Research support

MRFF 2026 Early to Mid-Career Researchers

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Key Dates

  • Proposals open in Sapphire: 29 May 2026
  • UQ R&I NOI due: 15 July 2026
  • Minimum data requirements in Sapphire: 5pm (ACT time) 22 July 2026
  • Applications due to UQ R&I for review: 29 July 2026
  • Requests for UQ central funding (Stream 3 only): 31 July 2026
  • Evidence of PhD date and career disruptions for eligibility due to UQ R&I: 31 July 2026
  • Applications close: 5 pm (ACT time) 19 August 2026

Overview

The EMCR opportunity provides grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that:

  • Stream 1 (Incubator): conduct early stage, small scale research, led by early career researchers, that seeks to assess the potential and feasibility of novel strategies to address a critical or intractable health issue in one or more Priority Populations.
    Stream 1 funds grants of $200,000–$1.0 million.
  • Stream 2 (Accelerator): establish a large-scale interdisciplinary research program, led by mid-career researchers, that drives implementation of substantial improvements to health care and/or health system effectiveness for one or more Priority Populations.
    Stream 2 funds grants of $2.0–4.0 million.
  • Stream 3 (Targeted Call for Research): utilise co-funding to accelerate the translation of research led by early or mid-career researchers into policy and practice. (Note: a priority population focus is not required). Stream 3 funds grants of up to $1.0 million.

Eligibility

Additional information for Stream 1

Applications to Stream 1 must propose research conducted by a team where the CIA is an early career researcher and 80% or more of all Chief Investigators are early career researchers. The remaining members of the Chief Investigator team (up to 20%) must include early to mid-career researchers or researchers who have not been awarded a PhD.

Additional information for Stream 2

Applications to Stream 2 must propose research conducted by a team where the CIA is a mid-career researcher and 80% or more of all Chief Investigators are mid-career researchers. The remaining members of the Chief Investigator team (up to 20%) must comprise early to mid-career researchers or researchers who have not been awarded a PhD.

Additional information for Stream 3

Applications to Stream 3 must propose research conducted by a team where the CIA is an early career researcher or mid-career researcher, and 50% or more of all Chief Investigators are early career researchers or mid-career researchers. The remaining members of the Chief Investigator team (up to 50%) may comprise researchers at any career stage, and can include researchers who have not been awarded a PhD.

Stream 3 - Compulsory co-funding arrangements

Grants funded under Stream 3 will be funded under a co-funding model in which funding is contributed by:

  • the MRFF, and
  • the MRFF Eligible Organisation, and
  • at least one other Organisation.

The combined value of the co-contributions from the MRFF Eligible Organisation and the other organisation(s) must equal or exceed the value of the MRFF funding requested (up to $1.0 million). Contributions must be in cash only. Details of the co-funding arrangement must be confirmed in a Letter of Support.

How to Apply

Step 1: Internal Notice of Intent (NOI) 

All researchers intending to submit an MRFF application are required to submit an internal Notice of Intent. NOIs will be collated centrally and distributed to Faculties and Institutes in order to provide maximum support to the UQ research community.

Submit UQ Notice of Intent

Step 2. Sapphire updates and scheme reading

  • Register for Sapphire and update your full profile 'My Profile and CV'. All Chief Investigators (CI) and Associate Investigators (AI) will need to have an active Sapphire account. Any team members without a Sapphire account should request one as early as possible. The NHMRC require at least three working days to create new Sapphire accounts. 
  • Download guidelines and application templates from GrantConnect. Familiarise yourself with the key MRFF, NHMRC and UQ documentation (see below). 

Step 3. Completing the application

  • Log into Sapphire and complete the application. Sections of the application will validate as they are completed.
  • Ensure all required data is entered into the application before the Minimum Data deadline (see Key dates above). Applications that do not meet this deadline will not be able to proceed.

Step 4. UQ R&I internal review and feedback

  • Ahead of internal review, ensure all online components are complete and valid in Sapphire and CIA has initiated the Certification process. Application errors will be signalled and can be corrected during the Certification stage.
  • To initiate internal review, email the UQ Research Office at mrffgrants@research.uq.edu.au with your completed MRFF Funding Application Certification form (below).
  • UQ Research Office will review your application and provide you with feedback as requested in NOI (eligibility & compliance; refinement; or content grantscraft).

Step 5. Final submission

  • When your application is complete and fully compliant, the UQ Research Office will submit the application to the NHMRC through Sapphire.

Letters of Support

UQ Letters

Most MRFF applications administered in Sapphire will not require a letter of support from UQ. This is usually only necessary if UQ is committing cash to the project.

We ask that UQ researchers submit draft letters for signing to us no later than two weeks before the external closing date. We strongly recommend working with your local school/institute research professionals to complete this process.

Partner Letters

We encourage applicants to provide drafts of partner letters of support for review by the Research office before organising their final signature to ensure eligibility and compliance. A template partner letter of support is provided below.

Non-UQ Lead Applications

  • The administering organisation should provide you with a draft letter of support. We recommend you work with your local research support to complete the letter. 
  • Complete and sign an MRFF Funding Application Certification form (see below), and get it countersigned by your Head of School/Institute.
  • Submit both to mrffgrants@research.uq.edu.au, along with evidence for any additional co-contributions.

Readership and researcher support

Before applying, we recommend you:

Key documents

Before applying, please review the full suite of documents available from GrantConnect, the Australian Government grants information system and:

NHMRC

UQ