Our research is supported by income from a range of sources including philanthropic donors, government funding and research grants, support from industry and VU's internal research grants scheme.

External grants and funding programs 

There are a range of government and non-government schemes available to fund research in Australia.

Australian Research Council

The Australian Research Council (ARC) supports the highest quality research and research training through national competition in all fields of science, social sciences and the humanities. The ARC brokers partnerships between researchers and industry, government, community organisations and the international community. ARC grants are divided into three categories:

• ARC Discovery grants are research projects that can be undertaken by individual researchers or research teams.
• ARC Linkage grants support collaborative research and development projects between higher education organisations and other organisations (including industry) to enable the application of advanced knowledge to problems.
• Other ARC programs including Centres for Excellence, Special Research Centres and the Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities schemes

National Health and Medical Research Council

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is Australia's peak body supporting health and medical research, and developing health advice for the Australian community, health professionals and governments. NHMRC funding provides opportunities for researchers to work with health organisations so research results can be better tailored and applied to health care practice and policy. It also provides enabling grants for facilities and equipment to enhance research, funding for research fellowships, training (postdoctoral) fellowships, career development awards, and postgraduate research scholarships.

Other Australian competitive grants

The Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research provides competitive research grants to universities in Australia. The  Australian Competitive Grants Register gives a full listing of research funding schemes that drives the allocation of Research Infrastructure Block Grants each year. 

Cooperative Research Centres

The Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research's Cooperative Research Centre Program is also a major contributor to research funding in Australia. The Program links researchers with industry and supports research that can be used, as well as education programs that produce industry-ready graduates. 

Finding external grants and funding opportunities

Philanthropy Australia provides a range of funding opportunities for Australian researchers.

You can also search for an external grant or view our grants calendar for international, national and state-based grant opportunities. 

Alternatively, VU staff and students can search for government and private funding opportunities on the Sponsored Programs Information Network (SPIN) database or set up a profile and subscribe to research-info@lists.vu.edu.au to receive email notification when new grant opportunities become available.

Internal research grants and other financial support for research 

VU has a range of internal grant and funding schemes to support research projects and researcher development. These schemes include:

• substantial investment in Priority Research Innovation Projects to build research strength and capabilities in several identified areas - including sustainable water use, diabetes, tourism, sport performance, exercise science and active living, diversity and wellbeing, competitive advantage in logistics and supply chain management
• Research ‘Start-up’ Fund for New Staff to help newly appointed academics establish a research career at VU
• Out of Cycle Grants to enable researchers to respond to new funding opportunities as they arise
• Near Miss Grants to partially support research projects that almost obtained a substantial external competitive grant
• Researcher Development Grants Scheme for early career researchers demonstrating high research capacity, and newly appointed staff without research funding
• Grant Preparation Support Scheme provides grants to assist researchers prepare applications for external research funding involving two or more institutions or significant university collaboration with industry.
• Research Infrastructure Block Grants to enhance the development and maintenance of research infrastructure
• Faculty of Health Engineering and Science Collaborative Research Grant Scheme
• Postdoctoral Fellowship Program which recruits researchers to work on projects within VU’s areas of research strength

Contact us

The Office for Research provides expert advice and support to researchers seeking internal and external funding for research.

If you would like further information contact the Research grants team in the Office for Research.