Overview

With a University Relations Manager based in Sydney, Australia, MSRA is committed to the development of research collaboration, curriculum innovation, talent fostering and academic exchange throughout the Asia Pacific region.

During the period of 2005 to 2008, new relationships were formed with some of the tier 1 Universities and where existing relationships with tier 1 Universities were consolidated. Trust and credibility form the basis of long lasting and mutually rewarding collaborative relationships.

Collaborative Universities

• Monash University
• University of Melbourne
• Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology
• University of Adelaide
• University of Sydney
• University of New South Wales
• Macquarie University
• Australian National University
• Queensland University of Technology
• University of Queensland

Research Collaboration

There are a number of ways in which academics can experience collaborative research opportunities with Microsoft. These include the following with a brief explanation and some examples:

• Invitations for Proposals (IFPs) or "Theme" projects issued by MSR Asia

  During the 2005, 2006 and 2007 calendar years, Theme Projects were announced in the areas of Trustworthy Computing, Gaming and Graphics, Mobile Computing in Education (Tablet PCs) and Internet Services (Search). The response to these IFPs was outstanding and the evaluations of submissions resulted in 8 responses receiving awards totalling US$92,000. These award winning submissions came from 5 different Universities and 1 Federal Government Research Organization (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization – CSIRO). 7 Academics from these 6 organizations won awards.

• Faculty-specific projects are developed with academics whose research interests align with the interests of MSRA researchers. These projects are another way of engaging with academics and generally present us with an opportunity to attract incremental funding from government.

  During the 2005 – 2008 period, 4 such projects, led by 4 different Principal Investigators at 4 different Universities were funded. Microsoft Research Asia contributed a total of US$235,000 cash to these projects and an incremental US$706,000 cash was provided by the Federal Government.

• Requests for Proposals (RFPs) issued by MSR Redmond

  These RFPs are global and generally state the funding available together with the expected number of awards that will be made. During this period, 4 academics across 4 different institutions won awards from 2 RFPs for a total amount of US$77,200. No matching Government funding is available for these awards.

Other Research Initiatives

• The Microsoft/Queensland University of Technology (QUT) eResearch Centre was announced in May 2006 and was officially opened by Kevin Schofield in February 2007. The Centre is a joint initiative between Microsoft Research and Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane. Funding is also provided by the Queensland Government. It is expected that more than 25 full-time researchers will eventually work in the lab.
  
  
  Kevin Schofield (pictured with University and Government officials) opens Microsoft/Queensland University of Technology (QUT) eResearch Centre
• University of Queensland - TCI funding provided to Professor Jane Hunter. According to Professor Jane Hunter, the aim of this project is to improve the speed, reliability and adaptability of the water management decisions being made within South East Queensland by the partners in the Healthy Waterways Project. Professor Hunter is seeking additional funding of US$660,000 from the Queensland Government “Smart State” initiative.

Curriculum Innovation

• Queensland University of Technology

  The University launched a new undergraduate degree in 2007 - Games and Interactive Entertainment. This degree was the direct result of MSRA funding of Dr. Ross Brown and his Gaming & Graphics IFP submissions referenced above. This is an excellent example of the impact that MSRA funding has had on curriculum in one of Australia's leading Universities.

  View curriculum materials at http://www2.msdnaa.net/default.aspx

• University of Melbourne

  MSRA UR provided $US20,000 in FY07 and FY08 to enable the Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering to establish and run an educational and research infrastructure for distributed computing driven by .NET technologies. This funding resulted in the establishment of the Microsoft .NET lab which is used by students enrolled in the Masters of Engineering in Distributed Computing program (MEDC).

  In January 2007, details about the MEDC were published in IEEE Distributed Systems ONLINE – see the .pdf file at http://doi.ieeecomputersociety.org/10.1109/MDSO.2007.1

Curriculum Advisory Boards
Currently John Warren is an active member of the following:

• University of Sydney – School of Information Technologies, Postgraduate Coursework External Advisory Board
• University of Sydney – School of Electrical and Information Engineering Foundation
• University of Western Sydney – Bachelor of Computing, External Advisory Committee
• Victoria University - School of Information Systems, Programs Advisory Committee (PAC) Meeting

Talent Fostering

The MSRA Fellowship Program offers PhD students typically in their 1st year, with the opportunity to be nominated by their supervisor for consideration for an award as a MSR Asia Fellow. This cash award of US$6,000 is provided to the winners together with a plaque. Winners from Australia since 2005 are:

• (2005) Ying Zhang from RMIT University
• (2005) Peng Gong from University of Sydney
• (2006) Florian Verhein from University of Sydney
• (2006) Xiaonan Ji from University of Melbourne
• (2007) Xinhua Zhang from Australian National University