Audit finds Australia’s health and medical researchers are passionate, diverse and highly mobile

We carried out the audit with Mandala Partners to learn about the sector and inform our development of the National Health and Medical Research Strategy.

The Australian Health and Medical Research Workforce Audit reports on the results of a desktop review, survey and analysis of individual professional profiles. It gives insights into the workforce’s characteristics, pathways and challenges, such as:

• an estimated 39,690 researchers are employed in the health and medical research workforce. Sixty-five per cent work in the traditional settings of universities and medical research institutes. Thirty-three per cent are in non-traditional roles in the private sector and clinical space
• while 52% of researchers are women, only 25% are in senior positions
• more than 40% of researchers have come from overseas, bringing with them diverse perspectives and international connections
• Victoria has more researchers than other states and territories, and researchers are underrepresented in regional or remote areas, compared to the national workforce
• while a passion for research and having an impact on society are important for researchers, funding and job security are challenges
• in the past 5 years, more than 60% of researchers have moved into roles where they are not actively involved in research. However, these researchers are in diverse sectors related to research, often as leaders and managers, bringing with them valuable knowledge and skills.

Read the report for more details.

Also learn about researchers supported by the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) in the MRFF Report on Chief Investigator data.