OverviewThe Future Fellowships scheme reflects the Australian Government’s commitment to excellence in research by supporting excellent mid-career researchers to undertake high quality research in areas of national and international benefit.The objectives of the Future Fellowships scheme are to:support excellent basic and applied research and research training by outstanding mid-career researchers to be recruited and retained by universities in continuing academic positions;support national and international research collaboration; andenhance the scale and focus of research in Australian Government priority areas. Selection processApplications for funding commencing in 2022 opened on 2 November 2021 and closed on 15 December 2021. Applications were submitted through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Research Management System (RMS). This report outlines outcomes from the selection process for that round.These outcomes are based on advice from the ARC Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) which:assigned independent assessors to review the applicationsassessed applications and reviewed assessments made by independent assessorsreviewed candidates’ comments on assessors’ reportsranked each application relative to the others on the basis of the application, the assessors’ reports and candidates’ responses to those assessmentsassessed and recommended budgets;and, advice from the ARC’s National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP) Eligibility Committee which:considered eligibility issues identified by ARC staff, the members of the ARC College of Experts or independent assessorswhere required, sought advice from the ARC’s Medical Research Advisory Groupmade recommendations to the CEO in respect of ineligible applications.This report reflects the outcomes approved by the Minister. Unless otherwise specified, data represented in this report exclude withdrawn applications. Assessment criteriaAll applications that meet the eligibility criteria for the Future Fellowships 2022 were assessed and merit ranked using the following assessment criteria:Investigator/Capability (50%)Describe the quality of the candidate as per the relevant section in Table 1.Table 1: Future Fellowship candidate.Future Fellowship Level 1Future Fellowship Level 2Future Fellowship Level 3Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE) including record of high quality research outputs appropriate to the discipline/s;evidence of research training, mentoring and supervision;evidence of leadership capability and national research standing; andcapability of the candidate to build collaborations across research organisations, industry and other disciplines both within Australia and internationally.Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE) including record of high quality research outputs appropriate to the discipline/s;evidence of research training, mentoring and supervision;evidence of leadership capabilities and national and emerging international research standing; andcapability of the candidate to build collaborations across research organisations, industry and other disciplines both within Australia and internationally. Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE) including record of outstanding research outputs appropriate to the discipline/s;evidence of experience in initiating and managing large research projects;evidence of international research standing;evidence of excellence in research training, mentoring and supervision; andcapability of the candidate to build collaborations across research organisations, industry and other disciplines both within Australia and internationally. Project quality and innovation (25%)Describe the:contribution to an important gap in knowledge or significant problem;novelty/originality and innovation of the proposed research (including any new methods, technologies, theories or ideas that will be developed);clarity of the hypothesis, theories and research questions;cohesiveness of the project design and implementation plan (including the appropriateness of the aim, conceptual framework, method, data and/or analyses); andextent to which the research has the potential to enhance international collaboration.Benefit (15%)Describe the potential benefits including the:new or advanced knowledge resulting from outcomes of the research;economic, commercial, environmental, social and/or cultural benefits for Australia and international communities; andpotential contribution to capacity in the Australian Government priority areas.Feasibility and strategic alignment (10%)Describe the:cost effectiveness of the research and its value for money;extent to which the Future Fellowship candidate aligns with and/or complements the core or developing research strengths and staffing profile of Your organisation;availability of the necessary facilities to conduct the research;resources You will provide to support the Future Fellowship candidate during her/his Future Fellowship; andcapacity within Your organisation to transition the candidate at the end of the Future Fellowship to a continuing position.If the project involves research pertaining Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities describe:the strategies for enabling collaboration with Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities where appropriate (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; andany personal affiliations with local Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities that can facilitate the proposed research. Assessment processThe ARC assessment process for Future Fellowships 2022 involved 53 SAC members across four disciplinary panels and was managed in RMS. A total of 1856 independent assessors’ reports were submitted to the ARC. Funding levels and durationFuture Fellowships are funded for four consecutive years on a full-time basis. The annual salary contribution may be awarded at one of three salary levels, either $163,598, $198,042 or $232,481 (2021$) including 30 per cent on-costs. In addition, the ARC may provide up to $60,000 in project costs per annum. Summary of outcomesThe ARC received a total of 627 applications for Future Fellowships for funding commencing in 2022, none of which were withdrawn.One hundred Future Fellows are approved for funding commencing in 2022, shown in Table 2. The overall success rate for Future Fellowships for funding commencing in 2022 is 15.9%.Of the unsuccessful applications in 2022, 12 were found not to meet eligibility requirements.A comparison of success rates and funding amounts is shown in Table 2 and the overall success rate by salary level is shown in Table 3.Table 2. Comparison of application numbers, success rates, requested and allocated funds for approved Future Fellowships applications from 2021 to 2022Funding yearApplications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($)Requested funds over project life approved applications ($)Funds allocated over project life approved applications ($)Return rate for approved applications (%)202167510014.8$676,822,277$100,291,555$93,020,67892.78202262710015.9$645,938,071$103,014,716$94,249,83691.5Table 3. Application numbers, success rates, requested and allocated funds for approved Future Fellowships applications 2022Salary LevelApplications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($)Requested funds over project life approved applications ($)Funds allocated over project life approved applications ($)Return rate for approved applications (%)Level 11402417.1$121,083,669$21,066,284$19,093,85990.6Level 22363916.5$237,573,794$39,234,087$35,796,57991.2Level 32513714.7$287,280,608$42,714,345$39,359,39892.1Total62710015.9$645,938,071$103,014,716$94,249,83691.5Outcomes by disciplineA summary of outcomes by discipline panel is shown in Table 4.Table 4. Application numbers, success rates and requested and allocated funds for approved Future Fellowships 2022 applications by disciplineDiscipline*Applications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($)Requested funds over project life for approved applications ($)Funds over project life for approved applications ($)Return Rate for approved applications (%)BSB1322015.2$133,078,336$20,384,927$18,503,18790.8EIC1672313.8$171,390,013$23,372,924$21,784,81293.2HSE2053316.1$220,068,055$34,955,545$31,701,50990.7MPCE1232419.5$121,401,667$24,301,320$22,260,32891.6Total62710015.9$645,938,071$103,014,716$94,249,83691.5*BSB - Biological Sciences and Biotechnology; EIC – Engineering, Information and Computing Sciences; HSE – Humanities and Creative Arts, Social, Behavioural and Economic Sciences; MPCE – Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences Outcomes by Science and Research PrioritiesA summary of outcomes by Science and Research Priorities is shown in Table 5.Table 5. Approved funding and success rates for Future Fellowships 2022 applications by Science and Research PrioritiesScience and Research PrioritiesApplications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Approved funds over project life ($)Advanced Manufacturing1002525.0$23,561,068Cybersecurity30413.3$3,341,733Energy4149.8$3,390,238Environmental Change921010.9$9,425,449Food31516.1$4,590,370Health791113.9$11,072,769Resources14321.4$3,084,651Soil and Water1417.1$905,168Transport140 None Selected2123717.5$34,878,390Total62710015.9$94,249,836Total within Science and Research Priorities4156315.2$59,371,446Percentage within Science and Research Priorities (%)66.263.015.263.0Outcomes by Administering OrganisationA summary of outcomes by Administering Organisation is shown in Table 6.Table 6. Number of applications and success rates for approved Future Fellowships 2022 applications by Administering OrganisationAdministering OrganisationApplications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Funds over project life for approved applications ($)Australian Capital Territory35617.1$5,412,092The Australian National University31619.4$5,412,092University of Canberra400.0$0New South Wales2184018.3$37,237,257Australian Catholic University100.0$0Macquarie University19526.3$4,276,987The University of New South Wales701420.0$13,069,356The University of Newcastle15320.0$2,657,720The University of Sydney62711.3$6,553,709University of Technology Sydney21628.6$5,634,172University of Wollongong22418.2$3,935,389Western Sydney University8112.5$1,109,924Northern Territory100$0Charles Darwin University100.0$0Queensland1091412.8$13,736,241Bond University100.0$0Central Queensland University100.0$0Griffith University1100.0$0James Cook University600.0$0Queensland University of Technology27311.1$3,016,360The University of Queensland541018.5$9,906,541University of Southern Queensland7114.3$813,340University of the Sunshine Coast200.0$0South Australia5347.5$3,937,709Flinders University14321.4$2,902,430The University of Adelaide2514.0$1,035,279University of South Australia1400.0$0Tasmania10330.0$2,907,128University of Tasmania10330.0$2,907,128Victoria1713118.1$29,214,543Deakin University16425.0$3,626,568Federation University Australia200.0$0La Trobe University10110.0$890,748Monash University461123.9$10,097,475RMIT University27414.8$3,869,017Swinburne University of Technology11218.2$2,110,952The University of Melbourne58915.5$8,619,783Victoria University100.0$0Western Australia3026.7$1,804,866Curtin University11218.2$1,804,866Edith Cowan University100.0$0The University of Western Australia1800.0$0Total62710015.9$94,249,836Career age and genderOf the 627 Future Fellowship candidates in this round, 209 were female, 415 were male and 3 chose not to specify gender. The success rate for female, male and unspecified candidates in this round is 15.3 per cent, 16.4 per cent and 0.0 per cent respectively.Success rates of Future Fellowship candidates by career age and gender in the current Future Fellowship round are presented in Figure 1. Candidates who did not provide gender information (0.5 per cent) are not represented in the figure below.At the closing time of submission of applications, of the 627 candidates, 524 were between 5 and 15 years of the award of their PhD and 102 were beyond 15 years of the award of their PhD. To be eligible to apply for Future Fellowships, the latter group of researchers had their significant career interruptions certified by their Administering Organisation.Of the approved Future Fellows, 87 candidates were between 5 and 15 years of the award of their PhD and 12 were beyond 15 years of the award of their PhD.Figure 1. Participation and success rate of Future Fellowships 2022 candidate by gender and career age*^ * Career age is calculated as years since PhD based on the relevant qualification as selected in the application.^ Calculated career age does not take career interruptions into consideration. Attracting and retaining outstanding researchersApplications were open to Eligible Organisations to nominate candidates who are outstanding mid-career researchers of international repute, resident either within Australia or overseas (Table 7).Table 7. Citizenship/residency status of Future Fellowships 2022 candidates and approved AwardeesCitizenship/residency statusApplications considered% of Applications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Foreign Nationals335.326.1Resident Australians56890.69717.1Returning Australians264.213.8Total62710010015.9Note: All totals and percentages are shown using rounded figures, and as such may not sum. International collaborationAmong 627 of the applications considered, applicants foreshadowed 1665 instances of collaboration with researchers in 79 overseas locations. Of the applications approved for funding, 94 foreshadowed 279 instances of collaboration with researchers in 38 overseas locations (Figure 2).Figure 2. International collaborations by location in approved Future Fellowships 2022 applications* *The top 10 international collaboration locations are listed in Figure 2 and the remaining are grouped in the ‘Other’ category.