NHMRC Fellowships: An overview of the post-award process (Research and Innovation Division, UQ)

Post-Award Processes for NHMRC Fellowships: A Step-by-Step Guide

1. Notification of Outcome

RRTD will issue notification to each applicant via email. The following documents will be forwarded to you:

NHMRC letter of award
NHMRC Schedule (outlining the specific terms and conditions of the award)
UQ Acceptance of Offer form

2. Return of Documentation to RRTD

Successful applicants will be asked to complete the Acceptance of Offer and return it to RRTD as soon as possible. You will be required to nominate a start date and provide information regarding ethical clearances. Please consider the following information when completing this documention.

A note on start dates:

Please be aware that there are a number of factors to consider when selecting a start date.

i) Your Fellowship cannot commence until such time as ethical clearances have been obtained and RRTD has copies of the certificates - see more information below.

ii) Your HR Officer must have time to establish your appointment. You should discuss your proposed start date with your School/Centre/Institute HR Officer to ensure there is ample time for the appointment paperwork to be completed and the appointment established.

iii) Your fellowship must commence prior to the date outlined on the NHMRC Schedule as "Final date by which award must commence". The dates are listed here: Training Fellows - 30 June; CDAs - 31 March; Research and Practitioner Fellows - 1 March.

A note on ethics:

It is a requirement under the NHMRC Funding Deed that ethics (human and animal), biosafety and other clearances have been obtained for the research prior to commencement of your fellowship. RRTD has a responsibility to ensure that these clearances, where necessary, are obtained before funding can be released.

If applicants have ethical/biosafety clearances in place, copies of the clearance certificates should be forwarded to RRTD along with their Acceptance of Offer and the Schedules. If ethical/biosafety clearances are not in place, applicants should ensure they submit an application to the relevant Ethics Unit at the earliest possible opportunity. Again, once obtained, copies of the clearance certificates should be forwarded to RRTD prior to commencement.

3. Execution of Schedules

RRTD will process the returned documentation and forward the Schedules back to the NHMRC for execution. Once fully executed, these will be returned to RRTD by the NHMRC. Please be aware that this can take some time.

4. Issue of Grant Record Letter

Once RRTD has the executed Schedules, Acceptance of Offer form and Ethics/Biosafety clearance certificates, we will confirm your actual start date and issue your Grant Record Letter (GRL). Your GRL includes instructions regarding account/project number establishment.

5. Establishing your Appointment

The responsibility for establishing your appointment rests with the School/Centre/Institute. You will need to discuss this with your HR Officer directly. If there is a need to establish your appointment prior to the release of your Grant Record Letter an account/project number can be requested using the Pre-GRL process. For more information on this process, please refer to the Finance and Business Services website at http://www.fbs.uq.edu.au/?page=45336&pid=0 or contact Management Accounting Group.

RRTD - NHMRC Fellowships contact

If you have any queries regarding the establishment of your Fellowship or post-award variations, please contact the RRTD Research Administration Officer for Research Fellowships:

Katie Cameron
Research Administration Officer (Research Fellowships)
Email: fellowshipgrants@research.uq.edu.au