How to nominate a scientist for the Academy’s honorific awards
The Australian Academy of Science’s honorific awards recognise outstanding contributions to the advancement of science, from researchers early in their careers to those with a lifetime of achievements.
Anyone can nominate a scientist for our awards.
When you're working hard over long periods, it's easy to wonder if the effort and quality of your work are truly appreciated—this award reassures me that it is. Being acknowledged by the scientific community means a great deal to me, and it motivates me to keep pushing forward. — 2025 Pawsey Medal recipient Associate Professor Claudia Lagos
Nominations for the 2027 honorific awards close 1 May 2026.
How to nominate
Nominating a scientist for an honorific award is a straightforward process. Firstly, make sure your nominee is happy to be put forward before you get started.
Each award has eligibility criteria that must be met – check the award web page before starting your nomination.
You’ll then need to provide:
- The name, institution and contact details of the person you are nominating
- A short, non-technical description of your nominee’s work, suitable for a non-scientific audience
- A brief description of any career interruptions they may have experienced
- A 1-2 page (depending on career stage) citation of your nominee’s achievements
- A list of up to 10 of your nominee’s most significant publications
- Your nominee’s full, up-to-date CV
- The names and contact information of 3-6 referees who are knowledgeable about your nominee’s contributions (except for our three Premier awards).
You can submit a nomination on someone’s behalf – for example, a research office can submit on behalf of an individual nominator.
For me, this award symbolises the critical bridge between fundamental genetic science and its application in healthcare. It underscores the value of our commitment to rigour in identifying genetic underpinnings and our drive for clinical relevance in applying those findings. This medal is not just a personal honour; it's a powerful platform to advocate for a more inclusive, diverse, and globally collaborative future for human genetics. — 2026 Ruth Stephens Gani Medal recipient Associate Professor Miguel Rentería
Tips for a strong nomination
A strong citation (Step 4) is key to a successful nomination. This is your chance to present to the awards committee your candidate’s contributions to their field that make them a worthy recipient of the award.
You can nominate someone for more than one award! Just be sure to tailor your nomination for each award to give your nominee the best chance.
When writing your nomination, remember that while committee members are experts drawn from the subject area of a given award, they come from a variety of sub-fields and may not be experts on your nominee’s specific area of expertise.
The citation should:
- Describe the candidate’s key discoveries and/or achievements clearly and concisely
- Be sufficiently technical to allow committee members to confidently assess your nominee’s work
- Describe the nature, impact and importance of the candidate’s discoveries and achievements in relation to their scientific discipline
- Include explicit reasons explaining why you consider the candidate a worthy recipient of the award.
Referees
Apart from our Premier awards, all nominations must include between 3 to 6 referees, who will be contacted to provide confidential reports on your nominee’s suitability for the award.
When selecting referees:
- Ask them if they are happy to provide a report before you submit your nomination – unsolicited referee report requests are rarely received positively
- Choose referees based on their standing in the relevant scientific field
- Be aware that at least one of the referees must be based internationally, and at least two should be independent. Check the nominator guidelines below for what makes a referee independent.
Start your nomination
Find all our awards at science.org.au/awards, or go straight to:
- Early-career awards (up to 10 years post-PhD)
- Mid-career awards (8 to 15 years post-PhD)
- Career awards (recognising achievement over a whole career)
- Premier awards (our most prestigious awards, recognising life-long achievement)
More information
For complete guidelines and requirements, see:
These guidelines contain information for honorific award nominators.
This document contains specific PhD conferral dates for early and mid-career honorific awards in the current award round.
These guidelines contain information for honorific award referees.
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Submission – National Research Infrastructure Roadmap
The Academy welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the development of the 2026 National Research Infrastructure (NRI) Roadmap.
Australia’s NRI system underpins the nation’s ability to conduct high-quality research, collaborate internationally, foster innovation, and the ability and capacity to respond to complex national challenges across climate, health, energy, industry and national security.
As the Roadmap sets the direction for the next five-year evolution of research infrastructure, we emphasise the importance of establishing a framework that strengthens the fundamental science that pushes technological advancement, drives discovery and strengthens both our sovereign capability and international collaborations.
The Academy recommends that the roadmap:
- elaborate on the definition of ‘nationally significant’ to provide a whole-of-system approach to research infrastructure, recognising the different scales of research infrastructure Australian science relies on and allowing for long-term strategic planning of infrastructure and international partnerships
- present a coordinated, long-term national strategy and investment to secure and build Australia’s high-performance computing and data capability – increasing critical capacity for Australia to meet its challenges and national priorities
- establish a nationally coordinated program to maintain and mobilise Australia’s research collections
- prioritise the development of a workforce strategy to attract and retain the highly skilled staff that underpin our national research infrastructure in collaboration with the host institutions.
Committee—Christopher Heyde Medal
Purpose: To advise Council on the awarding of the Christopher Heyde Medal for research in the mathematical sciences, in accordance with Standing Order XXII
- Professor Benjamin Andrews FAA - Chair
- Professor Scott Sisson - Member
- Professor George Willis FAA - Member
- Professor Benjamin Andrews FAA - Member
- Professor Jennifer Flegg - Member
- Professor Bronwyn Hajek - Member
Committee—Anton Hales Medal
Purpose: To advise Council on the award of the Medal, in accordance with Standing Order XXII.
- Professor Craig Simmons FAA FTSE - Chair
- Professor Nerilie Abram FAA - Member
- Dr Pep Canadell FAA FTSE - Member
- Associate Professor Nicolas Flament - Member
- Associate Professor Teresa Ubide - Member
- Emeritus Professor Ross Griffiths FAA - Member
Committee—Suzanne Cory Medal
Purpose: To advise Council on the award of the Suzanne Cory Medal, in accordance with Standing Order XXII.
- Dr Marianne Frommer FAA - Chair
- Professor Glenn King FAA - Member
- Professor Helene Marsh AO FAA FTSE - Member
- Professor David Adams FAA FAHMS
- Dr Andreas Strasser FAA FAHMS - Member
