Australia · Commercialisation
Where Australian universities’ research funding came from in 2024
General university funds paid for A$8.56 billion of Australia’s higher education R&D in 2024, slightly over half the A$16.4 billion total. Business funding rose to A$882 million.
Sources checked
General university funds made up about 52% of all 2024 spending, using the national total.
University funds supplied the biggest increase
General funds rose by A$1.36 billion from 2022. The increase represents more than half of the A$2.41 billion increase across all higher education R&D. The published figures are in current prices. Source 1
Competitive grants also grew
Australian competitive grants rose from A$2.08 billion to A$2.53 billion. The source lists other government schemes separately. Grouping those categories would obscure the role of competitive grants and would change what the comparison measures. Source 1
Business and philanthropic funding grew from smaller bases
Business funding rose from A$730 million to A$882 million and donations, bequests and foundations rose from A$496 million to A$605 million. The latter category includes a range of funders. The two rows describe sources of funds for work performed in higher education. Source 1 Source 2
Where the research is performed matters
The ABS reports spending by organisations in the higher education sector, even if another sector funded some of that work. The total is a measure of R&D expenditure, and it includes money for labour and other costs as well as capital expenditure. Source 1 Source 2