News

New research fellowship to promote Australia’s rich Catholic history

Australian Catholic University (ACU) has launched a new Fellowship to conduct scholarly research into Australia’s Catholic history.

The two-year Australian Catholic History Fellowship, hosted by ACU’s Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences (IHSS), is valued at $80,000 and open to domestic and international applicants.

The successful candidate will be expected to publish a book of their research and deliver a public lecture presenting their historical work to the wider community.

This is the first Fellowship held at ACU aimed at promoting scholarly research into Australian Catholic history, which spans more than 200 years.

IHSS director and Dean of Arts, Professor Joy Damousi said the new Fellowship, sponsored by a generous donor, would contribute to the vast and rich history of Catholicism in Australia.

“The new and generous Australian Catholic History Fellowship is an opportunity for researchers to join ACU to explore and to promote any period of Australia’s enduring history of Catholicism,” Professor Damousi said.

“Catholicism continues to be one of largest and most influential Christian denominations in Australia and is the subject of considerable and substantial historical scholarly research.”

ACU has a significant history research and teaching discipline, with leading global experts in both the National School of Arts and Humanities and the Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences.

Applications for the Australian Catholic History Fellowship close on 1 October 2025. Apply for the Fellowship here.