Applications open for Small Grants Research Program (Australia)

This includes proposals that address contemporary developments and challenges in higher education equity policy, practice, and evaluation, including but not limited to, issues raised and discussed as part of the Australian Universities Accord Review of Higher Education.

Focus Areas

• Produce research that can be applied nationally and/or be adopted by universities, including outcomes that are potentially portable across institutions and scalable across Australian higher education.
• Contribute to the existing research and practice knowledge base on equity issues in Australian higher education, building on previous research undertaken or funded by ACSES.
• Examine issues of the cumulative and compounding nature of the effects of disadvantage on access, participation and success in Australian higher education.
• Employ innovative use of existing data sources or identify and use new data sources in program design and evaluation.
• Take a comparative and/or interdisciplinary approach to understand equity issues.

Funding Information

• Grants will be funded for up to $50,000 (excluding GST) per project.
• Successful applicants will be required to enter into a contract with Curtin University, the host institution for ACSES, of up to 12 months duration, commencing in January 2026.

Expected Outputs

• ACSES is seeking proposals that include a detailed outline of the research project and projected outputs.
• An important aspect of ACSES’s research program is the dissemination of research findings to appropriate audiences.
• Outputs from the research project must include a report and other research dissemination formats that can engage stakeholders and be translated into equity policy and practice.
• A commitment to work with ACSES regarding dissemination ideas and activities for the project is also required, including the acknowledgement of ACSES funding in any subsequent publications and output from the research.

Eligibility Criteria

• ACSES has established the G&FC to provide oversight for its nationally competitive grants and fellowship program.
• The G&FC includes academics, senior managers, and equity practitioners from a range of Australian universities.
• In relation to the Small Grants Research Program, the G&FC will evaluate all proposals against the selection criteria.

Selection Criteria

• Proposed Research Project
• Research Questions, Methodology and Timeframe
• Research Experience, Expertise and Related Research
• Project Quality Assurance and Risk Management
• Value for Money

Application Requirements

• Cover Page
• Research project details
• Research experience and expertise
• Funding request
• Funding justification
• Quality assurance and project management
• Risk management

For more information, visit ACSES.