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Funding to boost participation of girls and women in STEM and entrepreneurship
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Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship Round 5
Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship grants encourage participation of girls and women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics leading to STEM education and careers.
What do you get?
Grants between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000 for projects that increase women’s and girls’ participation in STEM and entrepreneurship.
Who is this for?
Australian businesses, publicly funded research organisations, vocational education and training providers, TAFE institutions and not-for-profit organisations to deliver projects that support women and girls to build STEM skills and succeed in STEM education and careers.
About the program
The Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship program supports investment in gender equity initiatives that aim for lasting systemic change by eliminating barriers for women’s participation in STEM education and careers, and entrepreneurship.
The program objectives are to:
- increase awareness and participation of girls and women in STEM education and careers
- increase awareness and participation of girls and women in other parts of the innovation ecosystem including innovative businesses, start-ups and entrepreneurial activities and careers
- increase the number of women in senior leadership and decision making positions in government, research organisations, industry and businesses.
The grant opportunity provides funding to deliver co-designed projects that:
- reduce and/or mitigate systemic and cultural barriers to participation in STEM education, careers, innovation and entrepreneurship by girls and women
- reduce the multiplier effect of intersectional barriers to participation, development and leadership of girls and women in STEM education, careers, innovation and entrepreneurship
- address inequality or discrimination against girls and women in STEM education, careers, innovation and/or entrepreneurship, by either:
- increasing awareness and understanding of the barriers to participation of girls and women in STEM education, careers, innovation and/or entrepreneurship
- increasing participation, development and leadership of girls and women in STEM education, careers, innovation and entrepreneurship, including senior leadership and decision-making positions in government, research organisations, industry and businesses
- broadening and strengthening networks and support for girls and women in STEM education, careers, innovation and entrepreneurship.
This is a high-level comparison of the differences in the grant opportunity guidelines from round 4.
Full requirements for round 5 are set out in the grant opportunity guidelines. You must refer to, understand, and comply with, the round 5 grant opportunity guidelines when preparing your application.
- The minimum grant amount has increased from $500,000 to $1 million (Section 3.1).
- The maximum grant amount has increased from $1 million to $2 million (Section 3.1).
- In-kind contributions can now be counted towards eligible project costs (Section 3.1).
- The maximum project length has been extended from 3 years to 5 years (Section 3.2).
- Project eligibility (Section 5.1) has been updated:
- projects must now be co-designed with the target audience to be eligible. The co-design requirement is also assessed under Assessment Criterion 1 and expected in the project plan attachment
- the previous requirement for projects to scale up or extend an existing project has been removed.
- Assessment criteria (Section 6) have been updated, including:
- introducing co-design with the target audience as a criterion
- strengthening focus on increasing support for women at key career transition points
- adjusting criterion weighting.
Diversity in STEM
This opportunity is part of the Diversity in STEM suite of initiatives, which provides funding for a range of grant opportunities to support equity, diversity and inclusion in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and careers.
The Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship Program supports the development of a thriving, skilled and diverse STEM workforce and puts into action the Government’s National Gender Equality Strategy. It expands the focus of existing Women in STEM programs to maintain support for women and girls and gender diverse/non-binary people, while also encompassing a broader diversity of cohorts underrepresented in STEM.
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