Research News

The University has been working on establishing new centralised ethics processes through a comprehensive Research Ethics Processes and Systems (REPS) Program. The changes being developed by REPS will come into effect later this year. As of October 2020:

• All ethics committees will be University-wide and cross-disciplinary. There will be 5 x Greater than Low Risk (GtLR) Committees and 16 x Low to Negligible Risk (LNR) Committees.
• Themis will no longer be used and a purpose-built platform – Infonetica – will be used to submit applications.
• To support the work of the new central committees each Faculty will need to appoint a number of Human Research Ethics Advisors (HREA) who will support local staff to prepare ethics applications, advise on the risk level of the application, and review applications prior to submission.

MGSE is being asked to provide the following support for the central ethics processes:

• 4 x HREAs who are currently at Level C, D or E (each undertaking approximately .1FTE ethics work). This role will sit within the Leadership and Service work category.

We are now asking for expressions of interest to fulfil these roles. Please contact Tricia Eadie or Bella Blaher if you want to express interest, have any questions about the roles, or wish to discuss further.

The Assessment Research Centre (ARC) has been contracted by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) to develop assessment content within the Health and Physical Education learning area. The curriculum takes in components across Personal, Social and Community Health capabilities and Movement and Physical Activities. ARC experts will construct assessment items for hard to measure learning areas, such as Understanding Movement from the Movement and Physical Activity Strand. An expert Health and Physical Education team from MGSE (including Donna Davies, Helen Cahill and John Quay) has been convened who hold a deep understanding of the content of the Victorian curriculum, and how learning unfolds in students. The ARC team will work at developing relevant and high-quality assessment content for the VCAA’s online formative assessment platform. It is expected that this project will be valuable in developing quality items to be used within Victoria to support students to enhance their own and other’s health, safety and wellbeing as well as participation in physical activity within a range of contexts.

In light of Stage 4 restrictions, the research and research return to campus pages on the Central University's COVID-19 website have been updated with the latest information on eligibility criteria for on-campus research to ensure compliance with relevant Stage 4 restrictions, as well as advice regarding the new worker permit processes.

All previously approved on-campus research is to be reassessed to ensure it complies with Stage 4 restrictions. This work is being undertaken at the Academic Division level. No new approvals for return to campus can be given at the Divisional level but are to be managed via the process that was in place for Phase 1 requests. Requests will be routed to the DVCR for approval.

Guidance on the website will continue to be updated in line with new advice from PRG or any further clarifications from the Victorian government.

The Knowledge & Technology Transfer team has expanded their services to help you further maximise your research impact for greater benefit to the society, environment, and economy. This includes:

• Safeguarding University research through the creation of intellectual assets via copyright and/or patent protection
• Proactively translating these assets into society via the generation of social enterprises and start-ups with access to venture funding partners
• Licencing research outcomes to industry, not-for-profit organisations and government bodies

Contact the team for more information.

The call for project proposals will close on Monday 26 October.

In the second Call for Joint PhD Projects with the University of Manchester, up to six collaborative academic pairings will be funded, with two PhD scholarships and supporting funding for each pair, with project proposals open to all research areas. More details about applications can be found in the Joint Call Guidelines.

The Technology, Knowledge & Society Research Network 2021 has issued a call for papers for its 17th International Conference on Technology, Knowledge and Society, to be held on 8-9 April 2021.

This conference is brought together by a shared interest in the complex and subtle relationships between the histories of tech, knowledge makers, and social realities.

For more information on proposal submissions and registration deadlines, please visit the conference website.

Visit the website

Expression of Interest (EOI) for ARC schemes opening in the third and fourth quarter of the year are now available. If you are interested in applying for the current rounds please complete the EOI so that the MERI team can support you through the application process.

• ARC Linkage Projects 2020 (continuous round)
• ARC Future Fellowships 2021
• ARC Laureate Fellowships 2021
• ARC DECRA 2022
• ARC Discovery Projects 2022

Researchers preparing major grant proposals often find it helpful to exchange drafts and feedback with others who are applying for the same grants. This program is a buddy system for the ARC DECRA and Future Fellowship schemes. You'll be paired with another researcher who is applying to the same scheme/level and matched according to which ARC Panel you align with. Matches will take place across all Academic Divisions to simulate the diversity of assessors. Once you have been paired, you can support each other to develop your proposals. Buddies are assigned on a weekly basis on a Thursday. You will receive an email informing you of your fellowship buddy along with further guidance.

Register your interest