Selection Report: Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024
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Overview
The Australian Laureate Fellowships scheme reflects the Australian Government’s commitment to excellence in research by supporting world-class researchers to conduct research in Australia.
The objectives of the Australian Laureate Fellowships scheme are to:
- attract and retain outstanding researchers and research leaders of international reputation, with exceptional ability to lead, collaborate, mentor and supervise, and enhance their capacity to create an enduring legacy;
- build focus and scale in research by forging new links among researchers, the international research community and/or industry and other research end-users;
- support a program of innovative and ground-breaking research that addresses a significant problem or gap in knowledge;
- create a cohesive research program and implementation plan that represents value for money;
- provide an excellent research training environment and exemplary opportunity to nurture early or mid-career researchers;
- produce new or advanced knowledge resulting from the outcomes of the research with economic, commercial, environmental, social and/or cultural benefits for Australia, and to enhance research in Australian Government priority areas.
Selection process
Applications for funding commencing in 2024 opened on 16 August 2023 and closed on
10 October 2023. Applications were submitted through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Research Management System (RMS). This report outlines outcomes from the ARC A/g Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to the Minister.
These recommendations are based on advice from the ARC Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) which:
- 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 SAC 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 Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024 applications were assessed and merit ranked using the following assessment criteria:
- Investigator/Capability (40%)
- Describe the:
- Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE) including:
- outstanding research outputs and achievements taking into account research opportunity;
- evidence for and/or potential to undertake ground-breaking research;
- leadership ability and plans to build world class research capacity and diverse teams; and
- potential to create an enduring legacy.
- outstanding research outputs and achievements taking into account research opportunity;
- extent to which the candidate will build collaborations across research organisations and/or industry and/or with other disciplines both within Australia and internationally.
- Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE) including:
- Project quality and innovation (25%)
- Describe the:
- contribution to an important gap in knowledge or significant problem;
- innovation of the research program in the context of recent international advances in research in this area;
- clarity of the major research questions;
- cohesiveness of the project design and implementation plan (including the appropriateness of the aim, conceptual framework, method, data and/or analyses);
- extent to which the research has the potential to enhance international collaboration; and
- extent to which the research will be cost-effective and represents value for money.
- contribution to an important gap in knowledge or significant problem;
- 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.
- the strategies for enabling collaboration with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities (for example, dialogue/collaboration with an Indigenous cultural mentor);
- Benefit (10%)
- 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 priority areas.
- new or advanced knowledge resulting from outcomes of the research;
- Mentoring and capacity building (25%)
- Describe:
- Mentoring, including the extent to which the candidate demonstrates:
- exceptional ability to supervise and mentor postdoctoral researchers and other early-mid career researchers; and
- they will be providing a suitable environment for postgraduate students and postdoctoral researchers.
- exceptional ability to supervise and mentor postdoctoral researchers and other early-mid career researchers; and
- Capacity building, including:
- the extent to which the project will build new teams and create world-class research capacity, collaboration and innovation;
- the extent to which the candidate demonstrates exceptional leadership and the organisational ability to ensure the development of focus and scale in research;
- evidence of the project’s and researchers’ potential to attract financial resources to enhance research capacity; and
- the extent to which this research builds new international research collaboration or links between research and industry.
- the extent to which the project will build new teams and create world-class research capacity, collaboration and innovation;
- Mentoring, including the extent to which the candidate demonstrates:
Assessment process
The ARC assessment process for Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024 involved 15 SAC members on one multi-discipline panel and was managed in RMS. A total of 551 independent assessors’ reports were submitted to the ARC.
Funding levels and duration
Australian Laureate Fellowships projects are funded for 5 years on a full-time basis, subject to sufficient scheme funding, the provisions of the Australian Research Council Act 2001 (the ARC Act) and continued satisfactory progress of the Australian Laureate Fellowships project.
It is a requirement of the Discovery Program Grant Guidelines - Fellowships (2023 edition) for the Administering Organisation to provide a salary of Level E professorial appointment (or equivalent) to the Australian Laureate Fellowship. The salary provided by the ARC of $179,840 (2023$) per annum including 30 per cent on-costs contributes to that salary.
In addition to the Australian Laureate Fellowship salary supplement and salary-related (on-cost) support, the ARC will provide Australian Laureate Fellows with:
- additional funding for 2 postdoctoral research associates for 5 years each and 2 postgraduate researchers for 4 years each; and
- project funding of up to $300,000 per annum for 5 years.
- up to $20,000 per year (additional to project funding for Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship or Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship) to support ambassadorial role to promote women in research.
Summary of outcomes
The ARC received a total of 128 applications for Australian Laureate Fellowships for funding commencing in 2024.
Seventeen Australian Laureate Fellows are approved for funding commencing in 2024, shown in Table 1. The overall success rate for Australian Laureate Fellowships for funding commencing in 2024 is 13.3 per cent. The total indicative funding approved is $58.3 million over 5 financial years (Tables 2 and 4). A break-down of success rates and funding amounts is shown in Table 2.
Of the unsuccessful applications in 2024, one was found not to meet eligibility requirements.
Table 1. Australian Laureate Fellows approved for funding commencing in 2024.
| Fellowship candidate | Administering Organisation |
|---|---|
| Prof Derek Abbott | The University of Adelaide |
| Prof Andrew Baker | The University of New South Wales |
| Prof Gabrielle Belz | The University of Queensland |
| Prof Nathaniel Bindoff | University of Tasmania |
| Prof Alan Collins | The University of Adelaide |
| Prof Yihong Du | The University of New England |
| Prof Christopher Gibson | University of Wollongong |
| Prof Michael Kearney | The University of Melbourne |
| Prof Liza Lim | The University of Sydney |
| Prof James McCaw | The University of Melbourne |
| Prof Andrea Morello | The University of New South Wales |
| Prof Jacqueline Peel | The University of Melbourne |
| Prof Sharon Robinson | University of Wollongong |
| Prof Jeffrey Walker | Monash University |
| Prof Hongxia Wang | Queensland University of Technology |
| Prof Michael Ward | The University of Sydney |
| Prof Thomas Wernberg | The University of Western Australia |
* Biographies for the 17 Australian Laureate Fellows will be available on the ARC website.
Table 2. Application numbers, success rates, requested and allocated funds for approved Australian Laureate Fellowships applications from 2023 to 2024.
| Funding year | Applications considered | Applications approved | Success rate (%) | Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($) | Requested funds over project life for approved applications ($) | Funds allocated over project life for approved applications ($) | Return rate for approved applications (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 119 | 17 | 14.3 | $421,052,923 | $59,951,053 | $53,912,540 | 89.9 |
| 2024 | 128 | 17 | 13.3 | $460,930,538 | $61,366,926 | $58,342,497 | 95.1 |
Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship and Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship
Of the 32 female Australian Laureate Fellowship candidates, 27 applied for a Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship or a Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship.
The recipients of the Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship (awarded to a highly ranked candidate from the Humanities, Arts and Social Science disciplines) and the Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship (awarded to a highly ranked candidate from the Science and Technology disciplines) are provided with additional funding to undertake an ambassadorial role to promote women in research and to mentor early career researchers, particularly women, to encourage them to enter and establish careers in research in Australia.
The assessment for these prestigious Fellowships takes place in two stages. Applicants who have indicated interest in either a Georgina Sweet or Kathleen Fitzpatrick Fellowship must first be successful as an Australian Laureate Fellow. Only when the SAC has recommended them as Australian Laureate Fellows will an applicant be assessed for a Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship or a Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship.
The 2024 recipients of the Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship and Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship are shown in Table 3.
Table 3. 2024 Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship and Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship
| Fellowship Type | Approved candidate | Administering Organisation |
|---|---|---|
| Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship | Prof Hongxia Wang | Queensland University of Technology |
| Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship | Prof Jacqueline Peel | The University of Melbourne |
Table 4. Indicative funds for approved Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024 applications
| Budget item | 2024–2025 | 2025–2026 | 2026–2027 | 2027-2028 | 2028-2029 | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Laureate Fellowship Salary including on-costs | $3,057,280 | $3,057,280 | $3,057,280 | $3,057,280 | $3,057,280 | $15,286,400 |
| ARC Postdoctoral Researchers | $3,754,212 | $3,754,212 | $3,754,212 | $3,754,212 | $3,754,212 | $18,771,060 |
| ARC Postgraduate Researcher | $776,880 | $1,015,920 | $1,015,920 | $1,015,920 | $239,040 | $4,063,680 |
| Project Funding | $4,031,226 | $4,043,661 | $4,099,611 | $4,112,750 | $3,934,109 | $20,221,357 |
| TOTAL | $11,619,598 | $11,871,073 | $11,927,023 | $11,940,162 | $10,984,641 | $58,342,497 |
Outcomes by discipline
A summary of outcomes by discipline panel is shown in Table 5.
Table 5. Application numbers, success rates and requested and allocated funds for Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024 by discipline.
| Discipline * | Applications considered | Applications approved | Success rate (%) | Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($) | Requested funds over project life for approved applications ($) | Funds over project life for approved applications ($) | Return Rate for approved applications (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BSB | 22 | 5 | 22.7 | $79,487,961 | $18,471,602 | $17,697,563 | 95.8 |
| EIC | 35 | 2 | 5.7 | $127,018,684 | $7,444,540 | $7,157,790 | 96.1 |
| HCA | 16 | 2 | 12.5 | $59,774,848 | $7,670,945 | $7,558,560 | 98.5 |
| MPCE | 31 | 7 | 22.6 | $109,594,926 | $24,080,077 | $22,315,087 | 92.7 |
| SBE | 24 | 1 | 4.2 | $85,054,119 | $3,699,762 | $3,613,497 | 97.7 |
| Total | 128 | 17 | 13.3 | $460,930,538 | $61,366,926 | $58,342,497 | 95.1 |
*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 Economics Sciences
Outcomes by Administering Organisation
The Administering Organisations of the 17 applications approved for funding are:
- Monash University (1)
- Queensland University of Technology (1)
- The University of Adelaide (2)
- The University of Melbourne (3)
- The University of New England (1)
- The University of New South Wales (2)
- The University of Queensland (1)
- The University of Sydney (2)
- The University of Western Australia (1)
- University of Tasmania (1)
- University of Wollongong (2)
Career age and gender
Of the 128 Australian Laureate Fellowship candidates in this round, 32 were female, 95 were male and 1 chose not to specify gender. The success rate for female, male and unspecified candidates in this round is 15.6 per cent, 12.6 per cent and 0.0 per cent respectively.
Success rates of Australian Laureate Fellowship candidates by career age and gender in the current Australian Laureate Fellowship round are presented in Figure 1. Candidates who did not provide gender information (0.8 per cent) and candidates who did not specify the date of completion of their PhD or who do not hold a PhD (0 per cent) are not represented in the figure below.
Figure 1. Participation and success rate of Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024 candidate by gender and career age*^
* Career age is calculated as years since PhD. The earliest PhD award date was used where there was more than one PhD.
^ Calculated career age does not take career interruptions into consideration.
Attracting and retaining outstanding researchers
Applications were open to Eligible Organisations to nominate candidates who are world-class researchers of international repute, resident either within Australia or overseas (Table 6).
Table 6. Citizenship/residency status of Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024 candidates and approved Awardees
| Citizenship/residency status | Applications considered | % of Applications considered | Applications approved | Success rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign Nationals | 4 | 3.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Resident Australians | 120
| 93.8 | 17 | 13.3 |
| Returning Australians | 4 | 3.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Total | 128 | 100 | 17 | 13.3 |
Note: All totals and percentages are shown using rounded figures, and as such may not sum.
International collaboration
Among 128 of the applications considered, applicants foreshadowed 605 instances of collaboration with researchers in 72 overseas locations. Of the applications approved for funding, 17 foreshadowed 67 instances of collaboration with researchers in 22 overseas locations (Figure 2).
Figure 2. International collaborations by location in approved Australian Laureate Fellowships 2024 applications*
*The top 9 international collaboration locations are listed in Figure 2 and the remaining are grouped in the ‘Other’ category