Researcher update

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Professor Mary Spongberg
Professor Mary Spongberg Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor

Research@Southern Cross University

Hello Colleagues

Following feedback from researchers, we have decided to produce two separate communications from the Research portfolio – one to share our great research stories, and one to keep our researchers abreast of all the important dates, new processes and other operational updates from our teams.

This Research newsletter is the first new monthly communication carrying only factual advice and updates such as procedural changes, new programs, grants requirements and schedules, and Ethics and Library news.

Our researchers, a separate newsletter featuring stories that will continue build our narrative around research impact, will follow in about a fortnight.

Look out for both monthly editions to ensure you’re across any changes, processes or opportunities relevant to research, as well as keeping up-to-date with news from our Research teams.

Professor Mary Spongberg
Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor

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From the Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor's Office

Changes to ARC Grant Calendar 2024-2025

The Australian Research Council recently released an updated Grants Calendar for 2024/2025.

Southern Cross University researchers who intend to apply for an ARC grant, or are collaborating on an ARC grant being led by another organisation, must register their grant/s via email with the SCU Grants and Contracts Team by the grant application registration deadlines.

ARC Scheme / Round name SCU grant application registration deadline ARC closing date
Linkage Projects (LP24 Round 2) 26 June 2024 17 September 2024
Australian Laureate Fellowships (FL25) 26 June 2024 2 October 2024
Future Fellowships (FT25) 8 July 2024 31 October 2024

Industry Fellowships - Early Career (IE25), Mid-Career

(IM25) and Laureate Fellowships (IL25)

 8 July 2024 12 November 2024
Discovery Projects - Expression of Interest (DP26 EOI) 12 August 2024 13 December 2024
Discovery Projects (DP26) - Full Application N/A 16 April 2025
Discovery Indigenous (IN26) 2 September 2024 20 February 2025
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DE26) 2 September 2024 18 March 2025
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LE26) 30 September 2024 9 April 2025

ARC Scheme / Round name SCU grant application registration deadline ARC closing date
ARC Centres of Excellence - Expression of Interest

(CE26 EOI)

 26 June 2024 8 September 2024
ARC Centres of Excellence (CE26) -Full applications

N/A

 20 March 2025
Industry Transformation Research Program

(IC25 & IH25)

26 June 2024

 26 November 2024

Please note that only registered applicants will be sent further information about these schemes and be supported by SCU to progress ARC grants to submission in the upcoming rounds.

While the ARC has given assurance that any changes to scheme timing will not disadvantage applicants, please check the calendar carefully to ensure you’re across the changes and how they might affect you and your research schedules.

You can find out more from: www.arc.gov.au/funding-research/ARC_grants-calendar or please email any questions to the SCU Grants and Contracts Team: grants.contracts@scu.edu.au

To improve service levels, efficiencies and processes in the Grants Office, we’re implementing changes to the process for seeking approval to include SCU institutional cash contributions from the Office of the Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor (SDVC) in research grant applications.

To ensure a coordinated approach to approving, recording, and implementing these grant contributions, the following changes have come into effect. When seeking SCU institutional cash contributions, please follow the process outlined below.

How do I seek approval?

All requests for SDVC-Office cash support for grant applications should be made directly to Wendy Scott, Director, Research via email: wendy.scott@scu.edu.au and copied to grants.contracts@scu.edu.au

When do I seek approval?

As soon as possible. Requests should be submitted a minimum of four weeks (and preferably eight weeks) in advance of the external grant deadline, where feasible.

Please note that last-minute requests for institutional support are unlikely to be approved.

What details must be included?

General information:

  • Name of lead SCU researcher
  • Other SCU researchers on grant
  • Lead Organisation (ie SCU or other)
  • Other partner organisations on grant
  • Funding Body and Scheme
  • Title of project
  • Grant duration
  • Grant deadline
  • Have you received the following approvals:
    • the ‘in-principle’ approval of your ADR to apply for this grant?: Yes / No
    • approval to submit this request for SDVC Office funding support?:Yes / No 

Budget information (please indicate whether amounts are ‘approximate’ or ‘final’):

Questions Answers (please insert) Notes
  • Value of grant - Total amount of the grant sought from the funding body?
  • How much of this funding will SCU retain (inclusive of infrastructure and Faculty fees)?

Amount sought from funder:

Amount retained by SCU:

 
  • SCU cash contribution – how much cash funding are you requesting from the SDVC Office for the grant?

 

 
  • Purpose - What will the SCU cash contribution be spent on? (ie item/s and value/s)

 

 
  • Stipends - Are you seeking an SCU-funded PhD stipend? (specify number of stipends)
  • If so, have you received ‘in-principle’ approval via email from Prof Les Christidis (Dean, Graduate School)?

 

 
  • Faculty support sought - Faculty cash and in-kind contributions (ie items and value/s):
  • Please detail for each Faculty separately (if relevant):

Faculty cash:

 

Faculty in-kind:

 
  • Partner organisation cash / in-kind contributions (if known):
  • Please detail for each organisation separately:

 

 
  • Other – please include any other information of relevance to this request:

 

 
  • Justification – please detail the reasons why this funding request should be supported by the SDVC Office:

 

 

If you have any questions regarding the above, please contact grants.contracts@scu.edu.au

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Updates to the High-Impact Publications Support Scheme

The High-Impact Publication Support Scheme supports our HDR Candidate and Early Career Researchers' competitiveness, to build our citations and to enhance our rankings success.

The OSDVC (Office of the Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor) is sponsoring a scheme to enable HDR candidate and ECR's first-authorship on articles [C1s] in journals from the Nature and Science portfolio or similarly high impact journals for other disciplines. 

Further details available at Research Fund Opportunities

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Ethics Office news

We need YOU to build SCU’s ethical research culture!

The Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) approves all of the University’s proposed research involving human participants – but we need your academic perspectives to ensure our research has a positive impact locally and globally.

To do this, we need researchers (as defined in Section 5.1.30(b) of the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research 2023) to join the HREC.

You’re eligible to join if you:

  • are a full-time academic staff member with a teaching/research workload
  • have recent human research ethics experience and an understanding of the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research 2023
  • have demonstrated ability to apply research methodologies and review applications in accordance with the National Statement

In your role as a HREC member you’d:

  • assess the ethical acceptability of research proposals and attend a monthly three-hour meeting at a Southern Cross University campus and/or online on a Monday afternoon
  • maintain this commitment for the three-year tenure of your membership, and undertake training and professional development related to human research ethics
  • review and provide recommendations on human research based on your expertise and in accordance with Section 5 of the National Statement 2023

Induction training will be provided to successful applicants before your first meeting.

I’m interested! How do I apply?

Please email:

  • a covering letter addressing the criteria
  • what you’d bring to the HREC, and why you’re interested in working in human research ethics
  • a two-page CV
  • letter of support from your Faculty/College Dean or head of work unit

to: ethics.lismore@scu.edu.au by 30 August 2024

If you require any further information, please contact the Research Ethics Officer on: ethics.lismore@scu.edu.au

Next Human Research Ethics submission dates

Here are the next Ethics Committee meeting and submission cut-off dates – the full 2024 meeting schedule is on the Southern Cross University website.

Human Research Ethics Committee
Meeting date Submission cut-off date
Monday 2 September COB Monday 19 August
Tuesday 8 October COB Monday 23 September

Please note that all high-risk applications must be reviewed at one of the scheduled meetings by the full HREC. For enquiries, please email: ethics.lismore@scu.edu.au

Low-Risk Committee
Meeting date Submission cut-off date
Monday 12 August COB Thursday 1 August
Monday 26 August COB Thursday 15 August
Monday 9 September COB Thursday 29 August
SDGs logo pic

Library News

What's new in Libraries?

Research plays an essential part in achieving the Sustainability Development Agenda, and leveraging the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) can enhance your research impact.

The Library has created the Researcher Essentials Library Guide to help you align your research with the UN SDGs. The steps to follow are:

  • Familiarise yourself with the 17 Goals
  • Identify which goals relate to your research areas

In Scopus, SDGs when assigned are automatically listed beside the abstract and below the Author or Indexed keywords; see if Scopus has assigned SDGs to your published works

  • Connect your research to specific SDG’s by including related keywords in the title, abstract, and author keywords of your future manuscript submissions
  • Expand your collaborations: interdisciplinary research will help address complex challenges to meet the sustainable agenda
  • Quantify the impact of your research by tracking the metrics (citations, views, downloads, and policy influence) of your research outputs that have contributed to the attainment of the SDGs; and highlight these in your CV, grant applications and reports