ADM’s vision and mission

Women for the Lord.

We inspire and empower Christian women to bring the love of Jesus to a hurting world through theological education, compassionate ministries, community, and public gospel witness. Learn more about ADM.

Objectives of the ADM Fellowships Program

Engaging our world with the gospel.

ADM Fellowships raise up Christian women to engage a sceptical and hurting world with the good news of Jesus.

The Fellowships Program was established in 2016, with our first cohort of Fellows commencing in 2017.

The objectives of the Program are to:

• Enable the completion of high-quality major projects by Christian women that will give them credibility in their field and set them up for further opportunities to serve Christ and his Church, particularly in engaging a sceptical and hurting world with the good news of Jesus.

• Train and equip Christian women to share their contributions with wider public audiences, through providing integrated theological and professional development in a supportive Christian environment.

• Progress Christian women at the early/mid vocational stage towards sustainable pathways to continue their work and promote the creation of more pathways for Christian women to serve Christ and his Church.

Learn more about the ADM Fellowships Program.

Overview: 2026 ADM Fellowships

ADM Fellowships provide financial and institutional support for Christian women to complete a major project and pursue avenues for public engagement.

ADM is offering up to four Fellowships in 2026 to be based at Mary Andrews College, an affiliated college of the Australian University of Theology.

The ADM Fellowship covers the full salary costs plus superannuation of successful applicants’ appointment as either a Research Associate ($63,636 p.a. or pro rata), a Research Fellow ($82,443 p.a. or pro rata) or a Senior Research Fellow ($96,793 p.a. or pro rata) at Mary Andrews College.

Applicants have the flexibility to apply for an ADM Fellowship to support a full-time or part-time appointment (minimum 0.4 FTE), as well as the flexibility to apply for a minimum fellowship duration of six months and a maximum of two years. Requests to work remotely and other flexible work requests will also be considered in line with ADM’s Flexible Work Policy.

Successful ADM Fellowship recipients will receive an Employment Agreement for their appointment to the position of either Research Associate, Research Fellow or Senior Research Fellow at Mary Andrews College. Any offer of an ADM Fellowship is subject to the terms of this Employment Agreement (including the commencement and conclusion of the term of employment) and contingent on that Agreement being entered into. 

In addition to the benefits of employment at Mary Andrews College and affiliation with the Australian University of Theology, ADM Fellowship recipients are provided with tailored professional development opportunities, coordinated by ADM’s Fellowships Development Coach. They also become part of our growing network of ADM Fellows alumni since 2017.

Fellowship project topic areas

Christian women from a variety of backgrounds and experience are encouraged to apply to undertake a major project in areas such as:

• Theology: research in core disciplines such as biblical theology, systematic theology, Old Testament, New Testament, church history, theological ethics, evangelism and mission, etc.

• Applied, practical and pastoral theology: pastoral care and applied theological research to areas of life such as Christian approaches to mental health, chaplaincy, leadership and wellbeing. This may include practical projects that translate and apply research to benefit communities, such as the development of courses, curriculums and talks.

• Theology in relation to other disciplines: research at the intersection of theology and other fields such as psychology, education, literature, history, science etc. This may include apologetics, creative projects or other forms of Christian cultural engagement.

• Theologically informed research on community needs: supporting greater understanding of the needs of, for example, Indigenous women and girls; single-adult female households (including older women); domestic violence (prevention as well as post-crisis); migrant and non-English speaking; or mental health of women and adolescent girls.

Funding 

ADM Fellowships can be funded in two ways: applicants bring some proportion of external funding or ADM-only funding.  

Please note that preference will be given to applications with an external funding contribution.   

• External funding contribution: In this category, applications for an ADM Fellowship bring funding from at least one source external to ADM, such as your employer (e.g., church, parachurch organisation, school) or a group of supporters (e.g., donors, ministry supporters, crowdfunding) towards the cost of their Fellowship. (Applicants will need to provide evidence they have secured this external funding in their application, for example, a letter from their employer indicating willingness to commit the funds should the applicant be successful, a letter from key donors, or evidence of the applicant’s past track-record in support-raising funds.) 

• ADM-only funding: Where an applicant is unable to access any external funding source(s) to contribute to your Fellowship, you can apply for ADM to fund your Fellowship in full.  

Assessment criteria

All applications will be assessed against the following criteria: 

Applicant:

• Appetite and ability to be raised up to engage a sceptical and hurting world with the good news of Jesus.

• Appetite and ability to think biblically and theologically in your area, in alignment with ADM’s theological principles.

• Appetite and ability for excellence in your field (assessed relative to field and relative to opportunity, taking into account career interruptions).

• Ability to meet the minimum standards for either a Level A, Level B or Level C research academic (according to Schedule A.2 of the Higher Education Industry—Academic Staff—Award 2020) (see table in the Information and Conditions).

Fellowship project and its outputs:

• Quality of the project

• Viability: the likelihood the project outputs will be completed.

• Impact: the potential of the project to impact beneficiaries (e.g., communities, churches, organisations) in ways shaped by the gospel.

• Public engagement: the potential of the project to engage public audiences through publications, events and media.

• Capacity-building: the likelihood that completing the project will grow your professional networks and relationships in your field and help you to progress to the next step in reaching larger vocational goals.

Application process

Applications for ADM Fellowships occur in two stages:

1. A short application called an Expression of Interest (EOI)

2. Successful EOI’s will then be invited to submit a full application.

Longlisted applicants in the full application round will have their applications assessed by ADM’s Fellowships review panel, which includes the CEO of ADM, Principal of Mary Andrews College and a subject matter expert.

Applicants shortlisted for interview will be contacted approximately 1 week before offers are due to be made (interviews can be conducted online if needed).

Responsibilities for ADM Fellowship recipients

As noted above, successful ADM Fellowship recipients will receive an Employment Agreement for their appointment to the position of either Research Associate, Research Fellow or Senior Research Fellow at Mary Andrews College. Any offer of an ADM Fellowship is subject to the terms of this Employment Agreement (including the commencement and conclusion of the term of employment) and contingent on that Agreement being entered into. 

Employee entitlements and obligations are detailed in the Employment Agreement. This includes clauses around Faith and Intellectual Property (see Information and Conditions).

In addition, ADM Fellowship recipients have the following responsibilities:

• Complete a short review meeting with an ADM Fellowships Program representative at the mid-way point of your Fellowship and a short final report at the conclusion of the Fellowship. If you are unable to complete your Fellowship for any reason, ADM may choose at its discretion and in consultation with you to terminate or defer your Fellowship.

• Work on the Fellowship project proposed in your submitted application and complete the outputs specified there. Significant variations in the topic or projected outputs of a project may be accepted subject to review and approval.

• Present on your project in a seminar at least once during the Fellowship and participate in building the academic culture and community of Mary Andrews College (including, at the Principal’s invitation, guest lecturing). It is also anticipated that Fellowship recipients will individually pursue opportunities to engage various public audiences with their project.

• Use your Mary Andrews College and Australian University of Theology affiliation in the byline of outputs published during the ADM Fellowship, as well as on outputs published after the Fellowship that issue from research completed during the Fellowship. The byline should take the following form, corresponding to the relevant position title: Research Associate/ Research Fellow/ Senior Research Fellow, Mary Andrews College, Australian University of Theology.

• Acknowledge your ADM Fellowship in the acknowledgements section of any publications or other outputs that derive from work completed during the Fellowship period.

Please note:

• ADM reserves the right to seek assistance from experts outside ADM to evaluate an application.

• ADM determines the final selection of Fellowship recipients.

• ADM reserves the right not to select any applicants.

• Where a reviewer declares a conflict of interest or conflict of duties in respect of an applicant or organisation, it will be addressed according to the ADM Conflict of Interest policy, including recording the nature of the conflict on a register, and determining whether the reviewer is excluded from reviewing the application.

EOI application submission

EOI applications must be made using the online application form via the link below.

We recommend you have your answers prepared prior to commencing the online application in case you are unable to save and return to your application. When you submit your application, you will receive an email acknowledging it has been received.

The EOI is a short application consisting of applicant details and two main written responses (500 words each):

• Personal Statement: Write a statement about why you want to apply for an ADM Fellowship. Please tell us about your personal vision for being “raised up to engage a sceptical and hurting world with the good news of Jesus.”

• Fellowship Project Description: Provide an outline of your proposed Fellowship Project and the outputs you would complete.

• Attach a 2-page CV.

Information session

Curious about applying? Got questions? Join us for an optional information session in person or online.

• Monday 16 June 2025, 12:00pm-1:00pm AEST: Optional Information Session at ADM office (St Andrew’s House, Level 1, 464-480 Kent St, Sydney) or attend online via Zoom. REGISTER

Enquiries

If you have questions about your application, please join our applicant information session above or you can get in contact with our team via:

hello@deaconessministries.org.au

Nominate a Fellow

Do you know a Christian woman who should apply for our Fellowships Program? Nominate her and we will get in touch with information about the program and how to apply - thanks to you!

Hear from our ADM Fellows alumni about their experiences