Research workforce

Australian universities play a dual role in the national research system: they undertake a substantial share of Australia’s research and development while developing researchers with advanced research skills.

Based on Universities Australia estimates using Australian Bureau of Statistics Research and Experimental Development collections, Australia’s four R&D-performing sectors devoted an estimated 218,181 person-years of effort (PYE) to research and development in 2024–25. (One PYE is the work done by one person working full-time for one whole year.) Higher education accounted for approximately 39 per cent of Australia’s total R&D effort (85,960 PYE), second only to the business sector.

Postgraduate research students are major contributors to university research. In 2024, they contributed 44,889 PYE, representing 52 per cent of all R&D effort within the higher education sector.

The higher education sector also provides a pipeline of researchers through Higher Degree by Research (HDR) programs. In 2024, 66,503 students were enrolled in HDR courses and 11,037 completed an HDR qualification, comprising 6,375 domestic graduates (58 per cent) and 4,662 international graduates (42 per cent).