Australian Research Council

This article is about the non-medical research funding body in Australia. For the medical research agency, see National Health and Medical Research Council.

The Australian Research Council (ARC) is a Commonwealth entity established as an independent body under the Australian Research Council Act 2001,^[4] reporting to the Minister for Education.

Australian Research Council

Council overview
Formed	2001; 24 years ago (2001)
Jurisdiction	Australian Government
Headquarters	Canberra
Employees	140[1]
Annual budget	A$934.6 million (2023–24)[1], [a]
Minister responsible	Jason Clare, Minister for Education[2]
Council executive	Professor Ute Roessner, CEO[3]
Key document	Australian Research Council Act 2001
Website	arc.gov.au

The ARC's purpose^[5][6] is to help shape Australian research for the nation's economic, social, environmental and cultural benefit:

1. enabling research,
2. evaluating the excellence, impact and depth of Australian research,
3. providing advice and research grants services, and
4. supporting research integrity and promoting ethical research.

The ARC supports early-stage research through the National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP), which supports approximately $1 billion per year^[1] of research to individuals, teams and large-scale centres in all disciplines except for medical.

Since 2011, ARC has awarded the annual Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship and the Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship, which are research fellowships for female Australian and international researchers, intended to support innovative research programs and mentor early career researchers.

History and governance

The ARC was founded in 2001 under the Australian Research Council Act 2001^[4] It is directly descended from the 1965 Australian Research Grants Committee.^[7] As of 2025^[update], the agency reports to the Minister for Education.^[2]

Research integrity

Management of research integrity in Australia is a shared responsibility that involves the Australian Research Council (ARC), the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and a range of other institutions and entities.^[8][9]

There is no single Commonwealth agency with regulatory powers for the management or oversight of research integrity in Australia. Responsibility for the various aspects of research integrity is shared among institutions that conduct research, funding agencies, agencies such as Ombudsman Offices in the jurisdictions, Crime and Corruption Commissions in jurisdictions and the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA).^[8][9][10]

Functional areas

National Competitive Grants Program

The ARC funds research and researchers under the National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP). Funding opportunities administered by the ARC include the Australian Laureate Fellowship.^[11]

On 25 February 2025, the ARC released the Discussion Paper: A New Plan for ARC-Funded Research, proposing major reforms to the National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP). Developed following extensive 2024 consultations, the paper outlines a redesigned scheme structure, streamlined processes, stronger support for early career researchers, and a greater focus on knowledge generation and collaboration. The review aims to ensure the NCGP remains innovative, aligned with national research priorities, and delivers clear public value. Submissions are now closed, with a final report due in Q3 2025.^[12]

Research Insights Capability

The ARC is developing a new approach research evaluation, designed to be a useful tool to build understanding, recognise excellent Australian research and celebrate its outstanding achievements. It's being referred to as the ARC's Research Insights Capability.^[13]

Gender equity

The ARC has awarded research fellowships for female Australian and international researchers and research leaders to build Australia's research capacity, undertake innovative research programs and mentor early career researchers since 2011. The Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellowship is awarded to a candidate from the humanities, arts and social science disciplines, and the Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship is awarded to a candidate from the science and technology disciplines.^[14]

Year	Kathleen Fitzpatrick Fellow	Georgina Sweet Fellow
2011	Pippa Norris[15]	Mahananda Dasgupta[16]
2012	Susan O'Connor[17]	Nalini Joshi[18]
2013	Glenda Sluga[19]	Tanya Monro[20]
2014	Joy Damousi[21]	Veena Sahajwalla,[22] Kate Smith-Miles[23]
2015	Anne Orford[24]	Leann Tilley[24]
2016	Adrienne Stone,[25] Sharon Parker[26]	Branka Vucetic[27]
2017	Ann McGrath[28]	Michelle Coote[28]
2018	Marilyn Fleer[29]	Christine Beveridge[30]
2019	Lynette Russell[31]	Belinda Medlyn[32]
2020	Maureen Dollard[33]	Catherine Lovelock[34]
2021	Sundhya Pahuja[35]	Yun Liu[36]
2022	Larissa Behrendt[37]	Joanne Etheridge[38]
2023	Janeen Baxter[39]	Catherine Stampfl[40]
2024	Jacqueline Peel[41]	Hongxia Wang[42]
2025	Felicity Meakins[43]	Anya Reading[44]

See also

• Australia portal

• National Health and Medical Research Council
• Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)
• Australian Competitive Grants Register

Notes

1. This value represents the funding allocated to the ARC for the purposes of research grants, and does not include the operational budget of the agency.