Guidelines and eligibility
Guidelines for nomination
Following the launch of the UTS 2027 Strategy and Research Strategy, we have continuously made efforts to improve the nomination process for the Vice Chancellor’s Awards for Research Excellence. The nomination process is now online via Symplectic.
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2023 UTS Vice-Chancellor Awards for Research Excellence Guidelines & Selection Criteria (PDF 607kB)
Eligibility
- The nominee(s) must be employed by UTS or have an honorary appointment and would normally have completed probation and have no impediments to their continued employment.
- Casual staff may be nominated where appropriate.
- The nominee(s)—including the coordinating nominee—must have been employed at UTS for a minimum of two years at the time of nomination. For team nominations, the majority of the team must have been at UTS for a minimum of 2 years.
- The nominated activity must have been conducted at UTS.
- An individual or team can be nominated for multiple categories in any given year, but only once per category. Previous winners are not eligible to be nominated a second time in the same category.
- Subject to eligibility criteria, previous finalists may re-submit their nomination in the current round.
- Multi- or cross-disciplinary nominations are highly encouraged where appropriate.
- For team nominations, all parties that played a critical role in the nominated activity should be included in the nomination. These may be academic, professional staff and/or HDR students.
- Attention is drawn to the selection criterion ‘Contribution to UTS culture of excellence and research significance’. This is aligned to the University-wide strategy and reflects the behaviours and values considered critical for the University to realise its vision. All nominations need to address this criterion in the application.
- Attention is drawn to the selection criterion ‘8 characteristics of research at UTS’. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and are central to how we collectively create and deliver excellence in research support. All nominations need to address this criterion in the application.
- All nominees (except for the Research Management and Development Award nominees) must have an up to date Discovery profile. Discovery Profiles are used to assess track records.
- Late or incomplete applications will be ruled ineligible.
Award-specific selection criteria are outlined under each award category.
Selection Criteria
Selection criteria and any additional eligibility requirements are outlined below under each award category.
Research Medals
Chancellor’s Medal for Research Excellence
Selection criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Research excellence (60%)
- Include evidence of excellence in relation to the nominated research and how this excellence has been sustained over a period of several years. This may include information related to measures of esteem, honours and award/prizes, and any other evaluations of the research, which are appropriate to demonstrating excellence.
- Research nominated for this medal must have been published in internationally respected, externally refereed outlets (noting that this includes national publishing houses and journals of international standing). Provide details of these publications, including citation data where appropriate.
- Research that has generated non-traditional research outputs is considered under this criterion. Here, nominees should describe these outputs and explain how they enhance our capabilities in, and connections to, creative and professional practice and how they represent research excellence in their field. The nominator should reinforce this assessment of creativity and its related non-traditional research outputs.
- Demonstrate evidence of impact and engagement outside the University as it relates to this research. Research impact is the contribution that research makes to the economy, society, environment, or culture, beyond the contribution to academic research.
- Where applicable, describe how the plan for research impact was developed, who has benefitted from the research, and how it reached the end user (see here for an example).
Evidence of competitive external research funding, secured either to support the nominated research or awarded because of the successful outcomes of the research,
[or]Evidence of external research funding from sources other than competitive grants
(e.g., contract research) and the satisfaction of the funder, for example through further funding or written endorsement of their satisfaction.
Originality and significance of the research (30%)
- Describe the research and demonstrate how it has contributed to new knowledge and to advancing the boundaries of the disciplines.
- Demonstrate how the research is innovative and, where appropriate, how it enhances our expertise in leading practice-based research.
Contribution to the UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning and teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole. Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
UTS Medal for Research Impact
Selection criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Details of the impact (60%)
- Describe the impact of this research, specifically how the research has influenced or benefited the economy, society, environment, or culture, beyond the contribution to academic research.
- Include evidence of the significance of the impact. This should include a description of the social, cultural, or other significant impact achieved because of the public’s engagement with the research (e.g., widespread readership of outputs or through media engagement).
- Where applicable, describe how the plan for research impact was developed, who has benefitted from the research, and how it reached the end user (see here for an example).
Research excellence (30%)
- Include evidence of excellence in relation to the nominated research. This may include information related to measures of esteem, honours and award/prizes, and any other evaluations of the research, which are appropriate to demonstrating excellence.
- Research nominated for this medal must have been published in internationally respected, externally refereed outlets (noting that this includes national publishing houses and journals of international standing). Provide details of these publications, including citation data where appropriate.
- Creative research practices that have generated non-traditional research outputs is considered under this criterion. Here, nominees should describe these outputs and explain how they represent research excellence in their field. The nominator should reinforce this assessment of non-traditional research outputs.
- Evidence of competitive external research funding, secured either to support the nominated research or awarded because of the successful outcomes of the research,
[or]
Evidence of external research funding from sources other than competitive grants (e.g. contract research) and the satisfaction of the funder, for example through further funding or written endorsement of their satisfaction.
Contribution to the UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning & teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole. Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
UTS Medal for Excellence in Research and Teaching Integration
Selection criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Teaching excellence (35%)
- Describe the innovative approaches to teaching and learning that have been applied and how they have better enabled learning outcomes to be achieved.
- Provide evidence of enhanced student experience that influences, motivates, and inspires students to learn, that have been achieved from the teaching practices.
- Provide evidence of publications on teaching developments and their influence on the practice of the wider community. Provide details of these publications, including citation data where appropriate.
- Include evidence of excellence in relation to the nominated teaching. This may include information related to measures of esteem, honours and award/prizes, and any other evaluations of the teaching practice, which are appropriate to demonstrating excellence.
Research excellence (35%)
- Include evidence of excellence in relation to the nominated research. This may include information related to measures of esteem, honours and award/prizes, and any other evaluations of the research, which are appropriate to demonstrating excellence.
- Research nominated for this medal must have been published in internationally respected, externally refereed outlets (noting that this includes national publishing houses and journals of international standing). Provide details of these publications, including citation data where appropriate.
- Creative research practices that have generated non-traditional research outputs is considered under this criterion. Here, nominees should describe these outputs and explain how they represent research excellence in their field. The nominator should reinforce this assessment of non-traditional research outputs.
- Demonstrate evidence of impact and engagement outside the University as it relates to this research. Research impact is the contribution that research makes to the economy, society, environment, or culture, beyond the contribution to academic research.
- Describe how the impact has been achieved (e.g., how the research reached the end user) and who has benefited.
- Provide evidence, in the Discovery profiles of each of the nominees, of:
competitive external research funding, secured either to support the nominated research or awarded because of the successful outcomes of the research,
[or]
external research funding from sources other than competitive grants (e.g., contract research) and the satisfaction of the funder, for example through further funding or written endorsement of their satisfaction.
Research, Learning and Teaching interrelatedness (20%)
- Describe how the research supports key learning areas within the research discipline.
- Demonstrate how the class experience has been beneficial for research design.
- Provide details of research that has been successfully integrated into teaching practice and vice versa.
- Demonstrate how research methods or outcomes have been integrated into subjects and courses at UTS and beyond.
- Where appropriate, describe how the research showcases our capabilities in, and connections to, creative and/or professional practice(s) and supports key learning areas within the research discipline.
Contribution to the UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning & teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole. Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
Research Awards
Early Career Research Excellence Award
Selection criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Originality and significance of the research (30%)
- Describe the research and demonstrate how it has contributed to new knowledge and to advancing the boundaries of the discipline.
- Describe how the research is innovative.
Research excellence (30%)
- Include evidence of excellence in relation to the nominated research. This may include information related to measures of esteem, honours and award/prizes, and any other evaluations of the research, which are appropriate to demonstrating excellence.
- Research nominated for this award must have been published in internationally respected, externally refereed outlets (noting that this includes national publishing houses and journals of international standing). Provide details of these publications, including citation data where appropriate.
- Research that has generated non-traditional research outputs is considered under this criterion. Here, nominees should describe these outputs and explain how they represent research excellence in their field. The nominator should reinforce this assessment of non-traditional research outputs.
- Research which enhances our expertise in leading practice-based research.
- Demonstrate evidence of impact and engagement outside the University as it relates to this research. Research impact is the contribution that research makes to the economy, society, environment, or culture, beyond the contribution to academic research.
- Where applicable, describe how the plan for research impact was developed, who has benefitted from the research, and how it reached the end user (see here for an example).
- Include evidence of competitive external research funding, secured either to support the nominated research or awarded as a result of the successful outcomes of the research,
[or]
external research funding from sources other than competitive grants (e.g., contract research) and the satisfaction of the funder, for example through further funding or written endorsement of their satisfaction.
Future research leader (30%)
Provide evidence of:
- Building peer and external networks.
- Community outreach.
- The nominee’s developing leadership capabilities.
- The nominee’s efforts to champion junior researchers.
Contribution to the UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning & teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole. Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
Research Leadership and Development Award
Selection criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Leadership and Development activities (60%)
Provide evidence of:
- A research vision that has delivered results.
- Teamwork, mentoring and training of peers, early career researchers and research degree students.
- How the nominee has helped integrate younger researchers into the wider research community, within and beyond their own research community and UTS, including post PhD employment.
- How the nominee has implemented innovative skills development programs and supported broader programs for researcher development outside their immediate unit.
- The nominee’s contributions to the development and strengthening of institutional and local ECR strategy and policy.
- The nominee’s capacity for building peer networks and external collaborations.
Research excellence (30%)
- Include evidence of excellence in relation to the nominated research. This may include information related to measures of esteem, honours and award/prizes, and any other evaluations of the research, which are appropriate to demonstrating excellence.
- Research nominated for this award must have been published in internationally respected, externally refereed outlets (noting that this includes national publishing houses and journals of international standing). Provide details of these publications, including citation data where appropriate.
- Research that has generated non-traditional research outputs is considered under this criterion. Nominees should describe these outputs and explain how they represent research excellence in their field. The nominator should reinforce this assessment of non-traditional research outputs.
- Demonstrate evidence of impact and engagement outside the University as it relates to this research. Research impact is the contribution that research makes to the economy, society, environment, or culture, beyond the contribution to academic research.
- Where applicable, describe how the plan for research impact was developed, who has benefitted from the research, and how it reached the end user (see here for an example).
- Provide evidence of competitive external research funding, secured either to support the nominated research or awarded because of the successful outcomes of the research,
[or]
Evidence of external research funding from sources other than competitive grants (e.g., contract research) and the satisfaction of the funder, for example through further funding or written endorsement of their satisfaction.
Contribution to the UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning & teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole. Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
Research Excellence through Collaboration or Partnership Award
Eligibility
The research entered may be a single project or a program of research.
External partners should not be included as nominees; however, the nomination must include a letter of support from the external partner describing the outcomes and benefits of the partnership. This must not exceed two pages.
Selection criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Collaboration (40%)
- Demonstrate the strength of the partnership/collaboration and evidence of teamwork.
- Provide evidence of leadership within the collaboration.
-
- Describe how the research outcomes were only possible because of the partnership/collaboration.
Research significance and impact (30%)
- Demonstrate evidence of the partnership/collaboration, and the benefits and impact that it brings to the University.
- Provide evidence of learning experiences being shared for use in future partnerships/collaborations.
- Provide evidence of output/outcomes from the partnership/collaboration including publications, research quality metrics and impact on society/industry e.g., citations, external research funding (including industry scholarships), industry scholarships and supervision of research degree candidates, which resulted from this partnership/collaboration.
Research excellence (20%)
Include evidence of:
- Excellence in relation to the nominated research. This may include information related to measures of esteem, honours and award/prizes, and any other evaluations of the research, which are appropriate to demonstrating excellence.
- Research nominated for this award must have been published in internationally respected, externally refereed outlets (noting that this includes national publishing houses and journals of international standing). Provide details of these publications, including citation data where appropriate.
- Research that has generated non-traditional research outputs is considered under this criterion. Here, nominees should describe these outputs and explain how they represent research excellence in their field. The nominator should reinforce this assessment of non-traditional research outputs.
- Where applicable, describe how the plan for research impact was developed, who has benefitted from the research, and how it reached the end user (see here for an example).
- Provide evidence of competitive external research funding, secured either to support the nominated research or awarded because of the successful outcomes of the research,
[or]
Evidence of external research funding from sources other than competitive grants e.g., contract research and the satisfaction of the funder, for example through further funding or written endorsement of their satisfaction.
Contribution to the UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning & teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole. Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
Research Management and Development Award (Professional Staff)
Selection Criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Initiative (30%)
Describe how the nominee/team has:
- demonstrated leadership within their team or across the UTS research community
- shown ingenuity in researcher development initiative and/or research capability at UTS
- created or improved processes and procedures
Performance (Contribution) (30%)
- Provide evidence that the quality of work/output or service contributed by the nominee/team has gone above and beyond the normal duties of the position and has led to successful outcomes for an associated research program or team.
- Demonstrate a significant and sustained effort to improve systems and enhance support.
Relationship excellence (30%)
- Provide evidence of a demonstrated ability to build and maintain productive collaborative relationships and research networks across UTS.
- Demonstrate the strength of the partnership and evidence of teamwork.
Contribution to the UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning & teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole.
Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
Supervisor of the Year Award
Eligibility
Nominees (research supervisors) must be nominated by a former student, or a current student who has submitted the final draft of their thesis and is waiting on the outcome. The thesis submission must be the final submission after an assessor review has been conducted and all revisions to the thesis have been made. Nominations in Symplectic must be completed by the nominee (research supervisor) and the former student or current student must fill out the Nominator’s Statement of Support. Only one nomination per supervisor will be accepted, therefore it is important that nominators should coordinate support for the application among their peers. The performance of nominees should be described in relation to each of the criteria below. It is important that descriptions indicate how the nominees’ activities demonstrate excellence in relation to the criteria. Furthermore, the nomination must address how the research activities contribute to the UTS culture of excellence and align with one or more of the Eight Characteristics of Research at UTS.
Selection criteria
Nominations should address each of the following criteria.
Sustained and outstanding results of supervision (25%)
- Provide evidence of sustained and outstanding results of the nominated supervisor e.g., have students from a range of backgrounds been encouraged to pursue a doctorate? What have the research students gone on to achieve?
- Provide evidence of the nominee offering constructive employment and career advice post-graduation.
Supervision innovation (25%)
- Provide evidence of the pioneering approach by the nominated supervisor. What has the nominee done, above and beyond what is expected of any good supervisor?
- How have they used the UTS supervisory panel approach to provide innovative and high-quality supervision?
Dedication (20%)
- Provide demonstrable evidence for the nominee’s enthusiasm for the role and going the extra mile to help students navigate difficulties, academic or otherwise.
Academic leadership (20%)
- Provide evidence of the nominee’s efforts in constructively challenging students intellectually and helping them to make substantial contributions to their academic field.
Contribution to UTS culture of excellence (5%)
As a member of the UTS community, staff are expected to adhere to the principles of good citizenship, being generous with your help and support to others and collaborating with all colleagues in matters relating to research, learning & teaching, knowledge transfer, and working for the benefit of the University as a whole.
Examples of good citizenship and conduct are:
- active engagement with colleagues and accepting delegated responsibilities
- creating good working relationships with colleagues and others
- fulfilling commitments
- adherence to the University's policies
- respect for colleagues at all levels
- contributing positively to meetings or training events
- showing leadership in the promotion of work/life balance
- contributing to a culture of peer support and mentoring
Provide evidence of adherence to the principles of good citizenship.
Align with the Eight characteristics of research at UTS (5%)
The UTS Research Strategy identifies eight characteristics which underlies and motivates how we work and build our careers at UTS. These eight characteristics are core to the UTS Research Strategy and to the work of UTS academics and professional staff and Higher Degree Research students. Nominees should identify one or more of these characteristics and to briefly explain how their nominated activities reflect that/those characteristic/s.
Selection process
- Submissions will be considered against the selection criteria for each award or medal, with research performance and track record considered relative to opportunity for all nominees.
- Each category will be judged by a five/six-member panel chaired by the DVC Research and including representatives from the academic community such as Deans, Associate Deans (Research), research leaders, and representatives of research support functions. The panel reserves the right to:
- seek additional information from nominators or other sources within UTS;
- request a nomination be considered in another category, subject to the eligibility criteria;
- recommend more than one winner where nominations are equally meritorious;
- recommend Highly Commended nominees; and
- recommend that a category not be awarded where the quality of the nominations is not sufficiently meritorious.
- Following the panel decision, the DVC Research will recommend up to three finalists in each prize/medal, including the actual award recipient, to the Vice-Chancellor.
- The decision of the Vice-Chancellor is final and cannot be the subject of appeal.
The information about the nomination process and how access the nomination forms will become available in 2022 via the How to nominate page (now inactive).
Prizes
Each award or medal recipient will receive a medal or trophy, a certificate of award, and a financial award (amount specified within each category) that can be added to their nominated UTS research account (and used for UTS related research activities within twelve months of award) or can be taken as personal income, in which case the normal marginal tax rate would apply. If an award is won by a team, the prize money will be awarded in multiples of the individual award, capped at $10,000 to be shared equally among the team.
Questions relating to the awards should be emailed to researchawards@uts.edu.au