Selection Report: Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021

Overview

The (DECRA) scheme provides focused research support for early career researchers in both teaching and research, and research-only positions. 

The objectives of the Discovery Early Career Researcher Award scheme are to: 

  • support excellent basic and applied research by early career researchers;
  • support national and international research collaboration;
  • enhance the scale and focus of research in Australian Government priority areas;
  • advance promising early career researchers and promote enhanced opportunities for diverse career pathways; and
  • enable research and research training in high quality and supportive environments.

 

Selection process

Applications for funding commencing in 2021 opened on 16 October 2019 and closed on 12 March 2020. Applications were submitted through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Research Management System (RMS). This report outlines the outcomes from the selection process for that round.

These recommendations are based on advice from the ARC Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) which:  

  • assigned independent assessors to review the applications
  • assessed applications and reviewed assessments made by independent assessors
  • reviewed candidates’ comments on assessors’ reports
  • ranked each application relative to the others on the basis of the application, the assessors’ reports and candidates’ responses to those assessments
  • assessed 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 assessors
  • where required, sought advice from the ARC’s Medical Research Advisory Group
  • made 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 Unless otherwise specified, data represented in this report exclude withdrawn applications.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 criteria

All applications that meet the eligibility criteria for the Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 applications were assessed and merit ranked using the following assessment criteria:

a. Investigator/Capability (50%)


Describe the:

  • Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE) including record of high quality research outputs appropriate to the discipline/s.
  • capability of candidate to build collaborations both within Australia and internationally.

b. 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); and
  • extent to which the research has the potential to enhance international collaboration.

c. 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; and
  • potential contribution to capacity in the Australian Government’s National Science and Research Priorities and other priorities identified by government.

d. Feasibility (10%)


Describe the:

  • cost-effectiveness of the research and its value for money;
  • feasibility of the research (including contribution of the project’s design, participants and resources to the timely completion of the project);
  • supportive environment for the DECRA candidate and their project, and for HDR students where appropriate; and
  • availability of the necessary facilities to complete the project.

If the project involves Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research 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); and
  • any existing or developing, supportive and high quality research communities.

 

Assessment process

The ARC assessment process for Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 involved 80 College of Experts members across five discipline panels and was managed in RMS. A total of 4097 independent assessors’ reports were submitted to the ARC.

 

Funding levels and duration

Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards are funded for three consecutive years on a full-time basis. The annual salary contribution that may be awarded is fixed at $104,316 (2019$), including 30 per cent on-costs. In addition, the ARC may provide up to $50,000 in project costs per annum.

 

Summary of outcomes

The ARC received a total of 1179 applications for Discovery Early Career Researcher Award for funding commencing in 2021, of which six applications were withdrawn. 

Two hundred Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards are approved for funding commencing in 2021, shown in Table 1. The overall success rate for Discovery Early Career Researcher Award for funding commencing in 2021 is 17.1%.
Of the unsuccessful applications in 2021, 17 were found not to meet eligibility requirements.

A comparison of success rates and funding amounts is shown in Table 1.

Table 1. Comparison of application numbers, success rates, requested and allocated funds for approved Discovery Early Career Researcher Award applications from 2020 to 2021

Funding year Applications considered Applications approved Success rate (%) Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($)  Requested funds over project life for approved applications ($) Funds allocated over project life for approved applications ($) Return rate for approved applications (%)
2020 1248 200 16.0 $507,777,318 $81,972,769 $81,838,415 99.8
2021 1173 200 17.1 $506,629,691 $87,483,735 $84,041,533 96.1

 *May include indicative funding amounts

 

Outcomes by discipline 

A summary of outcomes by discipline panel is shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Number of applications, success rates and requested and allocated funds for approved Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 applications by discipline

Discipline * Applications considered Applications approved Success 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 (%)
BSB 228 39 17.1 $101,082,210 $17,622,888 $17,283,974 98.1
EIC 331 56 16.9 $142,744,019 $24,344,551 $23,389,501 96.1
HCA 166 28 16.9 $70,190,285 $12,218,703 $11,649,670 95.3
MPCE 233 40 17.2 $99,119,433 $17,137,900 $16,606,779 96.9
SBE 215 37 17.2 $93,493,744 $16,159,693 $15,111,609 93.5
Total 1173 200 17.1 $506,629,691 $87,483,735 $84,041,533 96.1

*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 Economic Sciences 

 

Outcomes by Science and Research Priorities

A summary of outcomes by Science and Research Priorities is shown in Table 3. 

Table 3. Approved funding and success rate for Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 applications by Science and Research Priorities

Science and Research Priorities Applications considered

Applications

approved

 Success
rate (%)		 Approved funds over project life ($)
Advanced manufacturing 175 34 19.4 $14,211,934
Cybersecurity 47 5 10.6 $2,052,376
Energy 81 12 14.8 $5,005,505
Environmental change 161 36 22.4 $15,483,875
Food 40 11 27.5 $4,880,771
Health 125 18 14.4 $7,649,288
Resources 28 3 10.7 $1,267,994
Soil and water 47 6 12.8 $2,531,329
Transport 27 5 18.5 $2,108,029
Unspecified 442 70 15.8 $28,850,432
Total 1173 200 17.1 $84,041,533
Total within Science and Research Priorities 731 130 17.8 $55,191,101
Percentage within Science and Research Priorities (%) 62.3 65   65.7


Outcomes by Administering Organisation

A summary of outcomes by Administering Organisation is shown in Table 4.

Table 4. Numbers of applications and success rates for approved Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 applications by Administering Organisation

Administering Organisation Applications Considered Applications approved Success rate (%) Funds over project life for approved applications ($)
Australian Capital Territory 91 20 22% $8,617,059
The Australian National University 84 18 21.4% $7,753,024
University of Canberra 7 2 28.6% $864,035
New South Wales 397 72 18.1% $29,857,583
Australian Catholic University 7 0 0% $0
Charles Sturt University 3 0 0% $0
Macquarie University 37 4 10.8% $1,531,119
The University of New England 7 0 0% $0
The University of New South Wales 124 22 17.7% $9,045,907
The University of Newcastle 24 4 16.7% $1,652,848
The University of Sydney 105 24 22.9% $10,100,149
University of Technology Sydney 36 7 19.4% $2,978,604
University of Wollongong 39 6 15.4% $2,590,542
Western Sydney University 15 5 33.3% $1,958,414
Queensland 192 40 20.8% $17,024,708
Central Queensland University 2 1 50% $407,679
Griffith University 22 3 13.6% $1,247,408
James Cook University 15 6 40% $2,569,630
Queensland University of Technology 31 6 19.4% $2,398,627
The University of Queensland 110 21 19.1% $9,114,200
University of Southern Queensland 8 2 25% $866,164
University of the Sunshine Coast 4 1 25% $421,000
South Australia 59 6 10.2% $2,527,237
Flinders University 10 0 0% $0
The University of Adelaide 38 4 10.5% $1,674,218
Torrens University Australia 1 0 0% $0
University of South Australia 10 2 20% $853,019
Tasmania 21 2 9.5% $851,128
University of Tasmania 21 2 9.5% $851,128
Victoria 353 55 15.6% $23,089,801
Deakin University 39 5 12.8% $2,171,266
Federation University Australia 2 0 0% $0
La Trobe University 13 4 30.8% $1,693,473
Monash University 109 17 15.6% $7,076,818
RMIT University 25 3 12% $1,220,140
Swinburne University of Technology 28 1 3.6% $350,898
The University of Melbourne 135 24 17.8% $10,164,462
Victoria University 2 1 50% $412,744
Western Australia 60 5 8.3% $2,074,017
Curtin University 21 1 4.8% $425,775
Edith Cowan University 1 0 0% $0
Murdoch University 3 0 0% $0
The University of Western Australia 35 4 11.4% $1,648,242
Total 1173 200 17.1% $84,041,533


Career age and gender

Of the 1173 Discovery Early Career Researcher Award candidates in this round, 458 were female, 710 were male and five candidates did not specify their gender. The success rate for female, male and unspecified candidates is 19.0 per cent, 15.6 per cent and 40.0 per cent respectively.

Success rates of Discovery Early Career Researcher Award candidates by career age and gender in the current Discovery Early Career Researcher Award round are presented in Figure 1. Discovery Early Career Researcher Award candidates who did not provide gender information (0.43%) are not represented in the figure below.

At the closing time of submission of applications, of the 1173 candidates, 969 were within five years of the award of their PhD and 204 candidates were beyond five years of the award of their PhD. To be eligible to apply for a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award, the latter group of researchers had their significant career interruptions certified by their Administering Organisation.

Of the approved Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards, 168 candidates were within five years of the award of their PhD and 32 candidates were beyond five years of the award of their PhD. 

Figure 1. Participation and success rate of candidates in Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 by gender and career age*^

Figure 1. Participation and success rate of candidates in Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 by gender and career age

 

Attracting and retaining outstanding researchers

Applications were open to Eligible Organisations to nominate candidates who are promising early career researchers, resident either within Australia or overseas. (Table 5).

Table 5. Citizenship/residency status of Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 candidates and approved Awardees

Citizenship/residency status Applications considered Applications considered Applications approved Success rate
Foreign Nationals 313 26.7% 40 12.8%
Resident Australians 783 66.8% 145 18.5%
Returning Australians 77 6.6% 15 19.5%
Total 1173 100% 200 17.1%

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

 

International Collaboration

Among 1173 of the applications considered, applicants foreshadowed 2519 instances of collaboration with researchers in 88 overseas locations. Of the applications approved for funding, 183 foreshadowed 459 instances of collaboration with researchers in 55 overseas locations (Figure 2).

Figure 2. International collaborations by location in approved Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 applications*

Figure 2. International collaborations by location in approved Discovery Early Career Researcher Award 2021 applications

*The top 10 international collaboration locations are listed in Figure 2 and the remaining are grouped in the ‘Other’ category