Status: Open

Find out information about the aims, funding, key dates, resources and contacts for the NHMRC Development Grants Grants.

Aim

The NHMRC Development Grants scheme provides financial support to individual researchers and/or research teams to undertake health and medical research within Australia at the proof of principle or pre-seed stage that specifically drives towards a commercial outcome within a five-year timeframe.

Early stage research or knowledge creation research (this is fundable through the NHMRC Ideas Grants scheme) will not be funded through the Development Grants scheme.

The Development Grants scheme supports the commercial development of a product, process, procedure or service that if applied, would result in improved health care, disease prevention or provide health cost savings.

Research supported by this scheme must have experimental data that supports a demonstrated proof of principle or pre-seed concept and have a detailed feasible commercialisation strategy that takes into account the regulatory pathway, protectable IP, commercial barriers and potential routes to market.

There is no specific funding limit for each application, however the NHMRC advises applicants to justify the requested budget clearly, paying particular attention to any research cost(s) that may be atypical for the particular field of research. Guidance on personnel support levels and direct research costs can be found in the NHMRC Budget Mechanism.

Projects may run from one to three years, according to the demands of the research question(s).

Changes to DVCR Co-Funding

For NHMRC grants applicants will now be required to submit a formal DVCR Co-funding request. The formal DVCR Co-funding request replaces the previous support of the Strategic Research Fund (SRF), which was managed directly between your Faculty Research Office and the DVCR Office and was not directly visible to academics as internal co-funding for their successful grants. The DVCR Co-funding is to support MQ researchers to successfully complete their proposed NHMRC projects by providing up to 20% co-funding on funds to remain at Macquarie. The goal is for the DVCR Co-funding is to facilitate MQ applicants in providing a ‘top-up’ of NHMRC salary costs (PSP’s), which are lower than MQ equivalent salary rates.

These changes align the principles of DVCR Co-funding with other external funding schemes and assist the University in rationalising the allocation of internal funding used to leverage competitive, external funding opportunities. As Macquarie researchers continue to excel in the NHMRC funding scheme, we need to find a mechanism to ensure all successful NHMRC grants can be supported. As context, since 2015, our application volume for NHMRC funding has nearly doubled year on year. We know that health and medical researchers at Macquarie will be more active than ever in the coming years in applying for NHMRC funding to support their research, hence the need to make changes to meet the growing volume of awards.

Changes to Eligibility for DVCR Co-Funding

Eligibility for the DVCR Co-Funding Scheme is now contingent upon on-time submission of grant applications by your mandatory compliance and eligibility check. Many applications for external funding require cash and in-kind contributions from the host institution in order to be considered for funding. This funding includes project support funds, funding for research associates, scholarships, and major equipment and in most cases is processed via the DVCR Co-Funding scheme. View further information on deadlines, processes and FAQs.

  • Applications led by Macquarie University researchers must be submitted to the Research Services Grant Development Team 4 weeks prior to the external deadline, if requesting an optional strategic review and 2 weeks prior for a mandatory compliance and eligibility check. Please refer to the fellowships and grant opportunities webpage for information on deadlines and processes.
  • Applications that do not have a Pure record and/or do not have all the appropriate approvals in Pure (Head of Department/School [HoD/HoS] and Deputy Dean of Research and Innovation [DDRI]) will not be submitted to the external funding body. It is the lead applicant’s responsibility to ensure the approvals in Pure are complete prior to submission.
For applications submitted in 2024:

Please note that our grant review processes have changed. Strategic reviews are optional, while compliance and eligibility checks are mandatory.

If you wish to receive a strategic review of your NHMRC application, you must book via the online booking calendar.

Compliance and eligibility reviews for your NHMRC application is mandatory and you must book via the online booking calendar.

There are sufficient booking times available for all applicants, but we recommend booking early to ensure you have an ample choice of dates.

These are estimated dates from previous NHMRC rounds but are subject to change

  • NHMRC opening date in Sapphire: 17 April 2024
  • Strategic review (optional): 15 May 2024, select your date and time in the strategic booking calendar
  • NHMRC minimum data deadline: 15 May 2024
  • Compliance and eligibility check (mandatory): 29 May 2024, select your date and time in the compliance and eligibility booking calendar. By 29 May 2024 you must also have a penultimate draft of your entire application in Sapphire and DVCR Co-Funding requests must be submitted via Pure.
  • Applicant submits final application in Sapphire: 11:59 pm Sunday 9 June 2024
  • Research Services submission to NHMRC: Wednesday 12 June 2024
  • Outcomes expected: December 2024

Note: NHMRC locates all their Scheme documentation in GrantConnect. You will be required to set-up a username and password to access.

Notification Of Intent (NOI)

Complete a Notification of Intent to inform your Faculty and the University Research Services teams of your intention to submit an application. After completing this NOI, you will be provided with regular updates about your funding scheme and sent valuable resources that will assist you in developing a highly competitive research grant application.

NHMRC Resoources
MQ Resources