Selection Report: ARC Centres of Excellence for Funding Commencing in 2023

(as at 4 November 2022)

Overview

The ARC Centres of Excellence scheme aims to enhance and develop Australia’s research excellence through highly innovative and collaborative research, as well as build Australia’s human capacity in a range of research areas.

The ARC Centres of Excellence are prestigious focal points of expertise through which high-quality researchers maintain and develop Australia’s international standing in research areas of national priority.

Through the ARC Centres of Excellence, significant collaborations occur between universities, publicly funded research organisations, other research bodies, governments and businesses in Australia and overseas, all to support outstanding research.

Selection process

Expression of Interest (EOI) applications for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023 opened on 1 June 2021 and closed on 21 July 2021. Shortlisted EOI applications were invited to submit full applications, which opened on 15 December 2021 and closed on 23 March 2022. EOI applications and full applications were submitted through the Australian

Research Council (ARC) Research Management System (RMS). This report outlines recommendations from the ARC Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

The funding recommendations are based on advice from a Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) which:

• assessed EOI applications, reviewed assessments made by independent assessors and reviewed applicants’ comments on assessor reports
• shortlisted EOI applications for submission of full applications
• assessed full applications, reviewed assessments made by independent assessors and reviewed applicants’ comments on assessor reports
• interviewed applicants
• ranked each application relative to the others on the basis of the full application, the assessors’ reports, applicants’ responses to those assessments and interview performance
• assessed and recommended budgets
• recommended application feedback

and advice from the ARC’s National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP) Eligibility Committee which:

• considered eligibility issues identified by ARC staff, the SAC or independent assessors.

This report reflects the outcomes approved by the Minister.

Assessment criteria

Assessment criteria and corresponding weights for EOI applications are:

1. Research program - Quality and Innovation (70%)

Demonstrate this through identifying how the Centre:

• addresses the objectives of the ARC Centres of Excellence grant opportunity;
• will be innovative and potentially transformational, and lead to significant advancement of knowledge, expertise and technologies;
• will build effective collaboration and critical mass across groups of researchers;
• is assembled into an effective and integrated research program (including the proposed conceptual framework, design, human resource commitments, methods and analyses, project structures, budget planning and risk mitigation strategies); and
• will build effective and high quality national and international partnerships, exchanges and networks.
• If the project involves research pertaining to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities describe:
• the strategies for enabling collaboration with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities (for example, dialogue/collaboration with an Indigenous cultural mentor);
• any existing or developing, supportive and high-quality relationships with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities; and
• any personal affiliations with local Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities that can facilitate the proposed research.

2. Investigators (30%)

Demonstrate this through identifying:

• the contribution of the Centre Director, CIs and PIs to the proposed research program and their demonstration of appropriate capability, capacity and commitment to the Centre; and
• the extent to which the investigators are suitable and relevant to the conduct and delivery of the proposed research program, giving consideration to Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE).

Assessment criteria and corresponding weights for full applications are:

1. Research program - Quality and Innovation (20%)

Demonstrate this through identifying how the Centre:

addresses the objectives of the ARC Centres of Excellence grant opportunity;

• will be innovative and potentially transformational, and lead to significant advancement of knowledge, expertise and technologies;
• will build effective collaboration and critical mass across groups of researchers;
• is assembled into an effective and integrated research program (including the proposed conceptual framework, design, human resource commitments, methods and analyses, project structures, budget planning and risk mitigation strategies); and
• will build effective and high quality national and international partnerships, exchanges and networks.
• If the project involves research pertaining to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities describe:
• the strategies for enabling collaboration with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities (for example, dialogue/collaboration with an Indigenous cultural mentor);
• any existing or developing, supportive and high-quality relationships with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities; and
• any personal affiliations with local Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities that can facilitate the proposed research.

2. Investigators (20%)

Demonstrate this through identifying:

• the contribution of the Centre Director, CIs and PIs to the proposed research program and their demonstration of appropriate capability, capacity and commitment to the Centre; and
• the extent to which the investigators are suitable and relevant to the conduct and delivery of the proposed research program, giving consideration to Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE).

3. Institutional Support (20%)

Demonstrate this through identifying:

• the extent to which the Centre is aligned with the research focus and strategic direction of the Administering Organisation; and
• how the combined level of support and commitment from the Administering Organisation, Other Eligible Organisations and Partner Organisations will be sufficient for the proposed Centre.

4. Governance, leadership and mentoring (20%)

Demonstrate this through identifying:

• the appropriateness of the organisational structure of the Centre, including:
  • proposed management arrangements and responsibilities (including management of dispersed and diverse teams and reporting arrangements both internally and externally)
  • financial systems, strategic and translation plans, milestones for achievement of objectives and delivery of outputs, outcomes and benefits, and draft Key Performance Indicators
• the relevance of the performance measures listed in the application to the proposed Centre’s objectives, project outputs, outcomes and benefits, and their appropriateness for assessing the Centre’s performance;
• the leadership ability and vision of the Centre Director and leadership team including their capacity to perform the responsibilities of the role including strategic planning and management;
• the contribution of the Centre to research training and mentoring at the Honours, postgraduate and postdoctoral level; and
• the contribution of the Centre’s education and engagement programs to professional development, ethical and technical training, and outreach.

5. Outcomes and linkages (20%)

Demonstrate this through identifying the:

• proposed research program articulates the path to Research Impact of the proposed research program in terms of delivering benefit to Australia;
• links with Australian researchers in universities, other research organisations, industry and strategic agencies that will facilitate collaboration in, and application of the outcomes of, the proposed research program;
• partners and end-users which will be involved in the translation of outcomes arising from the proposed research program;
• plans and strategies in place for translation of research outcomes including: knowledge transfer, knowledge application, and if applicable, technology transfer, including fostering a culture of innovation, focus on outcomes and Centre legacy;
• supporting organisational arrangements and plans in place relating to ownership and potential exploitation of intellectual property and/or utilisation or commercialisation of research (where appropriate);
• proposed research program expands Australia’s knowledge base and research capability and enhance Australia’s international reputation and competitiveness;
• proposed research program makes a significant contribution to one or more of the Science and Research Priorities;
• proposed research program delivers effective outcomes commensurate with the request for appropriate resources (value for money);
• proposed Centre involves partners and end-users in development of strategic and translation plans and proposed Centre governance; and
• proposed Centre develops and enhances high-level international linkages to benefit the research, training and translation of program outcomes.

Assessment process

The ARC Centres of Excellence assessment and reporting process for ARC Centres of Excellence is managed through RMS and used a panel of 18 SAC members during the EOI

application phase and 17 SAC members during the full application phase. A total of 261 independent assessor reports were submitted to the ARC for EOI applications and 50 for full applications.

Funding levels and duration

Funding of between $1 million and $5 million per annum for up to 7 consecutive years may be awarded for each ARC Centre of Excellence.

Summary of outcomes

The ARC received 101 EOI applications and invited 17 EOIs to submit full applications. Of the 17 ARC Centres of Excellence full applications submitted, 11 are approved for funding.

As shown in Table 1, the overall success rate was 64.7%, which is a higher success rate than that of the previous ARC Centres of Excellence 2020 round.

Table 1. Number of EOI applications, full applications and success rates by discipline for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023

*BSB = Biological Sciences and Biotechnology; EIC = Engineering, Information and Computing Sciences; HCA = Humanities and Creative Arts; MPCE = Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences; SBE = Social, Behavioural and Economics Sciences

† Field of Research (FoR) codes used to determine discipline panels changed to the new ABS classification between the closing of the EOI application stage and the opening of the full application stage. Therefore, some full applications were assigned to a different discipline panel than that assigned for the shortlisted EOI application.

Approved ARC Centres of Excellence for funding

Table 2 lists summary information on the approved ARC Centres of Excellence applications commencing in 2023.

Table 2. Details of approved applications for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023

Selection outcomes by Administering Organisation

Administering Organisations in 7 Australian States and Territories submitted applications for ARC Centres of Excellence. In addition to ARC funding, significant contributions are made by participating organisations as shown in Table 3.

Table 3. Numbers of EOI applications and full applications, success rates and ARC approved funding by Administering Organisation for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023

* Participating Organisations include the Administering Organisation, Other Eligible Organisations and Partner Organisations.

Participating organisation contributions by organisation type

As shown in Table 4, contributions to ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023 from Partner Organisations total over $304 million, 45% of the total organisation contributions to successful ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023.

Table 4. Participating organisation contributions by organisation type for approved applications for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023

Partner Organisation contributions by sector

Partner Organisations were identified as either Australian, international, government, non-profit, industry or overseas higher education organisations.

Leverage of ARC funding

Of the 17 full applications considered, 11 are approved, with total approved funding over the life of these projects of $384,905,274. There are 221 Partner Organisations involved, committing a total of $304,650,062 in cash and in-kind funding. This represents $0.79 from Partner Organisations for every dollar of funding from the ARC.

The Partner Organisation contributions in these categories for applications approved for funding in 2023 are shown below in Table 5.

Table 5. Partner Organisation contributions by sector for approved applications for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023

Note: All totals and percentages are shown using rounded figures, and as such may not sum.

Science and Research Priorities

As shown in Table 6, all applications for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023 selected a Science and Research Priority.

Table 6. Application data and approved funding by Science and Research Priority for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023

Field of Research categories

Table 7. Application data by Field of Research category for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023

Gender

A total of 584 participants were named on applications considered in this round. Of these, 344 (58.9%) are male, 235 (40.2%) are female, and five (0.9%) chose not to specify.

Of the 381 participants named on the 11 approved applications:

• 155 participants are female (40.7%), including one Centre Director
• 224 participants are male (58.8%), including 10 Centre Directors
• two participants are unspecified (0.5%).

International collaboration

International collaboration is an important component of ARC Centres of Excellence. As shown in Table 9, there are 69 instances where a total of 27 countries are participating in the approved applications for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023.

Table 9. International collaboration by country for ARC Centres of Excellence commencing in 2023