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Linkage Projects Round 2 Selection Report for Funding Commencing in July 2008

Overview
Selection Process
Selection Criteria
Funding Levels and Duration
National Research Priorities
Summary of Outcomes
Approved Funding
Project Size
Components
APAI and APAI-IT
APDI
LIF
Outcomes by Organisation
Partnerships
Leverage of ARC Funding
Age and Gender

Overview

The Linkage Projects scheme funds collaborative projects between University researchers and Partner Organisations. Proposals in Round 2 for projects commencing in July 2008 closed on 23 November 2007. This report outlines recommendations from the selection process for that round.
As indicated in the funding rules for this round, Linkage Projects aims to:

  1. encourage and develop long-term strategic research alliances between higher education organisations and other organisations, including within industry, in order to apply advanced knowledge to problems and/or to provide opportunities to obtain national economic, social or cultural benefits;
  2. support collaborative research on issues of benefit to regional and rural communities;
  3. enhance the scale and focus of research in National Research Priorities;
  4. foster opportunities for postdoctoral researchers to pursue internationally competitive research in collaboration with organisations outside the higher education sector, targeting those who have demonstrated a clear commitment to high-quality research;
  5. provide outcome-oriented research training to prepare high-calibre postgraduate research students; and
  6. produce a national pool of world-class researchers to meet the needs of the broader Australian innovation system.

Research project costs are supported under Linkage Projects, as well as:

  • Australian Postdoctoral Fellowships Industry (APDI) for researchers with less than three years' postdoctoral experience;
  • Australian Postgraduate Awards Industry (APAI, or as APAI-IT for those in the field of information technology and communications) for postgraduate research students studying towards a Masters or PhD degree; and
  • Linkage Industry Fellowships (LIF) which provide support for costs involved in a temporary transfer from one of the eligible higher education organisations listed on a proposal to one of the partner organisations on that proposal, or vice versa.

A single proposal to Linkage Projects may contain research project costs and one or more of the component costs above.

This report provides summary statistics for Linkage Projects proposals that involve project, and/or APAI, and/or APDI, and/or LIF funding.

Selection process

Assessment of proposals was undertaken by the ARC College of Experts, which:

  • assigned independent readers/assessors to review proposals;
  • sought Applicants’ comments on assessors’ reports;
  • identified ineligible proposals;
  • ranked each proposal relative to the others on the basis of the proposal, the assessors’ reports and Applicants’ responses to those assessments;
  • assessed and recommended budgets;
  • where applicable held panel interviews; and
  • prepared funding recommendations.

The ARC and the College of Experts ranked each proposal relative to all other proposals on the basis of the proposal and prepared funding recommendations.

Selection criteria

Selection criteria and corresponding weights for Linkage Projects proposals are:

  • investigator track record (20%)
  • significance and innovation (25%)
  • approach and training (20%)
  • national benefit (10%)
  • commitment of partner organisation (25%)

Funding Levels and Duration

Funding for Linkage Projects may be awarded for one to five years subject to parliamentary appropriation and the provisions of the ARC Act.  APDIs are awarded for a standard duration of three years, except where applicants specifically request a shorter duration. APAI stipends may be awarded for two years (Master's) or three years (PhD), with provision under certain conditions for an extension of an additional six months' support for PhD students.  Unless otherwise specified, funding amounts presented in this document do not include amounts covering any additional six months extensions for APAI stipends. 

National Research Priorities

The Australian Government has identified four National Research Priorities and, within these, 21 national research priority goals

Of the 487 proposals considered in this round, 472 (96.9%) were identified by the applicants as addressing a National Research Priority. Of those 472, 202 (42.8%) are approved for funding, representing 97.1% of the total 208 proposals approved for funding and accounting for 98.0% of the total funding.

Table 1. Approved funding for Linkage Projects Round 2 2008 by National Research Priority

Priority Area Proposals received Proposals approved Success rate Approved funds over project life
None
15
6
40.0%
$1,250,592
An Environmentally Sustainable Australia
138
59
42.8%
$19,891,253
Promoting and Maintaining Good Health
146
67
45.9%
$19,106,784
Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries
153
62
40.5%
$19,612,267
Safeguarding Australia
35
14
40.0%
$3,856,243
Total priority proposals
472
202
42.8%
$62,466,547
% within priority areas
96.9%
97.1%
98.0%

Summary of Outcomes

In this round, the ARC received a total of 489 proposals, of which two proposals were withdrawn and not considered for funding. Of the 487 considered, 41 primarily sought an APAI stipend (APAI-predominantly proposals) and 446 proposals sought substantial project support, and may include a request for funding of one or more APAIs, APDIs or LIFs. In the tables and text below, the following terms are used to distinguish components of the scheme:

LP - figures for the 446 project proposals
LA - figures for the 41 APAI-predominantly proposals
Linkage - figures for all 487 Linkage Projects proposals

Approved Funding

Of the 487 Linkage Projects proposals which were considered for funding commencing in July 2008, 208 (42.7%) were approved for funding, 267 were not approved for funding and 12 were deemed ineligible (that is, they did not satisfy the eligibility criteria and/or other requirements for the submission of a proposal).

The 208 approved proposals represent an ARC commitment of $63.7M. If all the APAI PhD students associated with the 208 approved proposals were to extend for six months, the overall ARC commitment over the life of these projects would be 65.8M.

For the 41 APAI-predominantly proposals (LA), 11 (26.8%) are funded and represent an ARC commitment of $0.9M over the life of these projects.

Table 2. Numbers of proposals and success rates for Linkage Projects Proposal Components Round 1 and Round 2 2008

Component Round 1 2008 for proposals commencing in January 2008 Round 2 2008 for proposals commencing in July 2008
  Received Approved Success Rate Received Approved Success Rate
LP
395
192
48.6%
446
197
44.2%
LA
29
10
34.5%
41
11
26.8%
Linkage
424
202
47.6%
487
208
42.7%

Table 3. Numbers of proposals and success rates for Linkage Projects Round 2 2008 by discipline area

Discipline Group* Proposals received Proposals approved Success rate Requested funds over project life (all proposals) Funds over project life (approved proposals)
BSB
93
39
41.9%
$36,545,105
$13,375,361
EE
105
49
46.7%
$45,032,086
$14,407,744
HCA
37
15
40.5%
$10,140,782
$3,983,418
MIC
56
21
37.5%
$26,261,451
$7,887,481
PCG
54
26
48.1%
$21,661,995
$7,562,918
SBE
142
58
40.8%
$43,273,621
$16,500,217
Total
487
208
42.7%
$182,915,040
$63,717,139

*BSB = Biological Sciences and Biotechnology; EE = Engineering and Environmental Sciences; HCA = Humanities and Creative Arts; MIC = Mathematics, Information and Communication Sciences; PCG = Physics, Chemistry and Geoscience; SBE = Social, Behavioural and Economic Sciences

Project size

The average first-year funding per project for Round 2 2008 LP proposals is $105,028 (69.3% of the average first-year request), and for LA proposals is $27,957 (100% of the average first-year request). The overall average Linkage first-year funding per project for round 2 2008 is $100,952 (69.6% of the average first-year request).

Table 4. Comparison of approved first-year funding, Linkage Projects Round 1 2008 and Round 2 2008

Component First-year funding approved for Round 1 2008 proposals commencing in January 2008 First-year funding approved for Round 2 2008 proposals commencing in July 2008
  Average funding for first year % of average first-year request Average funding for first year % of average first-year request
LP
$107,487
80.4%
$105,028
69.3%
LA
$35,878
91.4%
$27,957
100%
Linkage
$103,942
80.5%
$100,952
69.6%

Table 5. Average approved funding over project life for Linkage Projects Round 1 2008 and Round 2 2008

Component Round 1 2008 approved proposals commencing in January 2008 Round 2 2008 approved proposals commencing in July 2008
LP
$318,706
$318,754
LA
$107,633
$83,870
Linkage
$308,257
$306,332

Components

The components that can be funded in Linkage Projects are APAIs, APAI-ITs, APDIs, LIFs and other collaborative research grant (CRG) funding. The following table shows numbers requested and success rates for these components.

Table 6. Numbers of and success rates for Linkage Projects Round 2 2008 by components

Component Number requested Number approved Success rate
APAI
387
133
34.4%
APAI-IT
46
34
73.9%
APDI
28
12
42.9%
LIF
2
0
0%
CRG
454
190*
41.9%

*Of the 208 proposals which are approved, not all were funded the CRG component requested.

APAI and APAI-IT

The 2008 Linkage Projects Funding Rules stipulate that, subject to an adequate number of requests of the requisite type and of sufficient quality being received, the ARC will allocate at least 50 APAI places in the field of information technology and communications in addition to other APAI funding. These APAI-IT places are to be filled over both selection rounds.  For this round (Round 2 2008), 133 APAI and 34 APAI-IT places are approved for funding, representing success rates of 34.4% and 73.9% respectively.

APDI

The Linkage Projects Round 2 2008 proposals included requests for the award of 28 APDIs, of which 12 (42.9%) are approved for funding.

LIF

The Linkage Projects Round 2 2008 proposals included two requests for a LIF. There were no LIFs approved for funding.

Outcomes by Organisation

Table 7 shows proposal numbers and total ARC funding by administering organisation for Linkage Projects Round 2 2008.

Table 7. Numbers of proposals and success rates for Linkage Projects  Round 2 2008 by Administering Organisation

Administering Organisation Proposals considered Proposals Approved Success rate Approved funding over project life Total Partner Organisation Contribution pledged over project life
Australian Catholic University
2
0
0.0%
$0
n/a
Bond University
2
0
0.0%
$0
n/a
Charles Darwin University
1
0
0.0%
$0
n/a
Charles Sturt University
4
2
50.0%
$416,368
$926,364
Curtin University of Technology
16
6
37.5%
$1,864,660
$4,295,259
Deakin University
12
4
33.3%
$855,716
$1,380,281
Edith Cowan University
1
1
100.0%
$114,920
*
Griffith University
12
4
33.3%
$1,195,172
$1,253,654
James Cook University
5
3
60.0%
$609,000
$1,822,236
La Trobe University
11
4
36.4%
$581,395
$850,572
Macquarie University
8
5
62.5%
$1,487,881
$2,150,482
Monash University
25
13
52.0%
$4,397,096
$9,386,613
Murdoch University
4
1
25.0%
$76,881
*
Queensland University of Technology
22
10
45.5%
$2,201,560
$3,537,999
RMIT University
25
7
28.0%
$2,284,003
$3,982,469
Southern Cross University
5
0
0.0%
$0
n/a
Swinburne University of Technology
20
5
25.0%
$1,208,609
$2,811,751
The Australian National University
14
8
57.1%
$2,264,528
$4,283,728
The Flinders University of South Australia
4
1
25.0%
$215,000
*
The University of Adelaide
10
4
40.0%
$615,643
$1,108,184
The University of Melbourne
47
28
59.6%
$8,047,807
13,787,238
The University of New England
3
2
66.7%
$343,726
$468,753
The University of New South Wales
43
22
51.2%
$11,410,443
$21,414,255
The University of Newcastle
12
6
50.0%
$1,660,054
$2,518,663
The University of Queensland
36
21
58.3%
$8,085,401
$14,107,457
The University of Sydney
25
11
44.0%
$3,599,507
$6,270,848
The University of Western Australia
17
6
35.3%
$1,581,127
$3,627,768
University of Canberra
4
2
50.0%
$412,762
$566,656
University of South Australia
34
10
29.4%
$2,514,515
$3,550,456
University of Southern Queensland
3
0
0.0%
$0
n/a
University of Tasmania
12
4
33.3%
$1,317,999
$2,205,818
University of Technology, Sydney
14
4
28.6%
$943,762
$2,174,524
University of the Sunshine Coast
4
0
0.0%
$0
n/a
University of Western Sydney
12
3
25.0%
$745,796
$1,390,138
University of Wollongong
14
8
57.1%
$2,195,808
$4,124,013
Victoria University
4
3
75.0%
$470,000
$657,500
Total
487
208
42.7%
$63,717,139
$115,136,011*

*For confidentiality reasons, total contributions by Partner Organisations are not shown in instances in which Administering Organisations are associated with one approved proposal only.  The total does, however, include the total contributions by Partner Organisations on approved proposals associated with those Administering Organisations.

Partnerships

Linkage proposals represent partnerships between University researchers and other organisations, as well as partnerships between Partner Organisations within projects. On average, there are 1.9 Partner Organisations involved in each proposal approved in this Linkage Projects round. A summary of the ANZSIC categories identified by applicants for these Partner Organisations is at Table 8.

Table 8. Partner Organisation data by ANZSIC Category for Linkage Projects Round 2 2008

ANZSIC Category Proposals received Proposals approved
  No. of Organisations* Total contribution (cash + in-kind) No. of Organisations (Govt, non-profit, private) Total contribution (cash + in-kind)
ACCOMODATION, CAFES AND RESTAURANTS
1
$120,000
0 (0, 0, 0)
n/a
AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY AND FISHING
64
$14,827,201
22 (6, 1, 15)
$8,296,626
COMMUNICATION SERVICES
12
$2,118,320
4 (0, 0, 4)
$747,696
CONSTRUCTION
22
$5,491,755
8 (2, 0, 6)
$2,943,805
CULTURAL AND RECREATIONAL SERVICES
68
$11,098,227
27 (14, 9, 4)
$4,300,439
EDUCATION
49
$9,132,673
13 (3, 10, 0)
$2,067,763
ELECTRICITY, GAS AND WATER SUPPLY
27
$6,788,176
16 (13, 0, 3)
$4,509,119
FINANCE AND INSURANCE
11
$4,228,464
6 (2, 0, 4)
$2,868,287
GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION AND DEFENCE
213
$35,281,687
105 (100, 3, 2)
$18,503,251
HEALTH AND COMMUNITY SERVICES
146
$29,391,725
71 (21, 38, 12)
$15,692,851
MANUFACTURING
123
$52,318,748
55 (1, 0, 54)
$30,187,025
MINING
48
$21,668,924
17 (2, 1, 14)
$9,260,649
PERSONAL AND OTHER SERVICES
36
$5,126,446
13 (2, 9, 2)
$2,428,284
PROPERTY AND BUSINESS SERVICES
91
$22,179,202
31 (2, 5, 24)
$11,101,172
RETAIL TRADE
1
$51,104
0 (0, 0, 0)
n/a
TRANSPORT AND STORAGE
27
$5,302,264
9 (5, 0, 4)
$2,020,264
WHOLESALE TRADE
4
$412,370
3 (0, 0, 3)
$208,780
Total
943
$225,537,286
400 (173, 76, 151)
$115,136,011

*These figures include multiple counting of organisations which are listed on more than one proposal.

Partner Organisations were identified by the applicants as government, non-profit or private companies, and also identified as Australia-based or international. The Partner Organisation contributions in these categories for Round 2 2008 proposals approved for funding are shown below in Table 9.

Table 9. Partner Organisation contributions by sector for approved Linkage Projects proposals Round 2 2008

Type Cash In-kind Total
    $M % $M % $M %
Government              
Commonwealth
2.0
5.9
4.3
5.3
6.3
5.5
State, Territory & Local
7.1
20.5
18.5
23.0
25.6
22.2
International
0.3
0.9
0.7
0.8
1.0
0.9
 
Sub-total
9.5
27.3
23.5
29.2
32.9
28.6
Non-profit
Australian
3.8
10.8
9.1
11.3
12.8
11.1
International
0.5
1.3
1.4
1.7
1.8
1.6
 
Sub-total
4.2
12.1
10.4
13.0
14.6
12.7
Private companies
Australian
15.3
44.0
33.9
42.1
49.1
42.7
International
5.8
16.6
12.7
15.7
18.4
16.0
 
Sub-total
21.0
60.6
46.5
57.9
67.6
58.7
 
Total
34.7
100.0
80.4
100.0
115.1
100.0

Note: All totals and percentages are calculated using unrounded figures.

In approved proposals, private companies have pledged 60.6% of the total cash and 57.9% of the total in-kind contributions pledged by Partner Organisations. Government agencies have pledged 27.3% of the total cash and 29.2% of the in-kind contributions pledged by Partner Organisations.  State, Territory and Local governments account for the bulk of Government agency-pledged contributions (22.2% of overall pledged contributions, compared with 5.5% pledged by Commonwealth agencies).

Leverage of ARC Funding

The ARC considered 487 proposals seeking a total of $182.9M in ARC funding over five years.  These proposals were linked to 943 instances of Partner Organisation involvement, with total pledged Partner Organisation contributions of $225.5M over five years.

For the 208 approved proposals, the ARC will contribute $63.7M and Partner Organisations have pledged $115.1M over the life of these projects. This represents $1.8 from Partner Organisations for every dollar funded by the ARC.

The ARC considered 446 LP proposals, requesting support for 385 APAI and APAI-IT stipends.  Partner Organisations on these proposals pledged contributions of $221.3M over five years. For the 197 LP approved proposals, the ARC will contribute $62.8M and Partner Organisations have pledged $113.5M over the life of these projects. This represents $1.8 from Partner Organisations for every dollar funded by the ARC.

The ARC considered 41 LA proposals, requesting support for 48 APAI and APAI-IT stipends.  Partner Organisations on these proposals pledged contributions of $4.3M over five years. For the 11 LA approved proposals, the ARC will contribute $0.9M and Partner Organisations have pledged $1.6M over the life of these projects. This represents $1.7 from Partner Organisations for every dollar funded by the ARC.

In total, for Round 2 2008 approved proposals, there are 400 Partner Organisations pledging to contribute $115.1M over five years. 

Details of ARC leverage for Round 2 2008 of the Linkage Projects scheme are listed in Table 10 below.

Table 10. Leverage of ARC funds for approved Linkage Projects proposals Round 2 2008

Component ARC funds Partner Organisation funds pledged Leverage
LP (includes 155 APAIs and APAI-ITs)
$62,794,567
$113,526,478
1.8
LA (includes 12 APAIs and APAI-ITs)
$922,572
$1,609,533
1.7
Linkage Total
$63,717,139
$115,136,011
1.8

Age and Gender

The total number of investigators (Chief Investigators, APDIs and Partner Investigators) named on all proposals considered in this round is 1898.  Of these, 1366 are male and 532 are female. The overall success rate for male and female investigators is 47.4% and 45.5% respectively. Success rates by age and gender are shown in Figure 1 below for the Round 2 2008 Linkage Projects proposals.

A component analysis shows that for LP proposals considered, 1285 investigators are male and 492 are female.  The success rates for male and female investigators are 48.1% and 48.0% respectively.  For LA proposals considered, 81 investigators are male and 40 are female.  The success rates for male and female investigators are 35.8% and 15.0% respectively.

Figure 1:   Comparative success rates by investigators* age and gender for Linkage Projects proposals Round 2 2008

Comparative success rates

*Investigators are researchers nominated as Chief Investigators, APDIs or Partner Investigators.

Content Last Modified:

28/5/08


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