Driven by curiosity. Driving changeIndependent fellowships
Independent fellowships allow successful candidates to establish their own research group as Principal Investigators, supervise PhD students, recruit post-doctoral researchers, and independently apply for external funding. The duration of these fellowships typically equals or exceeds five years.
A non-comprehensive list of schemes considered as Independent fellowships includes:
- Royal Society University Research Fellowship
- Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship
- MRC Career Development Award
- Wellcome Trust Career Development Award
- ERC Starting Grant
- Cancer Research UK Career Development Fellowship
- Royal Academy of Engineering Green Future Fellowship
Applications and restrictions
Expression of Interest (EoI)
The Expression of Interest must be submitted by 1 April (5pm) for schemes with funder deadlines between 1 July of that year and 30 June the following year.
Applicants are responsible for checking eligibility and funder deadlines to determine when to submit their EoI.
→ Download Expression of Interest form
Selection and support process
All Expressions of Interest will be considered by a panel with diverse representation across subject area and career stage. We aim to complete the shortlisting process within four weeks of the EoI deadline, though timelines may vary.
Short-listed applicants may be invited to the department to deliver a seminar.
We cannot provide extensive feedback to unsuccessful candidates due to application volumes, but a brief feedback statement can be provided upon request.
The number of candidates supported for each scheme may vary depending on resources, strategic considerations and the strength of the applicant pool. This may result in no candidates being supported for specific calls. Candidates applying for multiple schemes may be selected for some but not others.
For successful candidates, the department supports preparation of the application to the funder, internal costing processes, and preparation for external interviews.
We encourage applications from both internal candidates across the Department and University, and those from outside the University who are interested in joining our community. Please note that the department cannot guarantee an established position for successful candidates when their fellowship ends.
Contact
More information
If you are considering applying for an independent fellowship, you may also find the following pages helpful:
→ Prospective researchers and academics
→ Research centres and initiatives
→ Research impact
→ Enterprise and partnerships
If you are an internal applicant or current member of the University, you are encouraged to discuss potential applications with relevant academic contacts at an early stage.