinder.
Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) members will then assess Your application, consider the Detailed Assessors’ ratings and comments and Your rejoinder and assign a final score.
We make grant recommendations.
The SAC will collectively consider all applications and recommend to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) the applications to be funded, and the level and duration of funding for each project.
The CEO will recommend to the Minister the applications to be funded, and the level and duration of funding for each grant.
Grant decisions are made.
The Minister decides which applications are approved, and the level of funding and duration of funding for each approved project.
We notify You of the outcome.
We advise You if Your application was successful or not through Our Research Management System (RMS).
We enter into a grant agreement with You.
We will enter into a grant agreement with You through RMS.
Delivery of the grant.
You undertake the grant activity and report to us as set out in Your grant agreement. We manage the grant by monitoring Your progress and making payments.
Evaluation of the grant opportunity.
We evaluate the specific grant activity and the individual grant opportunity as a whole. We will use information You provide to Us through Your reports to inform evaluations.
Introduction
1.1. These guidelines contain information for the Discovery Program grant opportunities.
1.2. This document sets out:
b. the general eligibility and assessment criteria applicable for all Discovery Program grant opportunities;
c. the additional specific eligibility and assessment criteria applicable to each grant opportunity;
d. information on how applications are assessed and evaluated;
e. how grantees will be monitored and evaluated; and
f. responsibilities and expectations in relation to each opportunity.
1.3. In these grant guidelines:
b. a fellowship refers to an Australian Laureate Fellowship, Future Fellowship, a DECRA or a DAATSIA. A Fellow is a candidate who has been awarded a fellowship; and
c. the glossary provides a list of defined terms and the definitions that apply to these terms throughout this document.
1.4. You and the named participants must read this document before applying for a Discovery Program grant opportunity.
2. About the Discovery Program
2.1. These grant guidelines establish the rules which govern the administration of the Discovery Program grant opportunities including the application, eligibility, and selection processes to be followed and the assessment criteria that will be used to select grant recipients.
2.2. The Discovery Program is one of two Programs under the ARC National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP).
Objectives
2.3. The Discovery Program aims to deliver outcomes of benefit to Australia and build Australia’s research capacity through support for:
b. research training and career opportunities for the best Australian and international researchers;
c. international collaboration; and
d. research in priority areas
Intended outcome
2.4. The intended outcome of the Discovery Program is to contribute to the growth of Australia’s research and innovation capacity. Increasing Australia’s research and innovation capacity generates new knowledge and results in the development of new technologies, products and ideas, the creation of jobs, economic growth and an enhanced quality of life in Australia.
Scope and timeframes
2.5. Discovery Program grants are awarded on the basis of excellence through a competitive peer review process for each grant opportunity.
2.6. Each Discovery Program grant opportunity is open for applications once a year or as required.
Key performance indicators
2.7. The Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the Discovery Program are identified each year in the ARC Portfolio Budget Statements and the ARC corporate plan. Reporting is provided every year in Our annual report.
2.8. The KPIs focus on long-term outcomes as well as medium-term outcomes relating to building Australia’s research capacity, for example, research careers and training, contributions in areas of national need and research collaboration.
Other relevant information
2.9. The Discovery Program is undertaken according to the Australian Research Council Act 2001 (ARC Act) and the Commonwealth Grants Rules and Guidelines (CGRGs).
2.10. These grant guidelines are a legislative instrument current as at the date of signing by the Minister and have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the ARC Act in force at that date.
3. About the Discovery Program Grant Opportunities
3.1. These grant guidelines contain information on the grant opportunities in the Discovery Program:
b. Parts A to E provide specific information on each grant opportunity.
3.2. The grant opportunities available under the Discovery Program are:
b. Future Fellowships—Part B;
c. Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA)—Part C;
d. Discovery Indigenous—Part D; and
e. Discovery Projects—Part E.
3.3. The five grant opportunities comprise:
– early career researchers through the DECRA;
– mid-career researchers through Future Fellowships; and
– established researchers through Australian Laureate Fellowships;
b. the Discovery Indigenous grant opportunity which provides project funding and fellowships for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander researchers and may include a Discovery Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Researcher Award (DAATSIA); and
c. the Discovery Projects grant opportunity which provides project funding for research conducted by individuals and teams.
4. Grant amounts and grant periods
4.1. For each grant opportunity, applications for the levels of funding listed in Table 1 will be considered. Further details are provided in the grant opportunity specific parts (Parts A to E) of these grant guidelines.
4.2. Table 1: Grant funding available for each Discovery Program grant opportunity
| Grant Opportunity | Funding for: |
|---|---|
| Australian Laureate Fellowships<br>(Part A) | a salary supplement for the Australian Laureate Fellow, for five consecutive years on a full-time basissalary support for two Postdoctoral Research Associates (PDRA), for five |
This is an opening excerpt, not the complete document.