Establishment Grants for ARC DECRAs
Critical Dates
Each faculty has its own process for Establishment Grant requests and C2 Administering Organisation Letter of Support review.
The faculty dates and details for the DE27 DECRA round are listed below:
| Faculty | Faculty Establishment Grant Due Date | Notes | Contact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning (ABP) | N/A | Establishment Grants ABP applicants may request an establishment grants up to $50,000. There is no application process for establishment grants for ABP applicants, however details for use of the grant should be included in sections C2, D1, D3, B4 of the application as per RIC guidance. C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter The Administering Organisation Letter of Support will be reviewed by RIC. Please upload the draft letter onto DE27 Qualtrics form by 10am, Monday 9 February 2026.
If you do not want a RIC or ExpERT review, please send a Word document of your C2 letter to RIC by the above date. | Matthew Scamporlino |
| Faculty of Arts (ARTS) | Monday 9 February 2026 | Establishment Grants All Faculty of Arts DE27 applicants who registered their Notice of Intent and who have engaged with Faculty and University application processes and deadlines will be recommended by the Faculty for a $25,000 EG. Applicants should include the EG funding in their DE27 budget (Parts D1 and D3) and in their Administering Organisation Letter of Support (C2). C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter The Administering Organisation Letter of Support will be reviewed by RIC. Please upload draft letter onto DE27 Qualtrics form due 10am, Monday 9 February 2026. If you do not want a RIC or ExpERT review, please send a Word document of your C2 letter to RIC by the above date. | Mitchell Mollison |
| Faculty of Business and Economics (FBE) | Wednesday 11 February 2026 | Establishment Grants Applicants should apply for the Establishment Grant (up to $50,000) via FBE's online Smartygrants form by 12pm Wednesday 11 February 2026. FBE Research PSU will arrange approval by the Head of Department/ Associate Dean Research. C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter The Administering Organisation Letter of Support will be reviewed by the Faculty. Applicants please email the final draft of their Support Letter using the RIC-provided template to fbe-research@unimelb.edu.au by 12pm, Wednesday 11 February 2026 or earlier. Please contact Billy Chang (03 8344 9171) or Sylvia Schaffarczyk (03 8344 1503) at fbe-research@unimelb.edu.au for questions about the Letter. | |
| Faculty of Education (FoE) | Friday 13 February 2026 | Establishment Grants Contact Jan for information and instructions. C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter Reviewed by the faculty. Please send your draft C2 letter to Jan by Friday 13 February 2026. | Jan Seesod foe-research@unimelb.edu.au |
| Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology (FEIT) | Monday 19 January 2026 | Establishment Grants DECRA Establishment Grant request is included in the FEIT DE27 Endorsement Form. All faculty-endorsed DE27 applicants are recommended for the DECRA Establishment Grant. C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter FEIT Research Services will prepare C2 Letters of Support for all faculty-endorsed DE27 applicants. C2 Worksheet is due Monday 9 January. | Jessica Finlay and Anita Tolpinrud |
| Faculty of Fine Arts and Music (FFAM) | Monday 16 February 2026 | Establishment Grants Please contact Bernardo Jarrin to discuss C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter C2 Admin Org Letter of Support will be reviewed by the Faculty. Please send a copy of your letter to Bernardo Jarrin at fineartsmusic-research@unimelb.edu.au for Faculty review by Monday 16 February. | |
| Melbourne Law School (MLS) | N/A | Establishment Grants All MLS DECRA applicants receive a $45K Establishment Grant. C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter The Administering Organisation Letter of Support will be reviewed by RIC. Please upload draft letter onto DE27 Qualtrics form due 10am, Monday 9 February 2026. If you do not want a RIC or ExpERT review, please send a Word document of your C2 letter to RIC by the above date. | Mas Generis |
| Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences
(MDHS) | Monday 9 February 2026 | Establishment Grants Applicants must complete the MDHS Establishment Grant request form by Monday 9 February. C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter The Administering Organisation Letter of Support will be reviewed by RIC. Please upload draft letter onto DE27 Qualtrics form due 10am, Monday 9 February 2026.
If you do not want a RIC or ExpERT review, please send a Word document of your C2 letter to RIC by the above date. | Lin Tan |
| Faculty of Science | N/A | Establishment Grants All FoS applicants will be allocated establishment grants of $50,000, conditional upon receiving a DECRA fellowship. There is no application process for establishment grants for FoS applicants. C2 Administering Organisation Support Letter Applicants must use the Faculty’s C2 template. Please contact science-research@unimelb.edu.au for the template. Applicants will need to submit their draft C2 letters to the Faculty of Science Research Office by 10am, Monday 9th February 2026. | Aditi Misra science-research@unimelb.edu.au |
Overview
The Establishment Grant aims to:
- Support successful ARC DECRA fellows in establishing their research program at the University of Melbourne
- Enhance the candidate’s competitiveness when applying for the ARC DECRA scheme
Faculties may set their own objectives and priorities in determining which candidates will be nominated for Establishment Grant support. Fellows must apply to their host faculty for Establishment Grant support through whatever process the faculty deems appropriate. An Establishment Grant will only be awarded to candidates whose ARC DECRA application is successful.
Funding
An Establishment Grant comprises matching (1:1) financial contributions from Chancellery Research and Enterprise and the applicant's Academic Division.
The standard Establishment Grant will be $50,000 with the minimum amount of $12,500 per project required from the applicant’s Academic Division to ensure the Total Establishment Grant package has an impact.
Chancellery does not impose any restrictions on how the Chancellery funding can be used, as long as it directly supports the DECRA and their project. Faculties may enforce restrictions on the use of funding as appropriate.
How to apply
Total requested Establishment Grant support
The DECRA applicant should include details of the total requested Establishment Grant support in their ARC application in the following sections:- C2: Statement by the Administering Organisation – include details of the total financial support being provided by the Admin Org.
- D1: What is the proposed budget for the project? – in the Administering Organisation column, list the specific items which will be funded by the Establishment Grant OR include a single line for 'Establishment Grant support' under the 'Other' subheading.
- D3: Details of non-ARC contributions – describe how the UoM Establishment Grant support will contribute to achieving the aims of the project.
- B4: Research Load (non-ARC Grants and Research) – list the Establishment Grant as a requested application.
Submit application to faculty
Submit your Establishment Grant request to your faculty as per the faculty specific instructions above.Faculty submits application to RIC
Faculty submits Establishment Grant request to RIC who then seeks approval for funding matching from Chancellery. RIC individually emails each applicant a confirmation that their Establishment Grant request has been approved. This approval is typically sent along with the approved C2 Statement just prior to the final internal application submission deadline.
Contacts
- Establishment Grants for ARC DECRAs questions and primary email
- RIC-ARCgrants@unimelb.edu.au
Key contacts
| Leah Sullivan | +61 3 8344 2012 |