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Miegunyah Distinguished Visiting Fellowship Program 2012

Background

In 1993, on the recommendation of the Russell and Mab Grimwade Miegunyah Fund Committee, Council established a Miegunyah Distinguished Fellowship Program.

Since the start of the program in 1993 ninety-three fellowships have been awarded. For 2011, fellowships have been awarded for visits to the following individuals and purposes.

Visiting Fellow University Host Dept./Faculty Proposed Public Lecture Title
Professor Richard FREEMAN Herbert Ascherman Professor of Economics, Harvard University Senior Professorial Research Fellow, Labour Market Centre, London School of Economics Faculty of Business and Economics (Departments of Management & Marketing, Economics and the Melbourne Institute) Optimal Inequality for Economic Growth, Stability and Shared Prosperity: when do incentives get too high-powered for the good of the economy
Professor Guiseppe DE GIACOMO Full Professor, “La Sapienza” University of Rome, Italy Melbourne School of Engineering (Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering) Cognitive Robotics: The science of building intelligent autonomous robots and software agents
Professor Eric TAYLOR Emeritus Professor, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences (Department of Paediatrics) The Importance of the Developing Brain and Body in Child Mental Health
Professor Lawrence KRAUSS Foundation Professor, Director of the Origins Project, Co-Director Cosmology Initiative, Associate Director Beyond Center, School of Earth and Space Exploration and Physics Department, Arizona State University Faculty of Science (School of Physics) Life, The Universe and Nothing: Life and death in an expanding universe
Professor Stephen MAY Deputy Principal and Vice-Principal for Teaching, Royal Veterinary College, University of London Faculty of Veterinary Science Clinical Professions fit for the 21st Century: Challenges for the educators!

For 2012, five fellowships will be awarded at a maximum of $20,000 each.

Responsibilities of the Fellow

During their period at the University, Fellows will be required to present a substantial public lecture and several specialist lectures or a short series of seminars on a topic of general interest to the University community, to be available for consultation with staff and students and, if possible, to be engaged in research.

Fellows will be appointed under a relevant University statute and will be asked to prepare a brief report at the conclusion of their visit. In addition, the Miegunyah Fund Committee requests that a copy of the public lecture and a photograph of the Fellow be retained for its records.

Note that Melbourne University Publishing reserves the option to obtain copyright for and publish the public lecture. Should there be any objection, please advise the Office of Provost in writing when lodging the nomination.

A Public Lecture

Financial support for the presentation of the public lecture will be provided. With assistance from the Marketing and Communications Division, each public lecture will be promoted in the press and throughout the University, and will be associated with a dinner and/or reception following the presentation of the lecture.

Formal procedures have been established concerning the distribution of invitations to the lectures and, in addition to representatives from the discipline or department concerned, guests will include members of the University Council, Office of the Vice-Chancellor and Senior Executive; members of the Miegunyah Fund Committee; and other appropriate corporate and external invitees. Departments hosting a Miegunyah Fellow will be requested to provide the Protocol Office, the Office of the Provost and the Marketing and Communications Division with a contact person with whom they should liaise to coordinate the function.

Duration of the Visit

It is expected that the duration of most Fellowship proposals will be between four and eight weeks, but the Committee will look favourably on a shorter period if that is all the time that can be given by particularly eminent people.

Level of Funding

The actual value of the award will depend on the proposed length of stay, the cost of the airfare, and associated expenses. The value of each award made will be up to $20,000. (Please note that the selection committee, in its desire to support as many Fellows as possible, has the discretion to allocate awards of less than $20,000.)

Each grant must reserve $3,000 for promotion of the public lecture as well as $2,500 for a dinner and/or reception following the lecture. Beyond the reservation of the $5,500 mentioned, faculties or departments have discretion in determining how the remaining amount of the grant is utilised.

It is expected that the allocated funding will be expended within 12 months of the award being granted. Any extension of this timeframe will need to be applied for in writing and approval cannot be anticipated.

Application Procedure

Heads of Department must submit nominations through their Dean.

Please download and complete the application coversheet and budget proforma. Four sets of each nomination are required (an original and three copies).

In making nominations, Deans and/or Heads are to submit the following:

The budget must include the following information.

Fellows should be of exceptional international distinction in a field of study of interest to the University. They should reside outside Australia. Faculties are encouraged to consider female candidates for nomination.

Fellows are expected to contribute to the academic, intellectual and cultural life of the University during their stay, and the proposed activities of the nominated Fellow comprise an important part of the selection criteria. Consideration also needs to be given to the title and description of the proposed public lecture to ensure its appeal is aimed at both the University and the wider community.

For advice on the latest Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) information about visa requirements and payments for prospective Miegunyah Fellows, please contact Ms Jennifer Sedgman in Human Resources on ext. 49906 or jsedgman@unimelb.edu.au. Further information can also be accessed from the Department of Immigration website.

Please note that there are a number of restrictions on payments to visitors. Payments to visitors may be in the form of a Living Away From Home Allowance or reimbursement of costs upon presentation of receipts for costs incurred. There are various payment limits in place with regard to payments to visitors. Further information can be found under section 2.1 of the chapter ‘Payments to Individuals (UOM0141)’ contained within the Policy Library at policy.unimelb.edu.au/UOM0141#section-2.1. For assistance, please contact Mr Joseph Borg in Finance & Planning on ext. 42758 or borgj@unimelb.edu.au.

Colleges:

Subject to availability, some University Colleges provide accommodation at minimal cost to Visiting Fellows (see below). This should be investigated before opting for hotel accommodation.

Selection Procedure

Selection will be undertaken by a sub-committee of the Miegunyah Fund Committee, comprising:

Miegunyah Fellows will be selected according to the following criteria:

Contact

Jon Dale
Policy and Programs Officer, Office of the Provost
Email jdale@unimelb.edu.au
Phone (03) 9035 9466
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