| 2025/26 | No. of funded projects | Total amount awarded ($ million) |
|---|---|---|
| Individual Research Schemes | ||
| General Research Fund | 1,164 | 1,043.2 |
| Early Career Scheme | 195 | 139.4 |
| Collaborative Research Schemes | ||
| Areas of Excellence Scheme | 3* | 143.9@ |
| Collaborative Research Fund | 42 | 295.0 |
| Research Impact Fund | 13 | 75.0 |
| Stategic Topics Grant | 5 | 129.6 |
| Theme-Based Research Scheme | 6 | 320.0 |
| Fellowships | ||
| Humanities and Social Sciences Prestigious Fellowship Scheme | 10 | 6.1 |
| Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme | 400 | 372.8 |
| Research Grants Council (RGC) Junior Research Fellow Scheme (formerly known as RGC Postdoctoral Fellowship Scheme)^ | 60 | 51.0 |
| RGC Research Fellow Scheme/RGC Senior Research Fellow Scheme | 20 | 134.1 |
| Joint Research Schemes | ||
| a) National Natural Science Foundation of China/Research Grants Council Joint Research Scheme | 51 | 60 |
| b) National Natural Science Foundation of China/RGC Collaborative Research Scheme | 10 | 34.4 |
| c) The French National Research Agency/RGC Joint Research Scheme | 4 | 8.5 |
| d) European Union – Hong Kong Research Cooperation Co-funding Mechanism by the RGC | 3 | 3.9 |
| e) Germany/Hong Kong Joint Research Scheme | 16 | 1.1 |
| f) PROCORE – France/Hong Kong Joint Research Scheme | 8 | 0.5 |
| g) Healthy Longevity Catalyst Awards (Hong Kong) | 9 | 3.48 |
| Competitive Research Funding Schemes for the Local Self-financing Degree Sector | ||
| a) Faculty Development Scheme | 115 | 83.7 |
| b) Inter-institutional Development Scheme | 17 | 6.3 |
| c) Institutional Development Scheme | 0 | 0 |
| Others | ||
| Postgraduate Students Conference/Seminar Grants | 12 | 0.4 |
|
Total amount matched to support research ($ million) |
||
| Research Matching Grant Scheme | - | 300.0# |
*Including one exploratory project with one-year budget.
@The total budget for AoE Scheme 2025/26 was $290 million, of which $143.9 million has been allocated to support new AoE projects selected in the 2025/26 exercise, and $146.1 million was designated to support the ongoing AoE projects.
^The RGC Postdoctoral Fellowship Scheme was renamed as RGC Junior Research Fellow Scheme with effect from the 2025/26 selection exercise.
#Figure for new round of Research Matching Grant Scheme refers to the disbursed amount within the financial year from April 2025 to March 2026.