Teaching Innovation Grants

UQ is renowned for excellence in teaching innovation, and developing graduates who are highly capable, motivated and prepared to succeed in their chosen field, and leads as a premier provider of high-quality postgraduate and lifelong learning opportunities.

All projects supported by Teaching Innovation Grant funding are expected to demonstrate a commitment to fostering inclusive, diverse, and exceptional educational experiences that support UQ students at every stage of their journey and to integrate key skills and attributes into our students' education. Successful projects are expected to be practice-based and translatable across classroom contexts.

All projects should be aligned with UQ’s strategic priorities and must respond to the teaching and learning imperatives outlined in the one or more of the following documents:

Learning and Student Experience Roadmap (2024 - 2032)

Projects might explore:

• Transformative curricula, pedagogies and assessment that emphasise maintaining the integrity of the learning process and/or ensure that academic standards are upheld through secure and credible assessment practices irrespective of whether the approach involves technology-based developments.
• Innovate and expand work-integrated and/or industry-partnered learning opportunities that foster interdisciplinary, authentic experiences and align with evolving workforce needs at state, national, or global levels.

Lead through Learning Strategy (2025 – 2027)

Projects might explore:

• Developing high impact and effective learning experiences using accessible and ethical AI systems and preparing students for responsible AI use. Equipping students with ethical, practical AI skills they can use in their studies, careers, and communities

Stretch RAP Teaching and Learning Objectives

Projects might explore:

• Transformative and/or immersive learning experiences with sustainable, scalable impact that embed Indigenous perspectives and pedagogies and are guided by the principles of Country, Relationships, Respect, Cultural Capability, Reciprocity, Truth, and Benefits.

The Queensland Commitment Roadmap Teaching and Learning Objectives

Projects might explore:

• Enhancing equitable, flexible, and future-focused learning embedding inclusive design principles (such as Universal Design for Learning) and expanding adaptive teaching and learning opportunities that support lifelong learning and workforce readiness.

The Sustainability Framework and Plan 2026 - 2029 Theme 1: Knowledge for Sustainable Futures

Projects might explore:

• Developing and evaluating learning experiences that make sustainability more explicit in curriculum, assessment or student projects, enabling students to build sustainability literacy and translate knowledge into action through authentic challenges.

University-wide initiatives

Acknowledging that UQ already has a number of centrally supported, university wide teaching and learning initiatives, applicants are requested to engage with appropriate consultation in the early stages of project development.

If these are unknown, we encourage applicants to participate in consultation with ITaLI staff for support to determine where these correlations lie. Please contact teaching.grants@uq.edu.au if you have any questions.

Applications are welcomed in the following Grant Categories:

Early Career Educational Research Grants

A minimum of $75,000 funding will be reserved to support ECER Grants, to a maximum of $15,000 per project

Early Career Educational Research (ECER) Grants encourage Teaching Focussed, Teaching and Research or Clinical Academic staff to engage in evidence-informed teaching practice that includes educational research or scholarship of teaching and learning inquiry in order to identify teaching and learning issues and solutions, within or across disciplines. ECER Grants are also intended to support the developing capacity of early career academics.

Projects are expected to align with the strategic priority areas and innovate teaching and learning in Higher Education and may lead to publication.

Seed Grants for Small Projects

A minimum of $100,000 funding will be reserved to support Seed Grants to a maximum of $20,000 per project

Seed Grants provide an opportunity to test the large-scale potential of learning and teaching innovation on a small scale. They are designed to resource and enable initiatives that enhance and innovate teaching and learning for the benefit of student success to confirm proof-of-concept for a smaller scale project and for the sharing of good practice within the wider academic community.

This funding is intended to support staff seeking to develop and pilot creative and strategically aligned enhancements to their teaching and learning context.

It is noted that success under this category of grant does not guarantee funding of an Innovation Grant for a larger scale project in a future round. Projects funded through this scheme are funded competitively and past success does not guarantee future funding.

Innovation Grants for Large Scale Projects

The remaining funding envelope will be allocated to support projects submitted under this category.

Innovation Grants for Large Scale Projects are intended to support projects that bring about more substantial change and enhancements to teaching and learning and the benefit of student experience at UQ. Applications submitted under this category will be strategically aligned and intended impacts expected to extend beyond a single faculty. Project teams are expected to demonstrate cross-faculty collaboration.

Please refer to the Application Guidelines for Teaching Innovation Grants when developing an application in any grant category. 

Applicants are advised that the eligibility and assessment criteria are differentiated for each category of grant, and this is outlined in detail, in the Application Quidelines.

Please pay particular attention to these differing requirements as you proceed with your application and contact the team if you have any questions about your eligibility to apply, or the most suitable category for your circumstances.  

Teaching Innovation Grants are intended to explore and develop new ways of teaching.

Project impact is a key expectation for all projects. Applicants must plan for and outline the expected impact or transfer of their project’s interventions in the application. A strong application will make a compelling case about anticipated project impact that is  appropriate for the grant category (inside an individual classroom, Faculty, or at UQ), may consider impact that extends beyond the University, and will provide a planned approach for the translation of project outcomes.

A note about anticipated impact

Teaching Innovation Grants, in any category, can be impactful across a range of domains:

• Student Learning gains including assessment performance and pass rates, pre-post diagnostic results, learning analytics, performance in subsequent courses, and student self-reporting of cognitive and affective learning.
• Student Engagement gains which might be demonstrated through student evaluations, levels of participation in communication and collaboration, learning analytics data, and effective use of feedback/feedforward mechanisms.
• Curriculum and Assessment Re-design where impact may be seen in the mapping of tasks and assessment to program learning objectives and/or accreditation standards, plus the adoption of new forms of authentic and adaptable assessment beyond the initial project.
• Teacher Practice and Identity reflecting changes such as self-reported engagement with new pedagogies and tactics, an expanded professional repertoire, participation in Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, and progression in recognition frameworks and awards.
• Communities of Practice wherein success may be shown by an increase in the number and diversity of collaborators, securing invitations to partner and mentor, and active advocacy for the innovation.
• Policy and UQ-wide Organisational Changes that might be reflected in policy revisions, the inclusion of project findings in university-wide planning and strategy, and the establishment of formal new service roles.
• Digital and Physical Infrastructure including the uptake of new tools or equipment, modifications in space use or design, adjustments to timetabling, and updates to support models and arrangements.
• Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging where better participation, progression, and completion rates for equity groups are noted, shifts in self-reported sense of belonging and welcome, and evidence from USL resources and more targeted diagnostics and supports.
• Knowledge and Research Dissemination where output involves publications, the creation of Open Educational Resources (OERs), and/or media coverage.
• Sustainability and Productivity Impacts which might be shown through adoption without additional funding, the number of successful applications over time, securing follow-on grant or industry interests, and demonstrable time and accuracy efficiencies.

Please refer to the Application Guidelines for guidance when preparing your application. These offer a thorough and comprehensive explanation of the Selection Criteria. 

Teaching Innovation Grant Selection will proceed in two application stages.

Stage 1: Expression of Interest

Applicants must submit an Expression of Interest online by 5pm on 19 February 2027.

All applicants for Teaching Innovation Grant Funding are required to submit an expression of interest using the online template published on the ITaLI Website by the deadline for consideration by the Shortlisting Panel.

What to Submit: Expression of Interest Components

The expression of interest includes the following components:

Online Form

• Applicant Details
• Grant Category
• Indicative Budget ($) including indicative split of costs under headings of Personnel, Project Activities, and Dissemination and Evaluation.

File Uploads

• Written Component* addressing the following sub-headings:
  • Problem / Challenge to be addressed including its strategic alignment
  • Rationale for the Approach and Proposed Changes / Solutions to be explored
  • Evaluating Success and Impact
  • Scholarship justifying the chosen approach
• Consultation Register (1 A4 Page): Document who you have contacted, when, their feedback and possible connection with the project.
• Head of School Endorsement for the Project Lead

*The length of the written component is determined by the category of grant. Please refer to the template, and the application guidelines for detailed information

Where to Submit

Expressions of Interest must be submitted online here.

A Shortlisting Committee will appraise expressions of interest according to the published criteria, and will invite eligible applicants to provide a detailed application in Stage 2 of the Application Process.

Stage 2: Submitting a Full Application

Shortlisted applicants only

Shortlisted applicants will be invited to submit a full application for consideration by the Selection Panel. Following shortlisting, invited applicants must first develop a full draft application in the template for Associate Dean (Academic) endorsement before the full final application is submitted.

Where to submit

Full applications must receive Faculty AD(A) endorsement in order to be forwarded to the Selection Panel and as such, there are two deadlines in this application stage.

Deadline 2: Faculty Associate Dean (Academic) Endorsement

Shortlisted applicants must submit a close to final draft of your full application in the word document (application) and excel (budget) templates for endorsement via teaching.grants@uq.edu.au by the 5pm 16 April 2027.

AD(A) endorsement is required only from the administering faculty. ITaLI facilitates the Faculty AD(A) endorsement process.

Applicants can expect that AD(A)s will offer feedback on their full application and project proposal. Applicants must address any feedback prior to final submission to ITaLI. This is a required component of the application form and the assessment process. By special consideration, applications requiring updates following AD(A) review may request an extension in exceptional circumstances and on a case-by-case basis.

Applications that fail to meet the endorsement requirement will not be considered by the Selection Panel.

Associate Dean (Academic) feedback will be circulated back to Applicants in a timely fashion, to support applicants to meet the deadlines for submission at Deadline 2.

Deadline 3: Full final application

Shortlisted Applicants must submit their full final—endorsed or provisionally endorsed—application for consideration by the Selection Panel in the online application portal by 5pm 7 May 2027.

Applications which receive provisional AD(A) endorsement at deadline 2 will be returned to the AD(A) for full final endorsement prior to consideration by the Selection Panel. Full endorsement must be received for the application to be considered for funding. Should your application not receive full endorsement you will receive written feedback confirming this outcome.

An email confirming receipt of the application will be sent to the nominated email address of the project lead only.

A Selection Committee will appraise applications according to the published criteria and make recommendations for awarding commendations and citations to the University Teaching, Learning and Student Experience Committee for endorsement and the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) for approval.

Late applications

Late applications will not be accepted except in extenuating circumstances and must be approved in writing prior to the closing date by the Chair of the Shortlisting and Selection Panel/s. 

When you begin planning your project application, you are expected to consult widely.

• Begin within your school or faculty and speak with your Head of School, your School Director of Teaching and Learning, and your Faculty Associate Dean (Academic).  

• After consultation within your faculty and proposed project team, seek further consultation based on what is appropriate for your planned project idea. This might include consultation with ITS, Learning Designers and local working groups and committees within your school or faculty, or with other relevant business units. Please contact ITaLI for advice on who to approach for consultation if you need additional guidance.  

Consultation appropriate to the scope and scale of the project is expected from all applicants. A consultation register is required to be submitted at each application stage and is included in the assessment criteria for all categories of grant.

Developing a Teaching Innovation Grant Workshop and Guided Writing Session

27 November 2026 1–2:30pm – Online

This session will provide guidance on the application format and content required and tips for a successful application. Applicants will be provided time to draft their proposals with ITaLI staff and successful grant recipients available to provide advice and clarification.

Register your interest in the next offering here.

Pitch Your Idea

This session will provide applicants an opportunity to test their project idea in front of a panel of experts.

Each presenter may pitch for up to 5 minutes. This will be followed by 5 minutes of feedback.

We will run the following pitch opportunities:

Express your interest in a Pitch Session here.

Support for Shortlisted Applicants

An application writing workshop and drop in consultation will provide shortlisted applicants with:

• Guidance on the format and content requirements for a full application, discussing examples of previously successful applications, and
• An opportunity to discuss Shortlisting Panel and Associate Dean (Academic) feedback ahead of the final full application submission deadline.

View past grant recipients