1. Research Services Office
ARC LINKAGE PROJECTS 2016
FUNDING RULES
KEY DATES
RSO RESOURCES
Christine Maher
Senior Grants Officer,
Research Services Office

3. ARC LINKAGE PROGRAM FUNDING RULES 2014- 2016
ARC Linkage Program Funding Rules sets out the generic and specific Funding Rules for all Schemes under the Linkage Program (
Industrial Transformation Research Hubs
Industrial Transformation Training Centres
Linkage Projects (Part D)
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities

4. ARC LINKAGE FUNDING RULES
Part A – General Program Rules for all Linkage Schemes ( )
Part D –Scheme-specific rules for Linkage Projects
Minimum request $50,000 per year; maximum request $300,000 per year [section D8.2.2]
Period of funding: 2 – 5 years [section D6.1.2]

5. LP Selection Criteria 2015 SELECTION CRITERIA WEIGHTING
A) Investigators
20%
B) Proposed Project
50%
i. Significance and Innovation (25%)
ii.Approach and Training (15%)
iii. Research Environment (10%)*
C) Commitment from Partner Organisation(s)
30%
(*Research environment means the laboratory, department, school, centre or institute within the Administering Organisation or Partner Organisation where research will be undertaken, and which provides opportunities for knowledge growth, innovation, collaboration, mentoring and student training.)

6. Key Funding Rule changes for LP15
Partner Investigator from each Partner Organisation no longer required
Seven types of Partner Organisations which are exempt from the Cash Contribution - added Exempt Archive and Public Record Office
A Linkage Project may be applied for a minimum of two to a maximum of five consecutive years
Workshops, focus groups and conference costs that are necessary for the conduct of the proposed research may be supported.
Travel costs essential to the Project are permitted up to a maximum average of $20,000 per year of the Project.
Likely Rule change for LP16
CI Eligibility for Linkage Projects, LIEF, and Industrial Transformation Hubs and Centres is likely to be aligned to CI eligibility for Discovery Projects, i.e. 0.2 FTE or an Emeritus appointment

7. Medical Research
A5.1.3 The Linkage Program does not support Medical and Dental Research, as defined in section A3 of Funding Rules.
The ARC has updated its ARC Medical Research Policy version (effective from 25/8/14).
Research ineligible for ARC support:
research with human health and/or medical goals, including research on the understanding, aetiology, diagnosis, monitoring, management or treatment of physical or mental disease or other health conditions in humans;
research involving the use or development of animal models of human health conditions, or the use of animals for the development or testing of therapeutic goods (including devices) or procedures, for the purpose of better understanding human health or developing treatments for human health conditions;
interventional research in humans, particularly clinical or pre-clinical trials of therapeutic goods (including devices), or research aiming to modify the health of the human participants;
the use or development of equipment, facilities, tools, games, devices, smart phone applications or other items to understand, diagnose, monitor, manage or treat human health conditions.

8. Linkage Program Budget
A7. Budget Items Supported
a. access to national and international research and infrastructure facilities including specialist archives, collections and databases;
b. access to Technical Workshop Services for the Project
c. Field Research essential to the Project, including technical/ logistical support, and travel and accommodation, for CIs, PIs, HDR candidates, postdoc fellows & research support personnel (note: not counted towards Travel costs limit of $20,000 per year);
d. expert services of a third party …necessary for the proposed Project. Includes:
i. language translation services, transcribing services;
ii. purchase of bibliographical or archival material (electronic or hard copy); and
iii. data collection and analysis services;
e. equipment (and its maintenance) and consumables required for the Project.
f. specialised computer equipment and software essential to the Project;
g. travel costs essential to the Project, including economy travel costs for domestic and/or international travel and accommodation, not more than average of $20,000 per year, for CIs, PIs, HDR candidates, postdoc fellows and research support personnel
h. workshops, focus groups and conferences necessary for the research (including reasonable hospitality costs – e.g. morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea).

9. Linkage Project Budget
D7.1 Linkage Project - can also request from the ARC:
a. personnel:
i. salary support for research associates and assistants, technicians and laboratory attendants at an appropriate salary level, including 28 per cent on-costs, for the Administering Organisation; and
ii. stipends for Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students, in whole or in part, at an appropriate level for the Administering Organisation or the relevant industry sector;
b. publication and dissemination of Project outputs and outreach activity costs;
c. teaching relief for CIs up to a total value for the Project of $40,000 per year; and
d. web hosting and web development specific to the project.
All Funding requests to the ARC must be fully justified in the Application

10. Partner Organisations
D8.1.1 A Linkage Project Proposal must include at least one (1) Partner Organisation.
Partner Organisation does not have to be an Australian company or Organisation
A9.2.2 For each Partner Organisation, three (3) conditions:
a. evidence of new or on-going collaboration between the Partner Organisation and the Administering Organisation;
b. no duplication of Commonwealth funding for the research and/or activities funded for the Project; and
c. a contribution of cash and/or in-kind or other material resources from each Partner Organisation, having regard to the total cost of the Project and the relative contribution of each PI.

11. Partner Organisation Contributions
D8.2.1 …combined Partner Organisation(s) eligible contributions for a Proposal (i.e. the total of the cash and/or in-kind eligible contributions of the Partner Organisations) must at least match the total funding requested from the ARC.
D8.2.3 … combined Partner Organisation(s) eligible Cash Contribution must be at least 25 per cent of the total funding requested from the ARC.
D8.2.7 Proposals in which all Partner Organisations are exempt from the Cash Contribution requirements do not have to meet the overall Cash Contribution requirement specified at D8.2.3.
Example:
If ARC requested cash is
Combined Partner Cash contributions
Combined Partner In-kind contributions
Total of combined Partner Cash and In-kind contributions
 $100,000
must be at least 25% of ARC
must be at least 75% of ARC
Must be at least
100% of ARC
at least $25,000
at least $75,000
at least $100,000

12. Partner Support Letters
Each Partner Organisation’s letter of support must:
a. include the official letterhead;
b. be no more than two A4 pages;
c. include a brief profile of the organisation;
d. provide details of the Cash and/or In-kind Contributions;
e. demonstrate the source of its Cash Contribution (if a Cash Contribution is being made);
f. certify that no part of its Cash Contribution is drawn from funds previously appropriated or awarded from Commonwealth or Australian State or Territory sources for the purposes of research; …
h. provide details regarding how the Project aligns with the Partner Organisation’s objectives;
i. certify that it will meet the requirements outlined in a standard Funding Agreement, including the requirement to enter into arrangements regarding intellectual property; and
j. be signed by the Chief Executive Officer, or delegate.
Please note - The RSO provides a template Partner Support Letter

13. Other Organisations
In addition to Partner Organisations, Other Organisations can be involved in Linkage Projects
An Other Organisation is one which is listed in a Linkage Projects Proposal and is not an Eligible Organisation or a Partner Organisation.
Other Organisations can provide cash and/or in-kind, but this is not counted towards the minimum matching requirements.

14. Chief Investigator Eligibility likely to be changed to match with DP16:
A researcher nominated on a Proposal as a CI must meet at least one of the following criteria at the scheme-specific Commencement Date and for the duration of the Project:
be an employee for at least .2FTE (20 per cent of Full Time Equivalent) at an Eligible Organisation; or
b. be a holder of an Emeritus appointment at an Eligible Organisation.

15. Partner Investigators (PI)
D9.1.3 The Proposal may nominate a PI from each Partner Organisation. A PI who is representing a Partner Organisation on the Proposal is required to have a role within that Partner Organisation.
A A PI must have the capacity to make a serious commitment to carrying out the Project and cannot assume the role of a supplier of resources for work that will largely be placed in the hands of others.
A …a PI must:
a. take significant intellectual responsibility for the planning and conduct of the Project and for any strategic decisions called for in its pursuit and the communication of results; and/or
b. have the experience and capacity to provide effective supervision, support and mentoring of research personnel associated with the Project in their areas of expertise; and/or
c. have the relevant skills and experience to effectively manage a similar scale research Project.

16. ARC Application Management System (RMS2.0)
Each CI and Partner Investigator (PI) must obtain access to RMS 2.0 and update their profile information. Personal Profile information must be up to date and complete as significant data is auto-populated to the application. Note: RMS has been updated. The current version is RMS2.0 – a guide to using RMS2.0 can be found here. Applicants use their address as RMS 2.0 login ID

18. Common Compliance Issues
INVESTIGATORS
CI’s named on Application who are not eligible
Partner Investigator’s Track Record is not sufficient (note: PI’s are no longer mandatory)
ROLE OF PERSONNEL
Investigators’ roles not clearly defined
PhD Stipend requested, but no clear role in the Project defined for student
TRACK RECORD/ ROPE
Publications included that are out of date range, incorrectly labelled, or not actually published (e.g. under review), or not marked * as relevant to the Proposal
PARTNER/ BUDGET
Partner Support Letter not complete and/or inconsistent with other parts of the Application (e.g. Budget)
Support Letter not approved and signed until very late in the Application Process (stress-out for all concerned)
Budget Justification is incomplete or inconsistent with the Budget requested
Researchers do not start the process until close to the due date – Application ends up being rushed

19. We recommend that Investigators:
Allow adequate time – start early
Read the Funding Rules
Read the Instructions and the FAQ’s
Use the exact titles in the application form/instructions
Have your text reviewed by your peers
Have your text proof read for typos and grammatical errors
Keep your language clear and concise
Keep your formatting clean and easy to read
Fully justify your Budget
Ensure that all Parts of your Application are consistent

20. IMPORTANT DATES Key Activities LP16 Dates
Flinders RSO Expressions of Interest Due
10 June 2015
EOI face-to-face feedback meetings
Early July 2015
Flinders ARC Grant Writing Workshop
23 June 2015
ARC Linkage Scheme LP15 Opens in RMS
Mid-September 2015 TBC
Eligibility Exemption Requests
N/A
Request not to Assess
Late October 2015 TBC
Faculty Quality Review Process & Feedback to Researchers: Draft Application (full; RMS generated)
mid October 2015 TBC
RSO Compliance Review:
Draft Application (full; RMS generated)
Mid- October 2015 TBC
(4 weeks prior to closing date)
Application Submission to RSO in RMS 2.0
3 working days prior to the external due date
ARC Linkage Scheme LP16 Closes in RMS 2.0
Mid-November 2015 TBC

21. RSO Resources for Linkage Projects
Linkage 2016 EOI form LP16 Written Evidence form Proforma Partner Support Letter Flinders University Certification Form Flinders University salary scales Past ARC Grant Writing Workshop Presentations (password protected) Instructions for using RMS 2.0. are available here. To access these resources - go to Flinders webpage Linkage Projects (LP) RSO Contact Christine Maher – (ph: 12045) .

22. And then we wait