The Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success (ACSES) has today launched two new grants schemes for 2027 through our Trials and Evaluation Program.
No images? Click here
ACSES launches 2027 Trials and Evaluation grants schemes
Dear colleagues,
The Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success (ACSES) is excited to announce the launch today of two new grants schemes for 2027 through our Trials and Evaluation Program.
The Equity Frontiers Program: Theory-Based Impact Evaluation Projects grants scheme will support universities to deliver projects that examine whether equity initiatives work, how and why they work, for whom, and under what circumstances.
By exploring the processes, mechanisms, and conditions that contribute to impact, this all-new program aims to strengthen the design and delivery of equity initiatives, build evaluation capability, and generate actionable evidence to inform investment, policy, and practice across the higher education sector.
Returning for its second round, our Practitioners Resource Grants Program supports equity practitioners to design, develop, test, and deliver impactful resources tailored for universities—including manuals, practice guides, learning modules, and more.
This program offers practitioners the opportunity to combine their on-the-ground experience—covering all stages of the student lifecycle, from pre-access activities through to attainment and transitioning out—with research already conducted by ACSES.
To introduce these funding opportunities, ACSES will host an information session on Thursday, 8 October 2026.
More information is also available on our Collaboration and Funding webpage.
Applications for both schemes are open until Friday, 30 October 2026.
Kind regards,
Associate Professor Tim Pitman
Trials and Evaluation Program Director
Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success
Information session: ACSES T&E 2027 Grants Schemes
Join us next week for an information session to learn more about the latest funding opportunities available through our Practitioners Resource Grants Program and the new Equity Frontiers Program: Theory-Based Impact Evaluation Projects initiative.
Presented by Associate Professor Tim Pitman (ACSES Trials and Evaluation Program Director) and Dr Patrick Broman (ACSES Manager, National Student Equity Evaluation), the session will cover essential information for both schemes including eligibility, levels of funding available, application deadlines, and how to apply.
There will also be time to ask questions about the programs and the application processes.
📆 Thursday, 8 October 2026
⏰10.00–10.45am AWST | 1.00–1.45pm AEDT
📍Online via Zoom
Apply now to join our ACSES Expert Review Panels
ACSES is inviting expressions of interest (EOIs) from researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and other relevant professionals to join the selection pool for our new ACSES Expert Review Panels.
Expert Review Panels will be tasked with independently reviewing grant applications shortlisted by ACSES, assessing applications against provided criteria, and ranking them in order of merit.
ACSES provides a range of competitive grants to researchers and higher education institutions nationwide across the Centre’s three core programs: Research and Policy, Trials and Evaluation, and Data.
Expert Review Panels will be appointed to review each round of grants, with panellists selected according to the expertise required for each initiative.
EOIs can be submitted online until Monday, 12 October.
Living the Learning Loop: 2026 Equity Frontiers Forum
There's still plenty of time to register for the ACSES Living the Learning Loop: 2026 Equity Frontiers Forum.
This event will bring together equity practitioners working in the Australian higher education sector, to share practical experience and learning from the past year of delivering quantitative impact evaluations of equity initiatives.
The 2026 Equity Frontiers Forum will include presentations delivered by equity practitioners from The University of Western Australia, Deakin University, and Charles Darwin University, followed by an opportunity to participate in a Q&A panel discussion.
You can find further information about the program and speakers here.
📆 Wednesday, 14 October 2026
⏰11:30am–2:30pm (AWST)
📍Online via Zoom
ACSES in the news
- Accord Ignores Equity Beyond Bachelor Quals, Future Campus
- Universities demand cost of living relief for students, University World News
- Shann Memorial Lecture at UWA, Perth, Europe Says
- Studying in place: expanding opportunity for regional Australia, OES
