High-quality research evidence is essential to help deliver Victoria’s vision for the Education State. A wide range of research is conducted in partnership with the Department of Education, and within Victorian government schools and early childhood settings.
The Research in Schools and Early Childhood Settings (RISEC) approval process ensures that all research conducted in Department of Education contexts:
- is aligned to education system goals and priorities
- upholds the department’s duty of care for students and staff
- minimises burden on participants.
RISEC approval is required:
- To conduct research involving Victorian government schools or early childhood settings.
- To use Victorian government schools or early childhood settings to recruit participants for research projects, for example by advertising research projects in school or site newsletters.
- Regardless of whether research and evaluation projects are commissioned by the department or initiated externally.
The RISEC process is not an ethics review and is not a substitute for review by a Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC). The Department of Education does not have a formally constituted HREC.
We will not approve research that:
- uses significantly invasive techniques
- is undertaken for commercial or material gain
- is not directly relevant to schools or early childhood settings (i.e. focuses on these settings to gain access to school age and early years cohorts).
Research that uses opt-out approaches for participant recruitment or incentivised participation is subject to additional layers of review, with increased processing time, and is unlikely to be approved. For further information, please contact research@education.vic.gov.au
For further information on RISEC requirements, please refer to: Guidelines for conducting research in Victorian government schools and early childhood settings (DOCX, 1.19MB).
Our Research Areas of Interest
Research in Victorian government schools
Victoria’s vision for the Education State is to deliver excellence in every classroom, in every corner of the state. Our 2025 Research Areas of Interest will help us to prioritise research proposals that will best meet our evidence needs.
The 2025 Research Areas of Interest will be available soon.
Research in early childhood settings
Victoria continues to roll out nation-leading reforms in early childhood education and care. We will prioritise research proposals that are aligned to these reforms.
Changes to the application process
We are changing the way we review and approve externally initiated RISEC applications in 2025. These changes do not apply to department-commissioned research or evaluation projects.
The changes are intended to:
- deliver RISEC application outcomes more efficiently
- provide researchers with greater certainty regarding approvals timelines
- prioritise high-quality, high relevance research
- reduce burden on Victorian government schools and early childhood settings by carefully assessing the time and effort required to support research projects.
There are three key changes:
- Introducing quarterly application cycles.
- Prioritising RISEC applications which demonstrate alignment to the department’s 2025 Research Areas of Interest, and early childhood reforms.
- Introducing a RISEC Governance Committee which will support the Evaluation and Research team with decision making and ensure applications are of high quality and high relevance.
Quarterly application cycles
Applications will be accepted based on the term in which the research project commences and will be accepted until 5pm on the dates listed below.
- Term 1, 2025: no further applications will be accepted.
- Term 2, 2025: 1 February.
- Term 3, 2025: 21 April.
- Term 4, 2025: 6 July.
- Term 1, 2026: 27 October.
All applications for that term will be assessed by the RISEC Governance Committee. The committee members include senior representatives from across the department’s policy and implementation areas and will support the Evaluation and Research Team to assess:
- The relevance of the research to the department’s priorities, including the 2025 Schools research areas of interest and current early childhood reforms.
- The likelihood that research design and methods will deliver insights into the department’s priorities and areas of interest.
- The time and effort required by school staff, students, and department staff to support the research.
- The ethical conduct of the research.
- Potential risks and how they are mitigated.
Research applications which represent high-quality and high-relevance research and are approved in-principle will then progress through the full RISEC approval process. We will continue to approve research proposals from researchers at different stages of their research careers, including student researchers.
Submitting an application to conduct research
The E-RISEC platform
Please submit your application through E-RISEC, the department’s online platform for the submission, review, and approval of RISEC applications.
To access to E-RISEC you must:
- Register: go to EduPass, select Request an Account, select E-RISEC from the list of available services and fill in the relevant details.
- Validate your request: email research@education.vic.gov.au and advise of your request for an EduPass account.
For further information, including how to set up an account for E-RISEC, please see: E-RISEC Researcher Guidelines 2024 (DOCX, 1.2MB).
Important: To use the E-RISEC system you must have pop-ups enabled on your web browser.
Working With Children Check
All researchers who will have direct contact with children must hold a valid Working with Children Check. This must be submitted via email as part of the RISEC application process.
To apply for a card, refer to Working with children check.
Completing a RISEC application
To help the department accurately assess your RISEC application, please consider the following:
- Is your application complete? For example, have all parts of the application form been completed in full, and have all required attachments/supporting documentation been included?
- Is it easy to read? Is the application clear, succinct, and grammatically correct?
- Is it approved by, or be seeking approval by, a Human Research Ethics Committee (where appropriate).
Amending a RISEC-approved project
We review requests to amend RISEC projects in accordance with the guidelines for research in education settings, and in relation to the original approved application.
Examples of amendments include changes to:
- the research methodology
- recruitment processes for settings and individuals
- recruitment materials and/or research instruments
- adding or removing researchers to a project
- the indicative completion date.
If the requested amendments result in substantial changes to the project, we may request that a new application be submitted.
How to submit an amendment
To amend an application submitted through E-RISEC platform, please follow the instructions in the: E-RISEC Researcher Guidelines 2024 (DOCX, 1.2MB).
If you submitted your application by email prior to the establishment of the E-RISEC platform (before March 2023), request an amendment by completing the amendment form (Amendment Request form (DOCX, 167KB)) and sending it to research@education.vic.gov.au
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