USyd-SJTU Partnership Collaboration Awards
Guidelines for Applicants

 Purpose

The University of Sydney (USyd) and the Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) have identified each other as strategic partners to foster deep collaborations in research and education. The USyd-SJTU Partnership Collaboration Awards (PCA) have been established to facilitate and support joint initiatives that will strengthen the two universities’ strategic priorities as well as develop multi-disciplinary cutting-edge research to create academic and societal impact.

In this round of the PCA, applicants are encouraged to submit funding proposals for innovative and sustainable programs built around collaborative research linking USyd and SJTU. Proposals for learning and teaching initiatives may also be considered if included as part of a larger collaborative research proposal.

Applicants must also demonstrate that their projects are sustainable in the long-term, preferably by including a plan for engagement that includes leveraging external funding and publication outputs.

Preference will be given to teams which include PhD or masters by research students, postdocs, Early and Mid-Career Researchers (EMCR) and researchers on Sabbatical Leave rather than simply one-to-one research projects. Projects which are multidisciplinary in nature are encouraged.

In this round, up to ten proposals will be funded (each with two Chief Investigators; one from USyd and one from SJTU). Each successful proposal may receive up to the equivalent of AUD 10,000 (CNY 50,000) from each institution for a total of approximately AUD 20,000.

1. Eligibility

1.1. Proposals are invited from academic staff from all disciplines at USyd and SJTU and their affiliated Research Centres and Institutes.

1.2. Applicants from affiliated Research Centres and Institutes must be University Title Holders.

1.3. Chief Investigators from must be employed on a full-time, part-time (appointed at least 0.5 FTE), fixed term or continuing basis. If on a fixed term contract, the end date must be beyond the funding period.

1.4. PhD and masters by research students, post-docs, and research assistants/associates are not eligible to apply as Chief Investigators but they are welcome to join the applications. 

1.5. Current recipients of PCA funding whose project is still ongoing and will not have finished by the application close date may apply for concurrent grants but are required to submit a progress report of their current project when submitting their application. The progress report should be an attachment to the application – single page, narrative update on project progress to date and unexpended award balance.

1.6. Previous recipients of PCA funding whose projects have finished or will have finished by the application close date may only apply for consecutive grants if they have submitted their final report.

2. Duration

Funding is available early June 2020 until 30 June 2021.  

3. Timeline

4. Eligible Grant Activities

4.1. Activities that will be considered for funding include:

• Airfares: Only travel up to the value of four economy class return airfares will be considered;
• Other travel expenses (e.g. train, rental car);
• Costs for hosting a seminar/conference or workshop (should not exceed 50% of total budget);
• Accommodation and subsistence (a maximum of two weeks for up to four people);
• Consumables; and
• Publications and printing costs.

*Noting that for SJTU awardees, any expenses other than travel and subsistence should not exceed 30% of the total funding request.

4.2. All travel activities must comply with the guidelines of the respective universities.

• USyd – All USyd travel must comply with the Travel Policy 2018.
• SJTU – All SJTU travel must comply with the information on the website of Service Center for Exit-Entry Administration.  

4.3. Activities that will not be considered for funding:

• General teaching;
• An individual staff member’s research projects, unless as catalytic funding for the establishment of an international research collaboration with the prospect of external funding;
• Event registration fees;
• Venue hire if event held on campus;
• Website development;
• Salaries or salary supplementation, and honoraria;
• Scholarships for students;
• Course fees for international students;
• Bench fees;
• Mobile phone cards;
• Entertainment costs; and
• Computers, including laptops (excluding access to high-performance computers or other specialised applications that are justified by the project) and basic computing facilities such as printers, word processing and other standard software.

5. Submission Requirements

The proposal must address the selection criteria (see point 6) and include the following elements:

• Project timeline (a timeline form is built into the online application)
• Project budget (a budget form is built into the online application)
• CV of each investigator named in the project team (maximum two pages in length) which should include:

- Qualifications, current position and employment history

- 10 career-best publications

- Awards and relevant presentations

- Current grant income

- Collaborative track record (limited to 200 words)

• A brief letter of support in English on official letterhead from any additional institution/organisation (other than USyd or SJTU) that intends to formally collaborate.

6. Scoring and Selection Criteria

6.1. Priority is given to applications that align with the strategic research areas of both universities. Applications in other fields showing good prospect of sustainability are also welcome.

6.2. Criteria do not have weightings; proposals are assessed holistically. Each proposal will be assessed according to the selection criteria described below.