Media Release

Tuesday, 31 October 2000

Adelaide University has again emerged as a strong national performer in the latest round of Australian Research Council (ARC) funding grants.

Details of funding announced today by the ARC show Adelaide has reaffirmed its position as a leading national research university, with a total of $9.4 million in new project funding received towards research and infrastructure over the next three years.

Adelaide's success rate with grant applications also ranks exceptionally well against other Australian universities in the Group of Eight (Go8).

Funding announced today for Adelaide University includes:

• $4.9 million in Large ARC grants for 31 research projects
• $1.6 million for 14 Strategic Partnerships with Industry (SPIRT) projects
• $1.5 million to fund seven Research Fellowships
• $1.3 million towards research infrastructure, equipment and facilities based at Adelaide University.

On a national level, Adelaide's success rate with funding applications is extremely favourable against the other major research universities, and was above the national average in every project grant scheme.

Our success with Large Grants was 29.8%, placing Adelaide third (behind ANU and Sydney), and Adelaide was second only to Sydney in its success with Research Fellowship applications (21.9%).

At a State level, Adelaide received 31 of the 43 Large ARC Grants awarded in South Australia, 14 of the 35 SPIRT grants, and seven of the eight Research Fellowships.

"Despite the growing amount of competition for ARC funding, and given that the lack of public funding for research remains an ongoing issue, it's extremely pleasing to see that Adelaide University has again performed strongly on a national level," says the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mary O'Kane.

"Adelaide's success in attracting ARC funding shows that our reputation for excellent research will continue well into the 21st century."

Projects funded at Adelaide University in this latest round of grants will include research into biological and agricultural sciences, biotechnology, engineering, the environment, mathematics, agriculture, and the humanities and social sciences.