Tagged / biomedical science

“Data is King!” Grant extensions and protecting your datastreams.

Awarded & submitted bids, ECR Network, Fusion

Touker Suleyman of Dragon’s Den fame, said that, in business, ‘Cash is King’. Gender-dependent references aside, I’d say it’s data that tops the hierarchy in research. Whilst leading grants is a complicated, bureaucratic and often thankless task, it is balanced by the joy and reassurance of data rolling in. With data, the mind is stimulated, the reasoning begins and interpretations are developed. These datastreams feed the outputs, they feed the applications. Data is the cash of research. As the datastream dries-up, the returns on research investment dwindle. Research eventually goes bust and talented people are lost from the system.

The hiatus to research activity caused by lockdown has been double edged. Researchers have used what was otherwise wasted commuting time to develop new grant proposals, helping shift an equilibrium from the fiscal reliance on students towards fully economically costed grant income. By doing so, the future of research-led university teaching is more secure; that synergy between research, practice and teaching has been reinvigorated by new logistics and necessity. On the other hand, lockdown has been a nightmarish experience; a threat to the datastreams we rely on. Labs have been closed, projects are on hold, careers are in jeopardy.

Grant awarding agencies have mitigated the negative outcomes of lockdown, by providing extensions to staff contracts as well as no-cost extensions. It’s important that researchers at all career stages appreciate the existence and importance of extensions. The medical science grants I’m associated with have received very generous no-cost extensions (thank you Kidney Research UK!), allowing us to sustain our efforts but they’ve also indirectly helped by allowing me to  completely re-write a major grant application affected by lockdown. Circumstances have dictated that I apply for extensions a few times, to support staff and protect projects. In my experience, most awarding agencies employ a flexible (yet diligently cautious) approach to extending grant deadlines. This provides security for early career researchers and research assistants, which therefore protects that all important datastream.

Thankfully, the response to the current situation has seen extensions being applied across all areas of research activity. It’s in everyone’s interest to request and be given these extensions. They protect people and by doing so, the datastream.

Not all early career researchers are aware of extensions but you should be, they are an important means for successfully managing your future team! All grant awarding agencies have extension policies and I’d recommend re-reading the information posted by BU’s RDS team with links to the UK funding agencies Covid-19 info. https://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/research/contact/rds-advice-to-academics-during-covid-19/uk-funder-news/

Best wishes,
Paul.

 

Upcoming BNSS Lecture – The Coral Reef: a threatened world wonder

Events

The Bournemouth Natural Science Society (BNSS) will be hosting a lecture next Tuesday with Professor Jörg Wiedenmann on coral reefs.

Event date: 15th May 2018 at: 7.30pm

About: Professor Jörg Wiedenmann is Professor of Biological Oceanography, within Ocean and Earth Science, at the University of Southampton and Head of the Coral Reef Laboratory at the National Oceanographic Centre.

Professor Wiedenmann will be talking about the ecology of coral reefs and the impact of climate change, as well as discussing his research on their photobiology and the use of coral pigments in biomedical research and the pharmaceutical industry.

Funding Opportunity – Roadmaps to human biology-based disease research

Funding opportunities, international, Publishing

Call Outline:

To support strategic scientific dialogue around the concept of extending the vision of “21st century toxicology” to the wider biosciences, Humane Society International and The Humane Society of the United States are offering grants of up to $10,000 (USD) in funding to support the development and open-access publication of in-depth, independent review articles in discrete areas of human disease/biomedicine by health scientists with relevant expertise.

Who can apply

• Health researchers holding a PhD (or equivalent) degree and be able to demonstrate relevant experience in the disease area they propose to review.
• Eligible individuals may currently be employed in a health research position in the academic, private or public sectors, or may have retired from such a position.
• Applications will be accepted from single authors or groups.
• The current call is restricted to applicants in the United States, Canada, European Union and South Korea.

The closing date for this call is 30 June 2017

If you are interested in applying to this or other non-UK funded calls, please contact Emily Cieciura, RKEO’s Research Facilitator: EU & International.

 

Gamify your PhD

Funding opportunities, PG research

A new way to communicate cutting-edge research

The ‘Gamify Your PhD’ competition is an exciting new project that puts the researcher in the role of games designer.

The Wellcome Trust is looking for researchers in biomedical sciences or medical humanities to send them game ideas based on their PhD work. They’re also inviting game development teams to join them for a couple of days of game-hacking to transform the best ideas into playable video games.

The best game that comes out of the hack session will receive further backing to polish it for release.

For more information, visit the Wellcome Trust web site.

MRC announce Special training fellowship in biomedical informatics

Funding opportunities

Special training fellowship in biomedical informatics (computational biology, neuroinformatics and health informatics)

The MRC has identified the application of informatics as an area of strategic importance to health and medical research. This special training fellowship is aimed at developing outstanding individuals who are seeking to move into the application of mathematical, statistical and computational methods to biomedical and health research problems.

The MRC is keen to support individuals with a clear ambition for their research and a strong and practical sense of how they develop their careers as leading biomedical scientists and informaticians. The special fellowship is awarded at the post-doctoral entry level only and all proposals must include a well-specified formal training element in addition to a research project. The award commonly provides 3 years support and the opportunity to enhance the research training through placement in an overseas research centre, a second UK research centre or in UK industry.

The MRC expect to make up to five awards a year.

Who can apply?

The fellowships are aimed at those with non-biological, biological, non-clinical or clinical backgrounds who wish to undertake training and research in biomedical informatics. This is a prestigious fellowship; therefore applicants are expected to demonstrate an excellent track-record relative to their time in research.

Applications are particularly encouraged from those with advanced training in the physical or mathematical sciences or in information technology, who wish to apply their expertise to biomedical problems. In particular, applications are encouraged in imaging informatics.

Applicants should hold either a PhD or DPhil in a relevant discipline or expect to do so by the time they intend to take up the award. Medical or dental applicants holding a PhD can apply at any stage in their careers from immediately post-registration up to specialist registrar grade or be at the equivalent level in general practice or dentistry. The majority of successful applicants are within six years of the completion of their PhD but this is not an absolute requirement.

Post-doctoral applicants have no residential restrictions and may come from any country. If you are invited to interview by the biomedical informatics training and career development panel, you would be expected to demonstrate a commitment to the UK research effort in the area of biomedical informatics beyond the period of a special training fellowship award.

What funding is provided?

An MRC special research training fellowship in biomedical informatics is usually awarded for three years or occasionally up to four years when there is special justification.

The fellowship provides the fellow’s personal salary, research training support costs, annual travel costs, and all other relevant costs under Full Economic Costs (see the guidance notes for completing the application form and the form itself for more details). Salaries for clinical applicants will be payable up to, but not including, NHS consultant level. In addition, a small amount of salary can be requested for supervision but this should be appropriately restricted.

Where the fellowship includes attendance on a formal course leading to a Masters degree, or parts of a taught course, course fees may be requested. All applications must include an appropriate taught training component.

Overseas/Second UK Centre/UK Industrial Training Period

The special research training fellowship in biomedical informatics provides the opportunity to spend time in an overseas research centre, a second UK research centre or UK industrial centre in year two or three of the award. The aim of this training component is to provide a concentrated period of training that cannot be achieved as effectively within the academic host institution. MRC would normally expect this training component to be a single visit lasting up to 12 months. However, the assessment panel may agree to requests for visits to more than one centre, if this can be justified on the grounds of training needs. These should not be simply collaborative visits but applicants are encouraged to consider this opportunity by the assessment panel. You should be prepared at interview to discuss in detail any visits proposed.

Deadlines and submission details

The MRC special research training fellowship in biomedical informatics competition is held once a year. There is no need to submit an outline application.

Please see fellowship deadlines dates for application deadlines.

Closing date: 19 September 2012

Short listing: January 2013

Interviews: 27 – 28 February and 1 March 2013

Take up dates: April – September 2013

Please apply for the Special Training Fellowship using the RCUK Je-S application system. Your proposal must be submitted through the MRC Je-S system by 4pm on the relevant Fellowhip Application deadline date.

The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.

Completion of specialist clinical training

If you are medically and dentally qualified and have not already completed your specialist or vocational training, you should have a clear idea of your plans for doing so at the time of application. Applicants wishing to pursue specialist or vocational training must consult their Postgraduate Medical Dean, Regional Advisor in General Practice, and Royal College prior to submitting the fellowship application to find out if the research may be acceptable as training towards the Certificate of Completion of Training. Enquiries and subsequent applications to the relevant body should be made in consultation with the prospective head of department.

Flexibility

The MRC tries to operate this scheme as flexibly as possible. As part of the MRC’s equal opportunities policy, consideration will be given to applicants who are returning to science following a career break. There are no age limits for any of our schemes and all fellowships may be held part-time to fit in with domestic responsibilities.

The MRC recognises the challenges faced by clinicians in combining research training with the demands of a clinical career. MRC therefore allow up to 20 per cent of fellows’ time for NHS sessions.

Alternatively, Fellows may spend up to six hours a week on other work such as teaching or demonstrating. The payment for this work may be retained in full if this is the host institution’s normal policy. Fellows may seek other research grants to be held concurrently with their award during its last six months only. However, they may not exceed the permitted time for other work on research grants.

Please see fellowship terms and conditions for further details.

Applications for further fellowship support

MRC special research training fellows who wish to consolidate their research skills and make the transition from post-doctoral research and training to become independent investigators are eligible to compete for an MRC clinician scientist fellowship (medical/dental graduates, nurses, midwives and members of the allied health professions) or, an MRC career development award (non-clinical scientists).

Guidance for applicants

 

For further information please refer to MRC’s contacts page.

Technology Strategy Board and MRC call to address Healthcare challenges

Funding opportunities, Research news

The £180 million Biomedical Catalyst, announced by David Cameron in December 2011, will see the Medical Research Council and the Technology Strategy Board working together to provide responsive and effective support for the best life science opportunities arising in the UK.

Support through the Biomedical Catalyst is available to UK businesses (SMEs) and academics looking to develop innovative solutions to healthcare challenges either individually or in collaboration.

This joint programme between the MRC and TSB will offer three categories of grant:

Feasibility Award

Early Stage Award

 Late Stage Award

The categories are designed to support the maturation of an idea from concept to commercialisation. This will create a pipeline of projects encompassing the early stage exploration of commercial and technical potential through to proving utility in the field (which may involve human clinical trials) and development prior to commercialisation. Applicants may apply for the award category most appropriate for their work without having received a prior award.

Support will be available for projects arising from any sector or discipline that are aimed at addressing healthcare challenges. Example solutions may include (but are not limited to): stratified healthcare (both therapy and diagnostic components), regenerative medicine, diagnostics, eHealth and mHealth solutions, enabling medical technologies and devices. The Biomedical Catalyst will seek to support those opportunities which demonstrate the highest scientific and commercial potential irrespective of medical area.

Please see the Technology Strategy Board healthcare page for more information about their work in this area.

The Biomedical Catalyst will operate in response mode and will in essence be “always open”. However to assist the processing of applications there will be key submission and assessment dates which will differ depending on the category of award and applicant type, please see the links/dates below for further details. The assessment of Early and Late Stage awards will culminate in a panel assessment for both academic and business led applications enabling funding decisions to be made three times a year.

All applications will be subject to assessment by independent expert reviewers with short-listed applicants for Late Stage Awards being interviewed by a committee. Applicants for Late Stage Awards are advised to note that should they be successful in being invited to interview they should hold the dates of the next committee meetings as these are fixed and non-negotiable. Dates will be confirmed when applicants are sent their invitation to submit a full stage proposal (and will be posted on this page in due course).

Please note: If your application is led by an academic, you will need to apply on the Medical Research Council website.

If your application is led by a business, you should make your application on the TSB website.

Open date: 30 April 2012

Email: competitions@innovateuk.org

The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.