Expressions of Interest for new members for the 2024 term of the Australian Autism Research council closed on 22 October 2023.

The AARC was established to review and define national priorities for autism research and identify areas of research needed for the autistic and autism communities. The AARC operates under the auspice of Autism CRC.

The AARC includes autistic people, families and carers, service providers, health and education professionals, government, and researchers. AARC members must be adults and live in Australia or New Zealand.

Membership of the AARC is on an individual basis in line with its Terms of Reference. The AARC does not accept nominations from organisations directly. However, an organisation may submit a letter in support of an individual’s nomination.

Letters of support

Letters of support should be one page maximum (size 11 Arial font) and can be emailed to aarc@autismcrc.com.au. Letters need to be received by midnight (AEST) 22 October 2023 to be considered.

A letter of support is not counted as an Expression of Interest. Each nominating individual will still need to complete the EOI form.

Find out more about the EOI

Nominees do not need to have a letter of support to be considered for the AARC. However, letters of support are strongly encouraged where the individual nominee is from an advocacy organisation, a service provider or a Government department or agency. Having an organisation supporting an individual’s Expression of Interest does not guarantee that their nomination will be successful.

Only one letter will be considered for each individual interested in joining the AARC, but organisations may support up to three different nominees.

Organisations who are providing letters of support must have a clear connection to the autism community (for example, a service provider, a grassroots community group which is registered as an organisation or entity, a school with a specific program for children with disabilities, or an employer with an autism-specific employment program).

An individual does not have to be an employee of the organisation supporting their application. For instance, a service provider or advocacy organisation may wish to provide a letter of support for someone who regularly volunteers with them or is part of an advisory group. However, the letter should make it clear if an individual would be representing the supporting organisation’s general views and interests whilst contributing to the AARC.

Only letters of support from organisations will be considered. Family members, friends and people you work with can’t write you a letter unless they do it as part of their job with an organisation. If you are unsure whether someone would be considered a personal or organisational reference, please contact aarc@autismcrc.com.au.