More grants for ECRs in Australian Research Council overhaul

A dedicated funding stream will be introduced for people with freshly minted PhDs, under final proposals from a drawn-out review of the Australian Research Council’s (ARC’s) competitive grant schemes.

Canberra has signalled its acceptance of the recommendations from the review, which was launched in early 2025 and handed to the government months ago. While the changes are expected to boost opportunities for early career researchers, their experienced colleagues could pay the price.

The Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE) warned that the reforms risked postponing rather than removing a continuity gap in research careers. “Job insecurity remains a significant barrier well into the mid-career stage, not just at entry level,” said ATSE president Cathy Foley.

“Mid-career researchers will no longer have access to dedicated fellowships under these reforms. [We must] ensure [they] aren’t left without a secure pathway.”

The proposals more than halve the number of schemes in a grants regime which has “become diffuse and fragmented”, according to the report. The review originally proposed to prune the current 15 schemes to six, focusing on the core business of discovery research and withdrawing from other responsibilities assumed over the decades – including funding of research infrastructure.

In an update last July, the ARC committed to changes mainly focused on the proposed “Initiate” scheme, which was originally intended to fund high-risk research by early- and mid-career researchers. A seventh scheme was to be added for high-risk research, while Initiate would be converted into a fellowship scheme and reserved for early career researchers (ECRs).

The final proposals go further, splitting Initiate Fellowships into two “tiers” – one for applicants who completed their doctorates up to two years earlier, and another for people three to five years post-PhD. The fellowships last up to 36 months, paying about A$50,000 (£26,160) a year plus salary and “on-costs”. With about 300 awarded every year, they will attract around 16 per cent of ARC competitive grant funding.

The Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations said this would be a “massive boon” for the research workforce pipeline. “Reserving a properly funded fellowship for ECRs, and a stream within it for our most recent graduates, is exactly the piece that was missing,” said national president Jesse Gardner-Russell.

“The ARC has chosen to build research capability across the sector rather than concentrate it in a handful of established careers.”

As indicated last July, ECRs will be eligible to work as chief investigators across all seven schemes. A “sub-scheme” will also maintain support for “medium-sized” collaborative research infrastructure, pending agreement on a “whole-of-government solution” for research infrastructure funding.

Under the proposals, all seven schemes will support collaboration with research “end-users”. The reforms will also lighten the paperwork burden on researchers – and their collaborators, particularly smaller enterprises – by streamlining the schemes, simplifying applications and allowing “minor administrative changes” to projects without pre-approval.

The overhaul will increase indigenous researchers’ dedicated share of grant funding from 1 to 5 per cent and accommodate participation by up to 20 per cent more researchers altogether, the ARC says.

“This is the most significant reform to the ARC’s grants programme in decades,” said Peter Shergold, chair of the agency’s board. CEO Ute Roessner said it was a “significant step forward” for Australia’s research system.

“It provides a clearer and more coherent framework for supporting excellent research across all ARC-supported disciplines, while improving accessibility and reducing complexity for researchers and institutions.”

The Australian Academy of Science said the overhaul was long overdue. “Fewer, simpler schemes that run for longer periods mean needing to apply less frequently, which leaves more time for doing science,” said academy president Sam Berkovic.

“[It] puts the ARC’s focus back where it belongs: funding discovery research.”

On the downside, the reforms remove salary support for established researchers. “[This] will necessitate changes in universities’ workforce planning, particularly [where] short term, non-ongoing roles are dependent on ARC funding,” the report concedes.

Berkovic said this was a serious issue. “The reduced emphasis on flagship opportunities for mid-career and senior researchers potentially risks weakening Australia’s ability to attract and retain internationally recognised research leaders,” he warned.

Redesigning the schemes will not make up for the “real terms” decline in funding for research and development, he added. “The review is a sensible and measured response to scarcity, but scarcity should not become Australia’s long-term research strategy.”

ATSE president Cathy Foley highlighted the need for reliable research infrastructure funding. “Streamlining the [grant regime] doesn’t remove the need for investment in the areas it can no longer support.”

john.ross@timeshighereducation.com