Internal grants and fellowships

These fellowships are intended to empower up to 40 of the world's best and brightest emerging academics to undertake innovative research that will build our understanding of, and resilience to climate change, improve health outcomes, and create a more sustainable world.

Read more about the Sydney Horizon Fellowships here.

Contact: horizon.fellowships@sydney.edu.au

The University of Sydney funds three categories of Research excellence and inclusion prizes for employees. They include:

• Thompson - aims to promote and enhance the careers of academic women. They are offered to academic and research-only women employed by the University of Sydney at levels C or D. 
• Brown - offered to researchers whose careers have been interrupted by the undertaking of sustained primary caring duties and provide relief from routine teaching and administrative responsibilities, and research-only staff with funding for technical assistance for up to two semesters
• Laffan - named in honour of Mr Matt Laffan, Sydney alumnus and colourful character in Sydney's legal fraternity who battled a rare genetic disorder and inspired Australians with his zest for life. These are offered to university researchers who have, or have experienced, a significant disability, and aims to assist recipients re-establish or enhance their academic research careers.

More detailed information is provided on the intranet (unikey required).

Contact: Lia Zambetti

These prizes are awarded to early and mid career researchers and aim to recognise and develop our most talented researchers and to establish a cohort of future research leaders for Sydney. Applicants must be University of Sydney academic staff. See our most recent SOAR prize recipients.

Contact: Lia Zambetti

Available to University of Sydney employees, the following opportunities are available for industry engagement:

• DVCR Research Impact Proof-of-Concept Fund. Provides critical financial support for research projects with the potential to be translated to industry or to spin out into a new venture, including not-for-profit or social/cultural enterprises. 
  Contact: cdip@sydney.edu.au
• PERIscope commercialisation award 2023. To refine and validate the market potential of research, identify and accelerate spinout and licensing opportunities, grow networks of industry partners, and build individual commercial skills and entrepreneurial mindsets.
  Contact: jane.cockburn@sydney.edu.au at the Sydney Knowledge Hub
• 2023 External Research Collaboration Seed Funding. Aims to promote and increase the University’s external research engagement by supporting engagement with industry, government and/or community partner organisations. 
  Contact: research.support@sydney.edu.au

The Ignition Grants are a new initiative to support researchers from the University of Sydney and its strategic partner universities to facilitate collaborative projects that develop multidisciplinary cutting-edge research to create academic and societal impact. Projects which seek to address the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are highly encouraged.

These grants are designed to provide researchers, in particular early- and mid-career researchers, with the opportunity to work with our strategic partners in developing joint research projects. Preference is given to teams which include PhD or masters by research students, postdocs, early- and mid-career researchers and researchers on sabbatical leave, rather than one-to-one research projects.

It is expected that all funded projects will evolve into larger scale projects, sustained by leveraging external funding.

The number of projects selected and funding available varies between partnerships. Funds are available for 12 months, and the amounts awarded range between AUD 20,000 to AUD 40,000 per project.

Contact: Office of Global Engagement (ip.ipdf@sydney.edu.au)