John Hearn–Cheryl de la Rey
ECR Prize
The Annual AAUN John Hearn-Cheryl de la Rey ECR Prize honours the legacy of the AAUN’s two founding Co-Chairs by celebrating emerging research talent across the network.
John Hearn–Cheryl de la Rey
ECR Prize
The Annual AAUN John Hearn–Cheryl de la Rey ECR Prize was launched at the AAUN Australia Forum in Perth on 3 September 2024. The Prize is awarded jointly to one Early Career Researcher (ECR) based at an African AAUN member university and one ECR based at an Australian AAUN member university each year, starting in 2026.
Each winner receives a cash prize of AUD $2,000 which must be used directly towards a professional development initiative in the following 12 months that advances Australia-Africa research collaboration.
Modalities
▼- The Annual Prize was launched at the AAUN Australia Forum in Perth on 3 September 2024.
- The Prize is awarded jointly to one ECR based at an African AAUN member university and one ECR based at an Australian AAUN member university each year, starting in 2026.
- The total prize pool is AUD $4,000, funded jointly by the AAUN Australia and AAUN Africa groups.
- Each winner receives a cash prize of AUD $2,000 which must be used directly towards a professional development initiative in the following 12 months that advances Australia-Africa research collaboration.
- Winners are invited to present their research at a future AAUN Forum, including reporting on how they used the prize.
- Only one prize nomination can be made by each member university per year.
- Assessment of nominations is undertaken by a Prize Sub-committee of the AAUN Board / Steering Committee in Australia and Africa.
Eligibility
▼ECR Definition: A period of 7 years since the conferral of the PhD degree (proof of enrolment or date of conferral required).
- The applicant must be employed in some capacity by an AAUN member university at the time of application (proof of employment status required).
- Applicants can be from any field or discipline at the university.
- Applicants must follow the process contained in these guidelines and submit the application in one collated PDF.
Criteria
▼- Best journal publication or non-traditional output in the preceding year (as lead author).
- For the 2026 round, this means publications/outputs dated 2025.
- Non-traditional output includes scholarly contributions beyond conventional formats: digital artifacts, creative works, public scholarship, data products, teaching materials, and applied outputs.
- The applicant must demonstrate the relevance of the publication/output for Australia-Africa research collaboration.
- The applicant must make a case for the excellence of their publication/output, including:
- Scientific Quality – Impact Factor and Scimago Ranking of the journal/outlet
- Impact – Citations, downloads, media invitations, etc.
How to Apply
▼Please submit the following documents in one collated PDF directly to your AAUN Board / Steering Group representative (a contact list is provided on the AAUN website):
- Cover letter – up to 2 pages maximum, providing:
- Rationale and applicability for the award
- Explanation of the impact of the journal and the article or non-traditional output
- Explanation of the relevance of the publication/output to Australia-Africa research collaboration
- Copy of the published journal article, or proof of the impact of the non-traditional output, or an acceptance letter (including date) if publication forthcoming.
- Evidence of peer review (e.g., reviewer reports).
Closing date for applications: 15 August 2026
Prizes announced: Early November 2026 at the AAUN John Hearn Memorial Lecture
Contact
▼AAUN Africa Secretariat:
africa-secretariat@aaun.network
AAUN Australia Secretariat:
aus-secretariat@aaun.network
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