FAQs

Frequently asked questions and answers for grant applications and research agreements. If you have further questions or enquiries please contact the relevant Research Office team.

Grant Applications and Awards
Research Agreements

How do I find grant opportunities?

You can find funding opportunities via Pivot-RP, a repository for national and international funding opportunities. You can tailor Pivot-RP to your preferences and it can provide details for other opportunities such as conferences, collaborations and prizes.

In addition, visit the RO’s Find Funding page for information on:

The UQ R&I mailer, to which you can subscribe to be alerted to strategically important funding calls such as those from the ARC, NHMRC and MRFF
other databases and sources of funding opportunities
RO support for your application

How do I apply for funding at UQ?

All applications for research funding must be submitted via the RO, in line with UQ policy and procedure.

A simple guide to the application process can be found here.

Your application must, at the very least, comply with UQ policy and procedure, be appropriately priced, and be accompanied by a UQ Funding Application Certification form (FAC).

The RO will assist you with eligibility and compliance with the funder’s guidelines if received prior to 10 working days of the funder’s deadlines. Thereafter, the RO will only be able to assist with UQ compliance.

How do I find out if I can include indirect costs?

How do I get access to previously successful applications?

I need to make changes to my grant. How do I vary it?

I am an early-career researcher and have never applied for a grant before – what do I do?

I am moving to UQ and want to bring my grants with me. How do I do this?

How will pricing affect my collaboration with industry partners?

I am planning a research project with a third party and I think I may need a contract agreement to cover this work. Who should I contact?

Does the University have standard agreements for collaborations with third parties?

Where can I find out information about costing research training scholarships?

The costs of a scholarship normally include student maintenance, student fees, travel expenses, and consumables, and may also include exceptional costs and equipment. Information on student maintenance costs and fees (made up of college and university fees) can be found on the UQ Graduate School website. For further information and confirmation of the costs for a specific year, please contact the UQ Graduate School.

When pricing scholarships proposals for industry partners, indirect costs are included.

Who do I need to contact about questions relating to invoicing?

How long will it take to put a agreement in place for my research project?

What are the key issues that the Research Office considers in agreement negotiations?

I have a project with an industry partner What do I need to send to the Research Office to start the agreement negotiations?

The RO’s Research Commercial Management team is embedded in faculties and institutes to assist you in the commercial framing and contract agreement negotiation.

As a general guide, we need certain information before starting the negotiating process to help us negotiate a contract agreement for a specific project efficiently:

The project proposal, detailing all direct and indirect costs to be incurred in the project and the price that is being proposed.
Project summary
Details of the industry partner, including contact details of the main contact for negotiations
Details of any students involved in the project
Details of any collaborators (external and internal)
A list of all background intellectual property (IP) owned by the University or the sponsor that you envisage using for the project
An idea of IP, if any, that you envisage arising from the project
Any information regarding the partner’s expectations about ownership or licensing intellectual property
Details of any separate projects that you have done, are currently conducting, or wish to conduct with different collaborators/sponsors that may impact on IP ownership in this project.

I am currently discussing a research project with an industry partner. At what stage do I need to involve a Research Commercial Manager?

I've received a contract agreement from a company for a research project which needs signing. Can I sign this?

No, all contractual paperwork for research should be signed by the University signatory, as a legal representative of the University. The Faculties, Schools and Centres cannot legally bind the University, and all contract agreements should state the University as the contracting party, not the organisational unit or the CI. CIs are especially discouraged from signing contract agreements to avoid personal liability. A signature from anyone other than authorised representatives of the University may make a contract agreement invalid. All contractual paperwork should be sent to the RO.

When does the RO work with Legal Services?

Legal Services (Research & Intellectual Property) is vital to providing counsel on legal risk so that decisions can be made which protect UQ’s interests and position. The RO works closely with Legal Services all the time but will particularly seek advice, for example, when a matter is complex, has a high-risk profile or an RO staff member is not confident that UQ’s interests and investments can be protected in an agreement.

Legal Services (Research & Intellectual Property) undertakes a wide range of legal work on behalf of the University. This can range from the preparation, review and negotiation of agreements to establish new research collaborations, through to the provision of advice in relation to established research collaborations.

See the Legal Services Division for further information.