Selection Report: Discovery Indigenous 2018
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Overview
The Discovery Indigenous scheme provides funding to support research programmes led by an Indigenous Australian researcher and builds the research capacity of higher degree research and early career researchers.
The objectives of Discovery Indigenous are to:
- support excellent basic and applied research and research training by Indigenous Australian researchers as individuals and as teams;
- develop the research expertise of Indigenous researchers;
- support and retain established Indigenous researchers in Australian higher education institutions; and
- expand Australia’s knowledge base and research capability.
Selection Process
Proposals for funding commencing in 2018 opened on 23 January 2017, and closed on 29 March 2017. Proposals were submitted through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Research Management System (RMS). This report outlines recommendations from the selection process for that round.
Funding recommendations have been prepared for submission to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The recommendations are based on advice from the ARC College of Experts which:
- assigned independent assessors to review the proposals
- assessed proposals and reviewed assessments made by independent assessors
- reviewed Applicants’ comments on assessors’ reports
- 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
and, advice from the ARC Eligibility Committee which:
- considered eligibility issues identified by ARC staff, the ARC College of Experts or independent assessors
- where required, sought clarification from Administering Organisations with respect to issues raised
- made recommendations to the CEO in respect of ineligible proposals.
This report reflects the approved recommendations by the Minister. Unless otherwise specified, figures presented in this report exclude withdrawn proposals.
Selection Criteria
Selection criteria and corresponding weightings for Discovery Indigenous 2018 proposals are:
- Project Quality and Innovation (40%)
- Investigator(s) (35%)
- Feasibility (10%)
- Benefit (15%)
The ARC assessment process for 2018 used 27 College of Experts members across five discipline panels and was managed in the Research Management System (RMS). A total of 143 independent assessors’ reports were submitted to the ARC for Discovery Indigenous 2018.
Funding levels and duration
Funding of up to $500,000 per annum for up to five years may be awarded for each Discovery Indigenous proposal. In addition to a minimum of $30,000 in project costs per annum a proposal, Chief Investigators who are Indigenous Australians may be awarded the annual salary contribution called Discovery Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award (DAATSIA) providing the annual total does not exceed $500,000. The DAATSIA may be awarded at one of five salary levels, either $99,369 or $116,905 or $151,977 or $175,360 or $210,430, (2016$) including 30 per cent on-costs.
Summary of Outcomes
The ARC received a total of 38 proposals for Discovery Indigenous for funding commencing in 2018, seven proposals more than Discovery Indigenous for funding commencing in 2017.
The overall success rate for Discovery Indigenous for funding commencing in 2018 is 34.2 per cent, with a higher percentage of allocation of requested funds compared to Discovery Indigenous for funding commencing in 2017 (Table 1).
Of the 38 proposals considered in this round, 12 included funding request for Discovery Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award (DAATSIA) at one of five salary levels. The overall success rate for Discovery Indigenous proposals requesting DAATSIA in 2018 is 33.3 per cent (Table 2).
Table 1. Comparison of proposal numbers, success rates, requested and allocated funds for recommended Discovery Indigenous proposals from 2016 to 2017
|
Funding year |
Proposals considered |
Proposals recommended |
Success rate |
Requested funds over project life (all proposals) |
Requested funds over project life (recommended proposals) |
Funds allocated over project life |
Allocation as a percentage of request |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
2017 |
31 |
11 |
35.5% |
$23,490,410 |
$7,154,177 |
$4,634,891 |
64.8% |
|
2018 |
38 |
13 |
34.2% |
$29,013,827 |
$10,202,501 |
$7,210,045 |
70.7% |
Table 2. Success rates for Discovery Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award (DAATSIA) for recommended Discovery Indigenous proposals 2018
|
DAATSIA Salary Level |
Proposals with DAATSIA considered |
Proposals with DAATSIA recommended |
Success rate |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Salary Level 1 |
1 |
0 |
0.0% |
|
Salary Level 2 |
1 |
0 |
0.0% |
|
Salary Level 3 |
5 |
1 |
20.0% |
|
Salary Level 4 |
2 |
1 |
50.0% |
|
Salary Level 5 |
3 |
2 |
66.7% |
|
Total |
12 |
4 |
33.3% |
Outcomes by discipline panels
Table 3. Comparison of proposal numbers, success rates and requested and allocated funds for recommended Discovery Indigenous 2018 proposals by discipline panel
|
Panel † |
Proposals considered |
Proposals recommended |
Success rate |
Requested funds over project life for all proposals considered |
Requested funds over project life for recommended proposals |
Indicative funds over project |
Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
BSB |
3 |
2 |
66.7% |
$2,561,197 |
$1,382,798 |
$971,296 |
70.2% |
|
EIC |
2 |
1 |
50.0% |
$2,517,663 |
$813,625 |
$573,032 |
70.4% |
|
HCA |
16 |
4 |
25.0% |
$9,734,223 |
$2,883,104 |
$2,113,452 |
73.3% |
|
MPCE |
1 |
0 |
0.0% |
$1,089,952 |
$0 |
$0 |
0.0% |
|
SBE |
16 |
6 |
37.5% |
$13,110,792 |
$5,122,974 |
$3,552,265 |
69.3% |
|
Total |
38 |
13 |
34.2% |
$29,013,827 |
$10,202,501 |
$7,210,045 |
70.7% |
† BSB—Biological Sciences and Biotechnology; EIC—Engineering, Information and Computing Sciences; MPCE—Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences; HCA—Humanities and Creative Arts; SBE—Social, Behavioural and Economic Sciences
Outcomes by Science and Research Priorities
Table 4. Recommended funding and success rate for Discovery Indigenous 2018 proposals by Science and Research Priorities
|
Science and Research Priorities |
Proposals considered |
Proposals recommended |
Success |
Recommended funds (over project life) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Environmental change |
4 |
2 |
50.0% |
$1,183,021 |
|
Health |
21 |
7 |
33.3% |
$4,017,640 |
|
Soil and water |
2 |
0 |
0% |
$0 |
|
Unspecified |
11 |
4 |
36.4% |
$2,009,384 |
|
Total |
38 |
13 |
34.2% |
$7,210,045 |
|
Total within Science and Research Priorities |
27 |
9 |
33.3% |
$5,200,661 |
|
Percentage within Science and Research Priorities (%) |
71.1% |
69.2% |
|
72.1% |
Outcomes by Administering Organisation
Table 5. Numbers of proposals and success rates for recommended Discovery Indigenous 2018 proposals by Administering Organisation
|
Administering Organisation |
Proposals considered |
Proposals recommended |
Success rate (%) |
Recommended funding over project life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Australian Capital Territory |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
University of Canberra |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
New South Wales |
12 |
4 |
33.3 |
$2,140,531 |
|
Australian Catholic University |
2 |
1 |
50.0 |
$373,754 |
|
Southern Cross University |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
The University of New South Wales |
2 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
The University of Newcastle |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
The University of Sydney |
2 |
1 |
50.0 |
$678,640 |
|
University of Technology, Sydney |
4 |
2 |
50.0 |
$1,088,137 |
|
Northern Territory |
3 |
1 |
33.3 |
$689,924 |
|
Charles Darwin University |
3 |
1 |
33.3 |
$689,924 |
|
Queensland |
6 |
1 |
16.7 |
$320,249 |
|
Griffith University |
3 |
1 |
33.3 |
$320,249 |
|
James Cook University |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
The University of Queensland |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
University of Southern Queensland |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
South Australia |
2 |
1 |
50.0 |
$512,688 |
|
The Flinders University of South Australia |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
The University of Adelaide |
1 |
1 |
100.0 |
$512,688 |
|
Tasmania |
1 |
1 |
100.0 |
$458,608 |
|
University of Tasmania |
1 |
1 |
100.0 |
$458,608 |
|
Victoria |
10 |
4 |
40.0 |
$1,781,238 |
|
Deakin University |
2 |
1 |
50.0 |
$497,807 |
|
Monash University |
3 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
RMIT University |
2 |
1 |
50.0 |
$430,661 |
|
The University of Melbourne |
2 |
1 |
50.0 |
$573,032 |
|
Victoria University |
1 |
1 |
100.0 |
$279,738 |
|
Western Australia |
3 |
1 |
33 |
$1,306,807 |
|
Curtin University |
2 |
1 |
50.0 |
$1,306,807 |
|
Edith Cowan University |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
$0 |
|
Total |
38 |
13 |
34.2 |
$7,210,045 |
Career age and gender
A total of 120 Chief Investigators (CIs), including 12 Discovery Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award Candidates (DAATSIA), were named on all proposals considered in this round. Of these, 62 were female CIs and 57 were male CIs and one CI has chosen not to specify their gender. The success rate for female CIs and male CIs in this round of Discovery Indigenous proposals is 41.9 per cent and 21.1 per cent respectively. Of 12 CIs who applied for DAATSIA, the success rate for female DAATSIA Candidates and male DAATSIA Candidates is 42.9 per cent and 20.0 per cent respectively (Table 6).
Success rates of CIs by career age and gender in the current Discovery Indigenous round are represented in Figure 1 below. CIs who have chosen not specify their gender (2.8 per cent), and CIs who did not specify the date of completion of their PhD or who do not hold a PhD (8.3 per cent) are not represented in the figure below.
Figure 1. Participation and success rate of Chief Investigators (CIs) in Discovery Indigenous 2018 by gender and career age*
* Career age is calculated as years since PhD.
Table 6. Success rates by gender for Discovery Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award (DAATSIA) Candidates, for recommended Discovery Indigenous proposals 2018
|
Gender of DAATSIA Candidates |
No of DAATSIA considered |
No of DAATSIA recommended |
Success rate |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Female |
7 |
3 |
42.9 % |
|
Male |
5 |
1 |
20.0 % |
|
Total |
12 |
4 |
33.33 % |
International Collaboration
Applicants foreshadowed 27 instances of collaboration with researchers in 11 overseas locations on 15 proposals. Of the proposals recommended for funding, six foreshadowed 15 instances of collaboration with researchers in nine overseas locations.
Figure 2. International collaborations by location in recommended Discovery Indigenous 2018 proposals
- United States of America, 4
- New Zealand, 3
- Switzerland, 1
- Kenya, 1
- Germany, 1
- Canada, 2
- Papua New Guinea, 1
- France, 1
- Indonesia, 1