2019 Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Scheme

Guidelines and Conditions of Award

BACKGROUND
The Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowships were established in 2008 to support excellence in research in
areas of research strength at Deakin University. The Fellowships are designed to support early career researchers by
enhancing research capacity in key areas in order to build the next generation of nationally competitive researchers.

SCHEME OBJECTIVES
• To recruit or retain early career researchers who demonstrate outstanding track records relative to
opportunity
• To support talented early career researchers whose areas of research interest directly align with research
priorities at Deakin University
• To further innovative research in areas of strategic importance

LEVEL AND PERIOD OF FUNDING

The Fellowship provides 2 years of salary support at Level A Step 6 in Year 1 ($84,783 per annum) and Level A Step 7
in Year 2 ($87,806 per annum). Successful Fellows also receive a one-off research support grant of $10,000 which
must be used for direct research costs such as lab consumables, computer equipment and domestic or overseas travel.
(All costs must relate specifically to the research project).

Fellowships are offered on a full-time or part-time basis. The part-time fellowships are only available to researchers
who have carer responsibilities or personal circumstances such as illness. Applicants who wish to undertake the
Fellowship part-time must do so at a minimum time fraction of 60% (0.6 FTE). As the duration of the award is limited
to 2 years in total, any residual salary funds must be used to employ a Research Assistant (or similar) to ensure the
project can be completed in this period .

Fellows must be physically based at the University for the duration of the Fellowship. This is a mandatory requirement
and is non-negotiable as are all other terms and conditions.

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
1. Candidate – 40%
a. Excellence in terms of track record relative to opportunity, including:
i. The number, quality and influence of publications and their authorship contributions
ii. The number of grants held and the significance of their investigator role in current or previously
funded grants, fellowships, prizes and awards
iii. The number and type of speaking invitations at national or international conferences
iv. Research impact, including community engagement, developing intellectual property, research
commercialisation and/or contributions to policy or practice.
v. Their exposure to and experience in undergraduate and/or HDR student supervision
vi. Their contribution to and participation in peer review for grant schemes and/or journal publications
vii. Capacity to undertake the proposed research
viii. Other evidence of emerging leadership

2. Project Quality, Feasibility & Benefit – 50%

a. The excellence and significance of the project including:
i. the research addresses an important and significant problem
ii. the potential exists to produce important or translational outcomes
b. The feasibility of the proposal including:

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 i. The conceptual/theoretical framework is innovative and original
ii. The aims, concepts, methods and results are likely to advance knowledge
iii. The Project’s design and the candidate’s experience create confidence in the timely and
successful completion of the Project
c. The potential benefit of the project including:
i. The project will produce significant new knowledge and/or innovative economic, commercial,
environmental, social and or/cultural benefit
ii. The project has the potential to lead to further ground breaking initiatives

3. Alignment & Research Environment - 10%

a. The candidate’s potential to contribute to and develop areas of research strength including:
i. The candidate demonstrates: how they envisage working within the research environment;
how their research project fits and how it will add to the research being undertaken in that
area; how their project will contribute to the objectives of the area and; who they aim to
collaborate with in the area
b. The alignment of the proposed research with existing activity (assessment based on the case made by
the host Faculty/Institute or SRC) including:
i. There exists a supportive and high quality research environment for the candidate and their
project
ii. The necessary facilities exist to ensure the successful conduct of the project
iii. The host area provides exceptional collaborative and mentoring opportunities for the
applicant

ELIGIBILITY
Applications are open to both Deakin University and external applicants subject to the criteria listed below.

PhD Award Date

Applicants must have been awarded a PhD 1 on or after 1 January 2015 or, commensurate with a period of significant
career interruption, must not have more than 3.5 years FTE postdoctoral experience.

Applicants must hold a Doctorate of Philosophy in a relevant field of research or must have submitted their thesis by
the Full Application closing date (refer to the Key Dates section). In the latter case, formal evidence of PhD submission
(eg. confirmation of submission on University letterhead) must be provided as an attachment to the Full Application.
Applicants should carefully note the Conditions of the Award pertaining to the offer of a Fellowship as all Fellowship
offers are contingent on the applicant providing evidence of having qualified for the award of a PhD by 31 December
2018.

Career Interruptions
Career interruption can include maternity leave, parental leave, carer’s responsibility, major illness or injury.
Interruptions must involve either a continuous absence from work for periods of 28 calendar days or more and/or a
long-term partial return to work that has been formalised with the applicant’s employer. Applicants must document
any career interruptions relevant to their eligibility in the table provided in the Expression of Interest form. If invited
to submit a Full Application, applicants will need to provide documentary evidence in English or an authorised English
translation of such documents to substantiate claimed career interruptions.

NB: Unemployment or non-research employment are not considered as career interruptions but can be detailed in
Section A.4 Other of the EOI application form.

1
PhD award date is defined as the date on the testamur.

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Examples & Notes re Career Interruptions:
1. An applicant awarded a PhD on 1 January 2014 can demonstrate they were on parental leave for 12 months is
eligible.
2. An applicant awarded a PhD on 01 January 2014 can demonstrate a career interruption of 6 months is ineligible.

Citizenship
Applicants can be Australian or non-Australian citizens. The appointment of Fellows who do not hold Australian
citizenship or permanent residency status will be subject to Deakin University receiving sponsorship for residence
approval from the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection and the recipient being granted an
appropriate visa. (Refer also “Conditions of Award”). Some applicants may be affected by Australia’s Autonomous
Sanctions requirements. (Refer to “Conditions of Award”)

Existing or Past Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellows

A past or present Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellow cannot hold a second or subsequent Alfred Deakin
Postdoctoral Research Fellowship. There is no provision within this scheme for the extension of existing Alfred Deakin
Postdoctoral Research Fellowships.

Other Deakin Employees

Applicants currently employed at Deakin University (other than existing or past Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research
Fellows) are eligible to apply if they meet all other eligibility requirements. Deakin University applicants with any
outstanding reports to any funding body or for any internal schemes are ineligible to apply.

APPLICATION PROCESS
The application process consists of two stages:
1. Expression of Interest (EOI)
2. Full application and referee reports (by invitation i.e. successful EOI applicants only)

Expression of Interest (Part A)

Applicants should:
1. Determine which Faculty/Institute/SRC aligns most closely with their research interests by sourcing
information on the Faculties/Institutes and SRCs and contacting the most appropriate area to discuss their
application (refer to the Web Links and Contact Details section below).
2. Complete and submit an EOI (Part A)
1. Applicants must follow the submission instructions on the EOI form and identify a preferred supervisor
based on the alignment of their research interests and area of expertise.
3. Submit the completed EOI form to research-grants@deakin.edu.au on or before the due date (refer to Key
Dates section)
1. Only one EOI form per applicant is accepted.
2. The EOI will be forwarded to the nominated Faculty/Institute/SRC for review and assessment.
3. Late applications will not be accepted

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Full Application (Parts B and C)
If an applicant is invited to submit a full application they will be sent a copy of the Full Application form by email.

Applicants should:
1. Complete the Full Application and return it to research-grants@deakin.edu.au on or before the due date
(refer to Key Dates section)
• Applicants should ensure that the proposal can be easily understood by academics outside their
discipline area as the assessment process may include assessors from a range of research disciplines
• NB: Late applications will not be accepted
2. Request a referee report from each of their nominated referees (maximum two)
• Reports must be completed using the 2019 ADPRF Referee report template (refer to the Further
Information and Web Links section below)

Referees should:

1. Submit their statements to research-grants@deakin.edu.au on or before the full application due date (refer
to Key Dates section)
• It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that their referees submit the statements by the due
date

Application Formatting Requirements

The following formatting specifications are compulsory. Failure to comply with any of these instructions may render
your application ineligible.

Application Templates: EOIs and full applications must be prepared using the 2019 templates
• Do not alter page formats, margins, line and character spacing, or font type and sizes
• Do not add attachments other than those requested

Attachments: Font size should be 11 point Calibri margins should be 2cm on all sides and line spacing set to single.

PDF: The word templates should be converted to pdf and not scanned. The application must not exceed 2 Mb in size.

Signatures: Where signatures are required, electronic (jpeg or tiff) signatures may be inserted in the Word templates.
• Do not use the ‘Sign & Certify’ function in Adobe. If electronic signatures are not available, the page may be
printed, signed and scanned as a pdf, then inserted into the pdf template

False or Misleading Information

All information provided in the EOI or full application including publication data and the status of a PhD qualification
must be current at the time of submission of the EOI/full application. If Deakin University considers that an application
contains false or misleading information, the application will be excluded from further consideration or, if an offer has
been made, the offer will be withdrawn.

NB: Those applying for a 2019 Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship who have requested fellowship
support 2 from other sources may submit the same project to the Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship
scheme, provided full disclosure is made under Part B (Research Support) in the full application form.

2
Fellowship support includes, but is not limited to, any NHMRC Fellowship scheme, the ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award or other forms of
funding that provide salary support for the recipient.

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Acknowledgement of Receipt
Deakin Research will acknowledge receipt of all EOI’s, Full Applications and Referee Statements by return email to the
sender. We will attempt to do this within two working days of receiving the document.

If an applicant wishes to check whether a referee has submitted a statement, they should contact their referee.

If you do not receive an Acknowledgement of Receipt for your EOI or Full Application within two working days, please
send a “Request for Confirmation of Receipt of EOI or Full Application [your surname]” to research-
grants@deakin.edu.au . Applicants are advised to retain a copy of their application. Please note: the first electronic
submission will be considered as the final version of your EOI/full application; subsequent submissions will not be
accepted.

ASSESSMENT PROCESS
Expression of Interest (EOI)
1. EOI’s will be assessed for competitiveness and alignment by the relevant Faculty, Institute or SRC.
a. The proposed supervisor, nominated by the applicant, may be consulted as part of the EOI assessment
to comment on the competitiveness of the candidate and their research as well as their future
potential
b. Faculties/Institutes or SRCs may ask applicants to participate in a brief interview via SKYPE (or similar)
as part of the EOI shortlisting process.
2. Successful EOI applicants will be invited to submit a full application
3. Unsuccessful EOI applicants will be notified of the outcome
a. Only applicants assessed as being competitive at the EOI stage will be invited to submit a full
application

Full Application Review

Full applications will be assessed against the selection criteria by the relevant Faculty or the Institute for Frontier
Materials (IFM) in consultation with their associated Strategic Research Centres and Institutes. Applications may
undergo further assessment by the University Research Advisory Committee Assessments Sub-Committee (URAC ASC).

OUTCOMES
Successful Applications
If an applicant is successful they will be notified by email – this constitutes an “informal” offer from Deakin Research.
If an applicant accepts the “informal” offer, a “formal” letter of offer will be issued by the Deakin University Human
Resources Division. Only the Human Resources Division can issue formal employment offers and employment
contracts. Successful applicants should not resign from any existing position until a “formal” offer is accepted and
signed and its receipt acknowledged by the University via the Human Resources Division.

Unsuccessful Applications
Unsuccessful applicants will be notified by email. Due to the number of applications we cannot provide individual
feedback to applicants.

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FURTHER INFORMATION AND WEB LINKS
Relevant documentation and information is available at http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/support-for-
researchers/find-funding/deakin-university-funding/adprf

For queries or clarification on any aspect of this scheme please email research-grants@deakin.edu.au

KEY DATES
Date Event

Monday 14 May 2018 2019 Round opens

EOI closes – email EOI to: research-grants@deakin.edu.au
Sunday 24 June 2018 (AEST)
Late EOIs will not be accepted.
Host SRCs/Faculties/Institutes assess EOIs & send results to Deakin Research-
By Monday 23 July 2018
Grants
Deakin Research – Grants invites competitive applicants to submit a full
By Friday 27 July 2018
application. Applicants will be sent the full application form by email
Full application closes – email application and referee reports to
Sunday 2 September2018
research-grants@deakin.edu.au
(AEST)
Late applications will not be accepted.
From Monday 10 September
Assessment
2018
Mid - Late October 2018
Applicants notified of outcome by Deakin Research – Grants
(tentative)

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WEB LINKS AND CONTACT DETAILS
Further information on research within each Faculty/Institute/SRC is available via the links provided in each table:

List of Contacts: Faculties & Institute for Frontier Materials

Faculty Contact details Further Information on Faculty research areas

Arts & Education artsed-research@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/arts-ed/research

Business & Law blresdev@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/buslaw
Health healthrs@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/health/faculty-research
Science, Engineering & Built Environment sebe-research@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/sebe
Institute for Frontier Materials (IFM) robin.t@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/ifm

List of Contacts: Other Research Institutes

Further information on research within each SRC/Institute is available via http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/institutes-and-centres
Institute Contact details Further Information
A2I2 a2i2@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/a2i2

Alfred Deakin Institute (ADI) adi@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/adi

Institute for Healthcare Transformation healthrs@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/health/faculty-research
Institute for Intelligent Systems Research and Innovation (IISRI) IISRI-enquiries@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/iisri
Institute for Physical Activity & Nutrition (IPAN) ipan@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/ipan

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List of Contacts: Strategic Research Centres:
Further information on research within each SRC/Institute is available via http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/institutes-and-centres
Strategic Research Centre Contact details Further Information

Research for Educational Impact (REDI) redi@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/redi

Centre for Social & Early Emotional Development (SEED) SEED-admin@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/seed
Centre for Molecular & Medical Research (CMMR) cmmr@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/cmmr
Centre for Population Health Research (CPHR) cphr@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/cphr
Centre for Quality & Patient Safety Research (QPS) qps@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/qps
Centre for Innovation in Mental and Physical Health and Clinical impactsrc@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/impact
Treatment (IMPACT)
Centre for Integrative Ecology (CIE) natasha.kaukov@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/cie
Centre for Pattern Recognition and Data Analytics (PRaDA) pradasrc@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/prada
Centre for Regional and Rural Futures (CeRRF) cerrfadmin@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/cerrf
Centre for Cyber Security Research (CSRI) damien.manuel@deakin.edu.au http://www.deakin.edu.au/csri
Centre for Sports Research (CSR) • Sports Science - http://www.deakin.edu.au/csr
natalie.saunders@deakin.edu.au
• Sports Management -
david.shilbury@deakin.edu.au

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CONDITIONS OF AWARD
NB: The Human Resources Division will issue any formal offer of employment and can advise successful fellows on
matters such as superannuation, leave entitlements, relocation allowance, immigration requirements and intellectual
property provisions.

Employment Conditions
1. All conditions of employment are governed by the Deakin University Enterprise Agreement 2017 or any
subsequent Enterprise Agreement.
a. A salary (taxable) will be provided at Level A6 (Year 1) and A7 (Year 2) of the University’s Academic
salary scale and the appointee will be required to participate in the relevant superannuation scheme.
b. Those appointed on a part-time basis, must use any residual salary savings to employ a Research
Assistant (or similar) to ensure the project can be completed in the 2 year period
2. Fellows must become employees of Deakin University and must be physically located on a Deakin University
campus.
3. The duration of the Fellowship is for a total of 24 months and no extensions are available
a. The ADPRF recipient must take any annual leave entitlements during the term of the Fellowship as the
Fellowship cannot be extended to cater for accrued leave.
4. All Fellowship offers are contingent on the applicant providing evidence of having qualified for the award of a
PhD by 31 December 2018.
a. If a successful applicant cannot provide proof of their qualification by 31December 2018 the offer will
be withdrawn.
5. Appointments must commence between 1 January 2019 and 31 March 2019.
a. In exceptional circumstances, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research may approve a delayed start date
which must not exceed the 30th June 2019.
i. This provision is primarily made to accommodate those applicants whose commencement is
delayed due to visa requirements.
6. An Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (ADPRF) recipient who is not an Australian citizen must
obtain a legal right to work and reside in Australia for the duration of the award.
a. Successful applicants are responsible for all visa costs associated with their appointment (except the
“Nomination Fee” which is borne by the relevant administrative area).
7. Autonomous Sanctions - applicants who are citizens of the following countries may be affected by the
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) requirements in relation to Autonomous Sanctions:
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Iran, Libya, Myanmar (Burma), Russia, Syria, Ukraine, Yugoslavia
(former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia), Zimbabwe 3. If successful, an application from a citizen whose country
is subject to Autonomous Sanctions will be asked to provide additional information to satisfy DFAT
requirements. Applications that do not satisfy DFAT requirements may ultimately be deemed unsuccessful.
a. Applicants should check the DFAT website as the list of countries affected by Autonomous Sanctions
is regularly updated.
8. Successful applicants, particularly those who would have to relocate to take up a Fellowship, should carefully
assess their ability to manage on the income provided prior to submitting an application or accepting any
Fellowship offer.
a. There are no additional allowances to support recipients for unanticipated living expenses. For
example, those on temporary visas may be obliged to have private health insurance and are not
eligible for Centrelink payments or childcare rebates. These applicants are strongly advised to
consider matters such as childcare availability and cost, health insurance costs and accommodation

3
This list is current at 4 May2018, applicants should check the DFAT website at http://dfat.gov.au/international-relations/security/sanctions/sanctions-
regimes/Pages/sanctions-regimes.aspx for a current list of countries affected by Autonomous Sanctions

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 costs as the salary support provided under this scheme is fixed and there are no additional funds or
allowances available to cover unanticipated expenses incurred by individuals
9. The work performance of Fellows will be reviewed annually in accordance with the University’s Performance,
Planning and Review process. Under the Fellowship, ADPRF recipients have reporting obligations (refer to the
‘Reports’ section below). Fellows who do not provide the required reports may face disciplinary action.
10. Requests to vary the fellowship for any reason must be discussed with the relevant Head of budget centre
before being submitted to Deakin Research - Grants for consideration by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research.

Duties
11. Fellows are expected to focus on research for the duration of the Fellowship however Fellows may be required
to undertake other duties for up to 6 hours per week (e.g. teaching duties, committee representation) as this
constitutes an important part of the Fellow’s career development. This is calculated on a pro-rata basis for
part-time fellows. It is essential that recipients be located at a Deakin University campus in order to undertake
such duties.

Research Support Grant

12. A Research Support Grant of $10,000 will be provided upon commencement of the Fellowship.
a. The Research Support Grant must be used according to the submitted budget for the direct costs of
the research only
b. The research support grant cannot be used to supplement the researcher’s salary, for relocation costs
or other cost of living expenses, or any other costs not directly related to the Fellow’s research.
13. The Research Support Grant is designed to provide ‘start up’ funds to allow Fellows to establish their research
in the host area. It is both anticipated and preferred that the bulk of these be used within the first 12 months
of the Fellowship however small amounts of residual funding can be carried into the second year of the
Fellowship.
a. Requests to roll over amounts larger than 50% of the total allocation must have been discussed and
approved by the relevant Head of budget centre prior to any request to carry forward the funds.
14. Any unspent monies must be returned to Deakin Research at the conclusion of the Fellowship or at the time
of its termination.

Overlap with other Fellowship Schemes

15. Fellows cannot hold a concurrent paid appointment.
16. The Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship cannot be held in conjunction with another fellowship.
a. Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship recipients who, during the term of their Fellowship,
apply for Fellowship support 4 from an alternate source under Deakin University auspices and are
subsequently awarded the alternate Fellowship are expected to relinquish their Alfred Deakin
Postdoctoral Research Fellowship and accept the alternate award in order to commence the new
Fellowship without having to seek approval from the relevant funding body to delay their start date.
i. For example, an Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellow recipient commences in January
2019 and applies for ARC DECRA 2020 funding (hosted by Deakin) and is successful. They must
relinquish the Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship and commence the DECRA
without having to postpone the commencement of the DECRA ie they cannot delay the start
of the DECRA in order to ‘finish’ the Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship.

4
Fellowship support includes, but is not limited to, any NHMRC Fellowship scheme, the ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award or other forms of
funding that provide salary support for the recipient.

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Research Integrity
17. All research must comply with the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (ACRCR) and any
University Policies and Procedures.
a. Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellows are responsible for ensuring compliance and that they
have appropriate ethics clearances prior to commencing their research project. Fellows must
successfully complete any mandatory training appropriate to their project and are strongly
encouraged to complete the “Research Integrity” induction module which covers the ACRCR and other
matters such as privacy and copyright. Information on this and other Research Integrity training is
available at http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/researcher-support/integrity-secure/induction-and-
training
i. Existing Deakin University staff who are up to date with the training requirements applicable
to their project are excused from this requirement.
ii. Fellowship recipients should consult the relevant research integrity staff if they are unsure
regarding their training status, bearing in mind that some areas may have mandatory
refresher courses.

Reports
18. A progress report is required 12 months from the commencement of the fellowship. The report must be
prepared using the template (and associated instructions) available on the Deakin Research – Grants website:
http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/researcher-support/grants-and-contracts/manage-a-project
19. A final report is required two weeks before the fellowship is due to end. The report must be prepared using
the template (and associated instructions) available on the Deakin Research – Grants website:
http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/researcher-support/grants-and-contracts/manage-a-project
20. If an Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellow elects to relinquish their Fellowship prior to the official end
date, a final report is required two weeks before leaving the position.

Performance Management and Termination

21. Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellows are subject to all conditions outlined in the University’s
Enterprise Agreement 2017 or any subsequent Enterprise Agreement. It is up to the relevant Head of budget
centre to implement appropriate procedures if a Fellow is identified as having unsatisfactory performance.
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research must be informed of any Fellow whose performance is considered
unsatisfactory and kept informed of the progress of any process being implemented to address concerns.

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