Grants up to $3 million support collaborative health and medical research, translation, workforce development, research capacity, and improved health outcomes across Australia over five years.
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What is the Centres of Research Excellence (CRE)?
The NHMRC Centres of Research Excellence (CRE) 2027 grant opportunity supports teams of researchers to pursue collaborative research and develop research capacity across basic science research, clinical research, health services research and public health research.
The scheme aims to improve health outcomes, translate research findings into policy and practice, strengthen the health and medical research workforce and expand collaboration between research teams.
A Centre of Research Excellence may operate as a single physical centre or institute, or as a geographically dispersed network involving more than one institution. National and international research collaboration is encouraged.
Centres of Research Excellence level of support
Funding amount
- Minimum grant amount: $3 million
- Maximum grant amount: $3 million
- Each successful CRE receives a fixed $3 million budget
- Funding is provided over a fixed five-year period
- The provisional funding allocation for the 2027 round is up to $60 million
- Up to 20 CRE grants are expected to be funded, subject to competitive applications
- Up to five grants may be awarded in each of the four research streams
- Indexation is included in the funding allocation and applied to grant payments annually
- Grants are expected to commence on 1 November 2027
Co-contribution
No applicant co-contribution requirement is stated in the CRE 2027 Guidelines.
Centres of Research Excellence important dates
- Applications close: 4 November 2026 at 5:00 pm ACT local time
- Anticipated peer review period: January to April 2027
- Anticipated notification of outcomes: August 2027
- Expected grant commencement: 1 November 2027
- The minimum data deadline will not be extended. Applications that do not satisfy the minimum data requirements by this date will be ineligible.
- Register your interest with GrantHelper
Centres of Research Excellence objectives
The objectives of the CRE scheme are to:
- improve health outcomes
- promote or improve the translation of research outcomes into policy and/or practice
- support researchers through capacity-building activities, including areas of need identified by NHMRC
The intended outcomes are to:
- support the conduct and development of innovative, high-quality collaborative research
- promote effective translation of research into knowledge gain, health policy and/or practice
- foster capacity and capability within the health and medical research workforce
- expand and improve collaboration between research teams
Projects and expenditure eligible for Centres of Research Excellence support
Applicants must select the application stream that best matches the broad research area of their proposal.
Eligible research streams are:
- Basic Science Research – research examining biological processes underlying health and disease at molecular, cellular, organ system or whole-body levels, including in vitro, in vivo and/or in silico research
- Clinical Research – research aimed at improving the diagnosis, treatment or prevention of human diseases and conditions, including research involving patients, clinical diagnostic materials or patient data
- Health Services Research – research aimed at understanding and improving healthcare effectiveness, quality, safety, access, distribution, timeliness, efficiency and relevant social and environmental dimensions
- Public Health Research – research aimed at improving population health through disease prevention, prolonging life, promoting health and wellbeing, and understanding social, behavioural, environmental and other determinants of health and disease
Funding must be used for costs directly incurred in delivering the grant activity and must comply with NHMRC’s Direct Research Cost Guidelines.
Eligible or potentially eligible expenditure includes:
- direct research costs associated with the approved research program
- Chief Investigator salary costs where they are directly associated with achieving the research outcomes and applicable requirements are met
- Personnel Support Package-based salary costs where permitted
- overseas research activities where they are critical to successful completion of the research and the necessary equipment or resources are unavailable in Australia
- salary support for overseas-based research support staff where the overseas activity satisfies the required conditions
Ineligible or restricted expenditure and activities
The CRE Guidelines do not provide a standalone general list of ineligible expenditure. Expenditure must comply with the NHMRC Direct Research Cost Guidelines. Specific restrictions in the CRE Guidelines include:
- Associate Investigators cannot draw a salary from CRE grant funding
- Chief Investigators based overseas cannot draw a salary from the CRE grant
- CRE grants are not normally intended to provide salary support for Chief Investigators, although salary support may be permitted where directly associated with achieving research outcomes
- overseas research expenditure must not be claimed simply because overseas activity is preferred; the activity must be critical and the required equipment or resources must be unavailable in Australia
- NHMRC will not fund research it considers to duplicate research already funded or currently receiving funding
- duplicate applications must not be submitted across multiple CRE research streams
Other Centres of Research Excellence important details that you will need to know
Organisations eligible for Centres of Research Excellence support
Applications will only be accepted from NHMRC-approved Administering Institutions.
Additional investigator requirements include:
- the Chief Investigator A must, at the time of accepting the grant and throughout the grant, be an Australian or New Zealand citizen, an Australian permanent resident, or hold an appropriate work visa
- the Chief Investigator A must be based in Australia for at least 80% of the funding period
- the role and contribution of every Chief Investigator must be described
- PhD students may be named as Chief Investigators where they are critical to successful completion of the proposed research
- there is no restriction on who may be named as an Associate Investigator, subject to the maximum of 10 Associate Investigators
- institutions subject to applicable National Redress Scheme restrictions may be ineligible to receive NHMRC funding
Centres of Research Excellence assessment criteria
Applications are assessed through a targeted competitive process by independent peer reviewers.
All five assessment criteria have an equal weighting of 20%.
Track records are assessed relative to opportunity, including consideration of applicable career disruptions.
Criterion 1 – Generate new knowledge – 20%
Applicants should demonstrate:
- clear research objectives and theoretical concepts
- robust research designs and methodologies appropriate to the broader Centre strategy
- innovative or pioneering aims and concepts
- potential to produce significant new findings
- potential to advance knowledge in the relevant field
- feasibility of the proposed research
- appropriate integration of sex, gender, variations of sex characteristics and/or sexual orientation, or a strong evidence-based justification where these variables are not integrated
The criterion focuses on whether the research can create a paradigm shift in basic science understanding and/or a practice shift that improves health or health-system outcomes.
Criterion 2 – Research translation and impact – 20%
Applicants should demonstrate:
- significance and potential impact for human health and/or basic science
- a strong plan for translating research into impact
- appropriate engagement with commercial groups where relevant
- plans to communicate and promote Centre activities to the wider community
- meaningful consumer and community involvement
- consumer and community participation in areas such as priority-setting, research design, development, governance, communication and implementation
- clear pathways for research outcomes to influence knowledge, future research, health policy and/or practice
Criterion 3 – Develop the health and medical research workforce – 20%
Applicants should demonstrate:
- a strong strategy for generating new research capability
- training and mentoring opportunities
- pathways for researcher career development
- opportunities to develop future independent researchers and research leaders
- a strategy for building workforce capacity and capability
- implementation-science capacity where appropriate
- clear opportunities for integrating new researchers into research teams
Criterion 4 – Facilitate collaboration – 20%
Applicants should demonstrate:
- effective existing and/or proposed collaborations
- opportunities for intellectual exchange
- relationships with other research groups in relevant fields
- strong integration and cohesiveness across the research team
- effective governance arrangements
- clearly defined roles and responsibilities
- appropriate management of resources
- clear additional value created by establishing the collaborative Centre rather than undertaking its individual components separately
- the ability to operate cohesively throughout the five-year funding period
Criterion 5 – Record of research and translation achievement, relative to opportunity – 20%
Applicants should demonstrate that the Chief Investigator team has:
- the appropriate combination of research skills and experience to deliver the proposed research
- strong research outputs
- publications demonstrating innovation and significance
- evidence of impact from previous research
- evidence of influence on healthcare practices, public policy or knowledge uptake
- recognised contributions to their fields
- relevant national and international standing
- leadership positions, invited presentations, editorial appointments or professional contributions where relevant
- evidence of research translation
- evidence of influencing subsequent research, research redesign, policy, health systems or practice
- commercialisation achievements where relevant
Scoring and peer review
- Peer reviewers score applications against detailed score descriptors.
- All five criteria have equal weighting.
- Score descriptors use a seven-point scale ranging from Weak or Limited to Exceptional.
- Following initial peer review, shortlisted applications undergo further assessment.
- Applications with an overall score above 4.500 and a minimum mean score of 4.000 for every assessment criterion are potentially fundable, subject to available funding.
- Overall assessment also includes consideration of value with money.
- Funding recommendations are based on the resulting rank-ordered list of applications.
How do I get the Centres of Research Excellence support?
To put forward a competitive application, applicants should demonstrate:
- strong alignment with the objectives of the CRE scheme and the selected research stream
- a clearly defined, innovative and feasible program of research
- potential to produce significant advances in knowledge or health and health-system outcomes
- a robust research methodology integrated across the broader Centre strategy
- a credible pathway for translating research into knowledge, policy, practice or further research
- meaningful consumer and community involvement where appropriate
- clear potential for significant health, research or policy impact
- a strong strategy for developing research workforce capacity, mentoring researchers and creating future leaders
- an experienced and complementary Chief Investigator team with the skills needed to deliver the proposal
- effective collaboration, governance, team integration and clearly defined responsibilities
- clear value from establishing a collaborative Centre beyond the individual components of the research
- a strong research and translation track record relative to opportunity
- appropriate consideration of sex, gender, variations of sex characteristics and sexual orientation, or a robust justification where these are not relevant
- appropriate consideration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health requirements where relevant
- sufficient Chief Investigator time commitments to make the proposed Centre viable
- good value for money and a clear connection between grant expenditure and research outcomes
- compliance with all eligibility, formatting, certification and application requirements
- all mandatory minimum data submitted accurately by the 14 October 2026 deadline
Information to prepare for the Centres of Research Excellence support
Applicants should prepare:
- application title
- nominated NHMRC Administering Institution
- selected CRE research stream
- confirmation of whether the application has an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander health research focus
- project synopsis
- required privacy agreements
- Broad Research Area classification
- Field of Research classifications
- Peer Review Areas
- at least five research keywords
- Chief Investigator A details
- details and roles of all other Chief Investigators and Associate Investigators
- current and complete mandatory Sapphire profile information for each Chief Investigator
- research objectives and methodology
- research translation and impact strategy
- consumer and community involvement plans
- workforce development, training and mentoring strategy
- collaboration and governance arrangements
- information on participating institutions
- relevant research classifications
- Chief Investigator track-record information
- required publication information
- ethics information
- consideration of sex, gender, variations of sex characteristics and sexual orientation
- evidence and information required for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research, where applicable
- complete Grant Proposal attachment
Minimum data must be lodged in Sapphire by 5:00 pm ACT local time on 14 October 2026. Failure to meet the minimum data deadline makes the application ineligible, and the deadline will not be extended.
Applying for the Centres of Research Excellence support
Applications must be submitted electronically through NHMRC’s Sapphire granting system unless NHMRC advises otherwise.
Register your interest with GrantHelper to explore your alignment with this grant and how we can assist you to increase your chances of success.
Centres of Research Excellence resources
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