Australian Research Council (ARC)

What is ARC?
The Australian Research Council (ARC) is an independent body that reports to the Commonwealth Minister for Education, Science and Training. The ARC is the primary source of advice to the federal government on investment in the national research effort. It fosters excellence, partnerships and the highest ethical standards in research and research training in all fields of science, social sciences and the humanities. ARC research priorities include:

An Environmentally Sustainable Australia
Promoting and Maintaining Good Health
Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries
Safeguarding Australia

Research is funded by the ARC under the National Competitive Grants Program. Programs are grouped into Centres, Discovery and Linkage.

Centres: The ARC funds key centres for teaching and research so that education can respond to emerging needs for expertise in fields that are important to national development. Subject to satisfactory performance, the Key Centres have been funded for six years.
Discovery: Discovery recognises the importance of fundamental research to the national innovation system. The program seeks to support excellent fundamental research, assist researchers to undertake their research in conditions most conducive to achieving best results, expand Australia's knowledge base and research capability, and encourage research training in high quality research environments.
Linkage: As part of its role, the ARC brokers partnerships between researchers and industry, government, community organisations and the international community. In particular, the ARC supports collaborative research projects between higher education researchers and industry that involve innovation and risk. Approximately 20 percent of available Linkage-Projects funding supports collaborative research on issues of benefit to rural or regional communities.

Who can apply?
Applications are open to researchers in eligible higher education institutions.

The ARC linkage program provides an opportunity for the Department to undertake innovative research in partnership with research specialists in the higher education sector. The Department is able to benefit from ARC sponsored research in two ways. Firstly, the Department can approach universities and work with them to develop research proposals around core strategic issues in education. Secondly, it is common for universities to approach the Department to partner education research. In both circumstances, the Department jointly funds the research through in-kind support and direct funding.

How do I apply?
Procedures for progressing ARC-linkage proposals within the Department are available to staff at Trim Ref 03/28733. Researchers from eligible higher education institutions can obtain more information on ARC funding rules, application forms and instructions from their relevant research office or can visit the ARC website at: http://www.arc.gov.au/

What are the key dates for the process?
There are two application rounds for ARC Linkage projects each year. Applications are due in May each year for the first round, and in November each year for the second. Departmental staff will need to allow four to six weeks prior to the closing date to obtain the Director-General's approval.

How are applications assessed?
Applications for the ARC-Linkage program must be submitted by an eligible higher education institution. Applications are assessed according to:

the project's level of significance and innovation
the adequacy of the approach and training
the potential national benefit
whether there is evidence of commitment from an industry partner.

To be approved for ARC assistance, the value of the in-kind and direct funding support provided by industry partners must at least match that sought from the ARC. (The Department may be one of several partners in a research project). As an industry partner, the Department must provide a letter of support printed on Departmental letterhead for inclusion in the application. Note that the Director-General must approve the Department's involvement before this letter is provided to university partners.

When will I know if my application is successful?
As a general indication, applicants in the May round are notified of their success in November. Applicants in the November round are notified in May-June of the following year.

What role does SPEF play?
The Strategic Policy and Education Futures Division coordinates the Department's involvement in ARC-linkage projects.

SPEF maintains a central register of ARC-linkage projects partnered by the Department so that the level and source of financial and in-kind support committed by the Department can be monitored.

To enable it to do so, Departmental branches intending to work with universities should:

contact SPEF when a project is first proposed, informing it of the project proposal and details of research partners
prepare a brief scoping document and forward a copy to SPEF
notify SPEF as soon as possible after receiving advice on the success of an application

SPEF is available to advise and assist with all stages of the research application process. For example, SPEF is able to provide guidance on the Department's strategic research priorities, and assist in the development of detailed research proposals, and in negotiating arrangements with universities.

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