Prime Minister's Prizes for Science — 2026 closed, 2027 nominations pending

Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science — 2026 closed, 2027 nominations pending

Australia’s Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science are national recognition awards for scientific achievement, research-based innovation, science teaching, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge systems. They are administered by the Australian Government Department of Industry, Science and Resources as part of the Inspiring Australia – Science Engagement Program.

The 2026 nomination round is closed. The department’s official program page says that 2026 recipients will be announced later in 2026 and that 2027 nominations will open later in 2026. It does not publish an exact opening date or closing date for the 2027 round. This page therefore preserves the verified 2026 closing date as an archive reference while clearly warning readers that it is not a future submission deadline.

Status at a glance

The deadline field in this entry remains 2025-12-18 because the site requires a short, non-empty date and no 2027 deadline has been published. Treat the field as the closed 2026 archive date. Do not submit against it, and do not treat it as evidence that the 2027 round is open.

What the prizes recognise

The program contains eight prizes in three groups. The five science and innovation prizes recognise research, scientific knowledge, and translation into useful outcomes. The two science teaching prizes recognise primary and secondary teachers who excel in STEM education. The eighth prize recognises an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander-led project that practices and preserves knowledge systems while benefiting Indigenous peoples, communities, or place.

The prizes are not ordinary project grants. A nominee needs a demonstrated achievement that can be explained against the published assessment criteria. The award may provide money and public recognition, but the nomination is not a request for a budget to start a new experiment, business, classroom program, or community project. Preparation should focus on what the nominee or project has already achieved, who benefited, and how the evidence supports the selected category.

Prize categories and amounts

Science and innovation prizes

The Prime Minister’s Prize for Science awards $250,000 for a significant advancement of knowledge through science. It may recognise an individual or a team of up to four people.

The Prime Minister’s Prize for Innovation awards $250,000 for translating scientific knowledge into a commercially available product, service, or process with substantial economic, social, and, where relevant, environmental benefits. It may also recognise an individual or a team of up to four people.

The Frank Fenner Prize for Life Scientist of the Year awards $50,000 for an exceptional life-science achievement that benefits, or has the potential to benefit, human welfare or society. The official description limits the achievement to the relevant period within 10 years, full-time or equivalent, of completing relevant studies.

The Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year awards $50,000 for an exceptional physical-science achievement with a benefit or potential benefit to human welfare or society. It uses the same early-career study-period concept described for the life-science prize.

The Prize for New Innovators awards $50,000 for an early achievement towards commercialising or translating scientific research with economic, social, and, where relevant, environmental benefits. It is intended for a strong early translation record, not for a general promise of future work.

Science teaching prizes

The Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Primary Schools awards $250,000 for excellence in primary teaching in a STEM area that forms part of the relevant state or territory curriculum.

The Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools awards $250,000 for excellence in secondary teaching in a STEM area that forms part of the relevant state or territory curriculum.

Recipients receive prize money, a medallion, a lapel pin, and an award certificate. When a prize is awarded to a team, each member receives the recognition items and an equal portion of the prize money. This is another reason to settle the category and team membership before preparing a nomination.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Knowledge Systems Prize

This $250,000 prize recognises an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander-led project that benefits Australian Indigenous peoples, communities, or place and helps address a significant challenge through the practice and preservation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge systems. It may be awarded to an eligible individual, a team, or representatives of a community group. The program describes respectful connection with community and a genuine role for Indigenous knowledge systems as central to this category.

Eligibility and fit

The exact 2027 guidelines are not available yet. The following is the verified structure used for the 2026 round and is a preparation guide, not a substitute for the 2027 rules when they are released.

For the science prizes, a nominee must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia. A person who is living or studying overseas is not automatically excluded. Self-nomination is not allowed, and a nominee cannot be pursued in more than one prize category. The nominee must also satisfy the additional criteria for the selected science or innovation prize. Professional-association membership and a previous award are not required by the published science-prize eligibility summary.

For the science teaching prizes, the nominee must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, must have undertaken the nominated teaching achievement in Australia, and must not self-nominate. The nominee must be a full-time or part-time registered teacher at a primary or secondary school listed on the Australian Schools List and must be actively teaching STEM in the classroom at the time of nomination. A teacher on parental leave who intends to return to teaching is included in the published eligibility guidance. The nominator or one of the supporters must be the principal or head of school at the current school of achievement.

For the Knowledge Systems Prize, nominees must be Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. They may be an individual, members of an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander-led team, or representatives of a community group. They must be Australian citizens or permanent residents, cannot self-nominate, and cannot be nominated in more than one prize category. Their project must practice knowledge systems and show a demonstrable benefit to Australian Indigenous peoples, communities, and/or place, as well as a broader Australian benefit. A team or community-group nomination can name up to four nominees under the published guidance.

Across the categories, the nomination needs to come from someone with knowledge of the nominee’s achievement. The 2026 guidance requires two supporters and category-specific independent referees. Nominators and supporters must not be close family members, and the nominator cannot also fill the supporter or independent-referee role for the same nomination. Confirm the nominee’s consent before collecting personal details or asking referees to commit.

How nomination works when the 2027 round opens

There is no open 2027 form or confirmed submission date to use at present. The practical sequence below reflects the department’s two-stage structure and should be checked against the new 2027 call.

1. Choose one category. Compare the nominee’s strongest achievement with the official category description. A scientific discovery, a commercial translation, a classroom achievement, and an Indigenous-led knowledge-systems project require different evidence. Do not make one general biography do the work of four different cases.

2. Confirm consent and roles. Ask the nominee whether they agree to be nominated and explain the public recognition and reporting obligations. Select a nominator who knows the achievement, then identify two supporters and the required independent referees. Check family-role restrictions and any special role requirement for the teaching category.

3. Prepare the first-stage material. For the 2026 science-prize process, Stage 1 used a two-page CV in the supplied template, an online form, a 3,000-character response against the assessment criteria, two supporters, and two independent referees. One independent referee had to be based overseas for the Prime Minister’s Prize for Science and the Prime Minister’s Prize for Innovation. The teaching track used its own two-page CV and a 4,500-character criteria response. The Knowledge Systems track used a two-page background and experience statement, a 4,500-character response, two supporters, and two independent referees. These limits may be revised for 2027, so use the new templates once published.

4. Submit through the official portal. The business.gov.au category page and the Department of Industry, Science and Resources program page are the places to find the live nomination link, current guidelines, form questions, and closing instructions. A saved draft is not a nomination. Wait for the 2027 notice rather than trying to submit through a closed 2026 form.

5. Prepare Stage 2 only if invited. In the 2026 structure, shortlisted science nominees completed a more detailed online response, supplied two supporter statements, and provided the attachments specified in the guidelines. Teaching nominees also supplied a short video showing the nominee in the teaching environment. The Knowledge Systems guidance allowed written or audio/video responses and placed more evidence and community-support material at Stage 2. Do not prepare attachments to an old specification until the 2027 documents are available.

Evidence that makes a nomination credible

Start with an evidence map rather than a polished biography. For each assessment criterion, record the achievement, the date or period of the work, the people or communities affected, and the document or person that can verify the claim. Research nominations may need publications, patents, deployments, independent adoption, or measurable changes in a field. Innovation nominations need a clear path from research to a product, service, or process and evidence of its benefit. Teaching nominations need classroom context and evidence of student or school impact, not only awards or positive comments. Knowledge Systems nominations need a clear account of Indigenous leadership, community connection, the knowledge being practiced or preserved, and the benefit to people, community, or place.

Keep claims within the chosen category. A long list of outputs is weaker than a short chain that explains what changed, why the change matters, and how the nominee’s contribution can be separated from the work of collaborators. For a team, document each member’s contribution and why the recognition should be shared. For a community group, identify the representatives and explain how they speak for the group under the applicable rules.

What to do while the 2027 date is pending

The program is not a continuous intake. The 2026 round has closed, and the official page has not yet supplied an exact 2027 opening or closing date. Teams can still make useful progress by choosing the likely category, securing consent, locating evidence, and asking potential supporters or referees whether they are willing to help once the new call is released. Keep a separate note of assumptions so that an old 2026 character limit or attachment rule is not mistaken for a 2027 requirement.

Before submission, return to the official Department of Industry, Science and Resources page and the relevant business.gov.au category page. Confirm that the 2027 round is open, read the new eligibility text, download the current templates, and record the published closing date in your working plan. Until that information appears, this page should be treated as a verified archive entry with a pending next round, not as an opportunity with an active deadline.

Official links

• Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science — Department of Industry, Science and Resources
• 2026 Science Prizes guidance — business.gov.au
• 2026 Science Teaching Prizes guidance — business.gov.au
• 2026 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Knowledge Systems guidance — business.gov.au

The Department of Industry, Science and Resources is the authoritative source for the 2027 announcement. Until its program page publishes the new dates and documents, do not invent an opening date, closing date, or claim that nominations are currently being accepted.