Category / Funding opportunities

MRC call for Senior Non-Clinical Fellowship

The MRC senior non-clinical fellowship is a highly prestigious award that provides non-clinical researchers of exceptional ability with exceptional opportunities to develop themselves to be research leaders. Applicants will be proven independent researchers with a track record of excellence in their scientific field, and will demonstrate significant promise as future research leaders. Support is now provided for seven years.

Who can apply?

Applicants will normally hold a PhD/DPhil and have at least six years’ post-doctoral research experience in academia or the wider economy. Applications from current MRC Career Development Award holders are particularly welcome.

Proposals are encouraged across all areas of the MRC’s remit from basic molecular science to applied clinical research. Medically and other clinically qualified professionals who are clinically active are ineligible, and should consider MRC’s Clinical Fellowships or Population Health Scientist Fellowship schemes.

MRC fellowships are not available to individuals who hold a tenured academic or research position, in the UK or overseas, at the time of application. If you hold a tenured position you should instead apply for funding under one of the MRC grant schemes. Similarly, individuals without formal tenure who are already supported by their Research Organisation as research team leaders should seek MRC grant funding rather than support via an MRC fellowship. There are no residence eligibility restrictions for this fellowship.

As part of the MRC 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.

Funding provided

The award provides a competitive personal salary for the fellow, research support staff, research consumables expenses and capital equipment appropriate for the research project, travel costs, and other appropriate items under full economic costs at a UK research organisation.

However, a Fellowship is not merely a large personal “grant.” Now that the awards are for seven years, candidates must show a commitment to developing the breadth of their research careers as well as excellence in depth. We recognise that plans for the later stages of a fellowship may be less detailed than those for the earlier years. Nevertheless, applicants should have ambitious and credible ideas for developing themselves as research leaders – scientists with vision and the ability to drive change.

Applicants are encouraged to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the Senior Non-Clinical Fellowship to spend time in an overseas research centre, a second UK research centre or a UK industrial centre. The aim is to provide a concentrated period of training that cannot be achieved as effectively within the academic host institution. MRC consider this period at a second centre to provide an invaluable opportunity to broaden fellows’ development towards becoming a research leader, and they would normally expect the Fellow to make one visit of up to 12 months. The interview panel may agree to requests for visits to more than one centre, if this can be justified on the grounds of training and development needs. These should not be simply collaborative visits. The Felllow should be prepared at interview to discuss in detail any visits proposed.

Tenure of award

An MRC Senior Non-Clinical Fellowship may be awarded for any period up to seven years. A mid-term review will be conducted by Panel members and MRC staff, to evaluate the fellow’s progress and institutional support, and also as an opportunity to provide mentorship and career advice for the fellow.

When applying, the case for support should describe a plan for seven years of research. However it is appreciated that during the tenure of the award, advances will be made and unexpected results may be produced which impact on the planned work, especially in the later years of the award. Consequently they encourage applicants to outline options for the last years of the fellowship rather than provide comprehensive details.

To account for the new longer duration, the case for support may be up to 12 pages in length.

Deadlines and submission details

This fellowship competition is held twice a year. There is no need to submit an outline application. Please see the schedule and deadlines for fellowships for closing dates.

Please apply for the Senior Non-Clinical Fellowship using the RCUK Je-S application system. Your proposal must be submitted through the MRC Je-S system by 4pm on the relevant deadline date.

Closing date: 10 October 2012

Short listing: February 2013

Interviews: 20 -21 March 2013

Take up dates: April – September 2013

Other work responsibilities

MRC senior non-clinical fellows and research support staff funded through full-time fellowships may spend up to six hours a week on teaching, demonstrating or other work. Payment for this work may be retained in full if this is the host institution’s normal policy.

Applications for other grant support

It is expected that senior fellows will seek grant support either from the MRC, through a research grant or other funding streams, or grants from other funding organisations. In applying for such funding, fellows should be mindful of their fellowship commitments (see above).

Guidance for applicants

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

 The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.

BSG Calls in Geomorphology

The British Society for Geomorphology has issued three calls in Geomorphological research. 

The first is Innovative and Emerging Techniques in Geomorphology.

Up to £10,000 (ideally £5,000) is available to support the development of new technology and/or analytical techniques in geomorphology as stated in the BSG Mission, Sections 1.5 and 1.6. It is envisaged that the pump-priming of new techniques in geomorphology will support applications to the RCUK. Applications must have a geomorphological focus.

Deadline: 30 September 2012

The second is Early Career Researcher.

Up to £10,000 (ideally £5,000) is available to pump-prime geomorphological research undertaken by an Early-Career Researcher (ECR). We define an ECR as a member of staff who holds an employment contract of 0.2FTE or greater and who started their academic career within four years of the closing date of applications. Note that to be eligible for this scheme, the primary employment function of applicants must be in ‘research’ or ‘teaching and research’, within any HEI or other organisation, whether in the UK or overseas.

PLEASE NOTE: Applicants should state the start date of their career on the application form.

There is no restriction on the type of support eligible for funding (e.g. conference, workshop, field visit, data purchase, lab costs), although consistent with other BSG grant schemes, they will not support salaries. Applications will be evaluated both for the quality of the research, and for its potential to pump-prime subsequent work.

Applicants to the ECR scheme cannot be a Principal Investigator on any other grant bids to the BSG in the same funding round.

Deadline(s): 30 September and 1 February

The third is in Research Networks in SE Asia and China.

Up to £10,000 (ideally £5,000) is available to support development of research networks in SE Asia and China. The purpose of this grant is to bring together global partners with a research interest in the SE Asia or China region. It is envisaged the £10,000 may support one or more workshops or conferences hosted within the region by SE Asia or China colleagues. The region supported by these awards includes India but excludes Japan.

Deadline: 30 September 2012

All applications should be applied for Online through the BSG’s site.

The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.

ISBE and ESRC announce call for Research and Knowledge Exchange Fund

Exploring knowledge exchange and transfer processes and possibilities for SME internationalisation

The Institute for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (ISBE) Research and Knowledge Exchange (RAKE) fund is an initiative supported by Barclays Bank and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) administered through ISBE.  This initiative aims to encourage and support research activities from academics, third sector organisations, consultants and practitioners with the ambition of drawing together and generating an entrepreneurial community of practice to facilitate knowledge exchange and transfer.

Applications are invited from individuals or teams. Collaborative bids which draw together any combination of third sector organisations, academic researchers, consultants and practitioners are welcome. The Principal Investigator must be employed within a UK institution but may be partnered with an international team. Research teams which demonstrate capacity building through collaborations between experienced and early career academics would be favourably considered; applications which demonstrate ‘in-kind’ contributions from partner organisations are welcomed as are those jointly funded from other sources.  Applications presented as pilot studies, with the aim of generating future funding from other sources, are encouraged. As such, we wish to promote engagement with all who have an interest or stake in generating further insight and understanding into contemporary entrepreneurial activities, behaviours and practices.  For the 2012 call for applications, a number of critical themes have been identified which are of contemporary interest and offer potential to develop knowledge exchange and transfer links.

Exploring processes and possibilities of SME internationalisation

There is a growing focus and interest upon the process of small firm internationalisation which includes ‘born globals’ and those firms tentatively seeking export opportunities.  Axiomatically, smaller firms face a range of challenges related to resource accrual and management when entering international markets. However, a recent survey by UKTI found that the proportion of small UK firms exporting has increased by 10 percent since 2004. In addition, UKTI are actively supporting SME internationalisation on the basis that exporting firms are more productive and innovative, have greater resilient during economic down turns and exhibit lower failure rates than those firms focussed upon local markets.  It would appear that internationalisation is an attractive option for SMEs in terms of potential returns but developing appropriate contacts, networks, resources, managerial capabilities and strategic partnerships is challenging.  Accordingly, we invite proposals which investigate and analyse any aspect of the SME internationalisation process and specifically, any knowledge exchange and transfer issues.  A potential but not exhaustive list of suggestions would include:

• Strategies to overcome barriers to the internationalization process for UK SMEs
• Developing capacity and dynamic capabilities through national and international partnerships between SMEs but also between SMEs and corporate firms
• Evaluations of policy support structures to encourage internationalization – exploring the opportunities of working with Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPS), Chambers of Commerce and specific industry support groups
• Regional SME support for developing internalization strategies focused on specific sectors and value added industries
• Enhancing networks and information exchange possibilities between potential export firms and international partners
• Gaining knowledge of and tapping into potential new markets in developing economies
• Using networks and contacts to facilitate the export process

Attention is drawn to the current Business Engagement Strategy of the ESRC which embraces three broad priorities any of which can be mapped onto and integrated with the themes outlined above:

•    Economic Performance and Sustainable Growth
•    Influencing Behaviour and Informing Interventions
•    A Vibrant and Fair Society

Clearly, the contribution of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial activity can be mapped onto these priorities.  Thus, applications which indicate their relevance to these issues would be welcomed.  Despite any distinctive focus, it is emphasised that all proposals must clearly demonstrate and describe relevance to the notion of knowledge transfer and exchange related to the context of the bid.

For this round of funding, they envisage awarding a number of separate grants of around £10,000 – £12,000 each.  These will not support full economic costing given ISBE’s position as a registered charity. Applications for smaller, seed corn funds would not be discounted however, bids of over £12,000 will not be considered.

Successful grant holders will be required to fulfil the following conditions:
• To be in membership of ISBE for the duration of the award
• To present their work at the annual ISBE conference
• To make findings available to the ESRC’s business channel on ESRC Society Today (EST)
• To produce a satisfactory end of award report within three months of the completion of the research
• To recognise the ISBE RAKE fund in any presentations or publications arising from an award
• To report to the RAKE fund management board to discuss research progress

Further details on the aims and constitution of the ISBE RAKE fund can be found at: www.isbe.org.uk/rakefund

The closing date for applications is 5 p.m. Friday 15th June 2012 with notifications of awards given by mid September. It is suggested that the earliest starting date for research projects should be 1st October 2012.

Completed applications may be returned electronically to Chris Rolles at chris@isbe.org.uk To download an electronic application form please click here Please submit applications in MSWord format – not as a PDF file. This enables anonymisation of proposals.

Applicants may contact the following ISBE board members and staff for informal discussions regarding their bids and/or the aims of RAKE:

Professor Susan Marlow s.marlow@bham.ac.uk VP: Research ISBE: RAKE Fund Manager.
Professor Lynn Marting l.martin@mmu.ac.uk ISBE President
Dr Maura McAdam m.mcadam@qub.ac.uk Board Member
Professor Gerard McElwee gerard.mcelwee@ntu.ac.uk Board Member
Professor Dean Patton dpatton@bournemouth.ac.uk Treasurer: ISBE
Lorraine Reese lorraine@isbe .org.uk Business and Events Manager: ISBE

 The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.

Technology Strategy Board and MRC call to address Healthcare challenges

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.

                                                                                                                                       

Daiwa Foundation Tohoku Scholarships open now!

In response to the 11 March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in the north east of Japan the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation, in partnership with the British Council in Japan, launched a £250,000 scholarship fund to support Japaneses students in the Tohoky region.  They are now accepting applications for the 2012 round of scholarships.

The aim of this initiative is to support post-secondary level students affected by the March 2011 disasters, in particular those areas most affected (Miyagi, Fukushima and Iwate prefectures), seeking to study for a period at an educational institution in the United Kingdom. Applications will also be considered from students from the Tohoku region who are currently studying in the UK but who require financial support to continue their studies.

Scholarship applications may be submitted for the following types of courses, beginning in 2012 or 2013:

  • Undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses (including foundation programmes) in all subject areas
  • PhD and post-doctoral research programmes
  • Vocational courses at universities and colleges of further education
  • English language courses (e.g. pre-sessional courses, English language summer schools)

The amount of funding available will be determined on a case-by-case basis. Sufficient funding will be awarded to cover fees, living expenses and travel expenses for an applicant’s intended course, in line with its level and duration. Therefore, applicants are required to explain their vision for the future and financial plans as part of the application process. Priority will be given to students who can demonstrate seriousness of purpose and financial need. Successful applicants must secure a place on a course of study at a UK institution in order to take up funding.

Application forms can be downloaded from the British Council’s Japan website (www.britishcouncil.or.jp), and should include a personal statement outlining the purpose of study and long-term goals. Completed application forms should be sent to: Daiwa Foundation Tohoku Scholarships section, British Council, 1-2 Kagurazaka, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-0825

The application deadline is 15 June 2012 (applications postmarked up to this date will be accepted). Applicants who intend to study in the UK on courses of up to three months will be assessed on the basis of the application form alone; applicants who intend to study on courses of over three months will be asked to come to either London or Tokyo for an interview. The selection panel will assess applications and inform applicants who are selected for interview by early July. Interviews will take  place on 10 and 11 July 2012 in London, and on 18 and 19 July 2012 in Tokyo. All successful applicants (for courses of both up to and over three months) will be informed of the results in mid-August.

For further information visit the call website: http://www.dajf.org.uk/ and read the scheme notes: http://www.educationuk.org/userfiles/file/Daiwa%20Foundation%20Tohoku%20Scholarships%20publicity.pdf 

The closing date is 15 June 2012.

EPSRC/ESRC Invitation for Outlines: Consortia for Exploratory Research in Security

                                                                                                                                                                                                         

As part of their contribution to the RCUK Global Uncertainties Programme, EPSRC and ESRC are jointly inviting proposals for research consortia (PDF 79KB) to explore current and future cyber security challenges.

CEReS consortia are encouraged to work across or between established disciplines and to draw on expertise from multiple research organisations wherever necessary. They particularly welcome proposals with significant novel mathematics and/or social science content.

Initially, outline proposals will be assessed for their novelty and fit to the aims of the call. Successful outline applicants will be invited to submit full proposals later in 2012.

EPSRC and ESRC have made available up to £4M available to fund full proposals funded through the CEReS call. They expect to support a range of projects which is broad in terms of scale (likely to be between £500k and £1M for each consortium), duration (two to four years), mix of disciplines (with single discipline proposals being the exception rather than the norm) and subject matter (although all must focus on cyber security-related challenges in the broadest sense).  Activities funded through CEReS are limited to those currently allowed on EPSRC grants. As a result they will not be able to accept applications which request funding for PhD studentships, even if they are outside EPSRC’s remit.

CEReS is a call for exploratory research. Consortia should identify ambitious goals with far-reaching impacts on future research and, potentially at least, practice in cyber security. Projects which continue or extend current work in a straightforward or obvious way will not be supported. Collaboration between disciplines is strongly encouraged. Although it is not essential that all projects include cross- or intra-disciplinary working it is likely that the assessment process will select positively for consortia which adopt this approach.

Although it is being managed by EPSRC the CEReS call is also open to researchers eligible to apply for targeted funding from ESRC. There is no quota of applications or funding based on Research Council remits. It is possible for the same researcher(s) to be associated with more than one consortium application.

For further information visit the call website: http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/funding/calls/open/Pages/ceres.aspx and read the call documentation: http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/Calls/2012/CEReSCall.pdf. Outline proposals should be prepared and submitted using the Research Councils’ Joint electronic Submission (JeS) System (https://je-s.rcuk.ac.uk/).

The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.

The closing date is 14 June 2012.

Royal Society Research Professorship scheme now open!

The Royal Society’s Research Professorship scheme is now open for applications! This scheme is for world-class scientists who would benefit from a period of long-term support to allow them to focus on research and collaboration based at an institution in the UK. The scheme provides salary costs, a one-off start-up grant and research expenses. Appointments are usually made for 10 years.

The Professorships may be awarded in any field across the natural sciences. These prestigious posts provide long-term support for internationally recognised scientists of outstanding achievement and promise.

For further information visit the call website: http://royalsociety.org/grants/schemes/research-professorship/ and read the scheme notes: http://royalsociety.org/uploadedFiles/Royal_Society_Content/grants/schemes/Research-Professorship.pdf.

The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.

The closing date is 26 June 2012.

Research Development Fund – Small Grants Scheme Closes 31 May

The next round of the internal small grants scheme closes this month on 31st May.  The scheme provides up to £2000 per application for direct costs.

Examples of research activities covered by the RDF include:

  • Pilot projects
  • Pump-priming
  • Interview transcription
  • Fieldwork
  • Visiting major libraries, museums, other research institutions, etc.
  • Organisation of an academic conference at BU with external participants
  • Attendance at external networking events leading to collaborative research proposals
  • Meetings with external organisations to establish collaborations
  • Preparation of specialist material or data
  • Short-term Research Assistant support or replacement teaching
  • Research consumables and equipment (providing it is clear these would not normally be purchased by the School)

This list is not exhaustive; applications can be for other expenses providing it is clear how the funding will benefit research at BU.  This Scheme is only open to BU Academic Staff members (normally restricted to academics based in Schools).

If you would like to apply the application form and full details can be found here.  The applications must be emailed to the Research Development Unit (RDU@bournemouth.ac.uk) by 31st May 2012

Grounded Theory Masterclass 18-19 June 2012

The Centre for Qualitative Research at Bournemouth University is pleased to announce its next Masterclass in Grounded Theory.Date: 18-19 June 2012 

Venue:Bournemouth University, Executive Business Centre, 2nd FloorBook your place online now.This masterclass will focus on grounded theory – theory developed from data. We shall examine the origins of the approach and the way it has developed over time. Key writers such as Strauss, Glaser and Charmaz will be discussed and their specific approaches described with examples from grounded theory work.

Who should attend
The masterclass has been designed to suit postgraduate students, academics and professionals who are using or may wish to use grounded theory methodology and methods in their research. You can also achieve masters level credits through taking this masterclass – visit our masterclass event page for more details.

Masterclass facilitators
Prof. Immy Holloway is internationally recognised for her work in qualitative approaches to research and has authored many articles and books on the subject. She not only has a deep theoretical knowledge of grounded theory but also takes a very practical approach.
Dr. Liz Norton is a Senior Lecturer at BU and has a particular interest in Glaserian grounded theory. She has used grounded theory in practice in the completion of environment and health-related grounded theory studies.

Cost
The fee of £200.00 (£125 for postgraduate students, with further reductions for BU staff/students) for this Masterclass includes two full days with the course facilitators, all refreshments and all class materials. Accommodation and travel costs are not included.

To book your place please use our online booking form.

For more details please visit our masterclass event page.

Best wishes,

Caroline Ellis-Hill
Masterclass Co-ordinator and Senior Lecturer at BU

Virgin Media Shorts Competition Opens to Entries (UK)

The Virgin Media Shorts, which is a short film competition that champions undiscovered talent, has announced that its 2012 competition is now open to entries.

The competition is open to filmmakers and gives them the chance to show their work in cinemas, on TV, online and on mobile (via the mobile internet).  Prizes include: 13 film makers win a chance to show their work on 214 cinema screens nationwide; one winner will receive £30,000 to make their next film; and a People’s Choice winner will receive £5,000 of film funding and BFI mentoring.  Films must be in English or subtitled in English and be of a duration of up to 2 minutes and 20 seconds. The deadline for entries is 12 noon on the 12th July 2012.

4th World Business Ethics Forum – 16-18 December 2012, Hong Kong

The 4th World Business Ethics Forum (WBEF) will be held from 16 to 18 December 2012 by the School of Business of Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU).  BU have received an invitation to submit papers for presentation at the Conference.

The theme for this 4th WBEF is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability.  HKBU welcome research papers related to this broad theme.  Suggested topics include:

Dimensions and theories of CSR; CSR and risk management; CSR and business ethics; CSR and strategic management; CSR and corporate sustainability; CSR and corporate governance; CSR reporting and capital market; Corporate sustainability management; Legal issues of CSR; CSR in Asia; CSR in China; CSR education; CSR case studies; CSR in western perspectives; and other related issues.

They anticipate that over 150 scholars and professionals across the world will attend the Conference.  Selected papers from the Conference will be published in a special issue of Journal of Business Ethics.

The deadline for paper submission is 30th June 2012.  Please submit the full paper and enquiries to the Conference Secretariat at wbef@hkbu.edu.hk.  Email submissions in Word format are strongly preferred.  Submission of full paper for review indicates that it or a similar version has not been previously published or is not simultaneously under review elsewhere.  Each submission should include FULL contact details, including the author(s)’ brief bio, institution affiliation, mailing address, telephone and fax number, e-mail address, topic area (up to three topics selected from the above).  Full paper should not be more than 40 pages in double-line spacing (all inclusive) and must follow the style guidelines of the Journal of Business Ethics (JBE).

For more details of the Conference, please visit the web site at http://www.hkbu.edu.hk/~wbef.  The Conference Committee will select full papers on a competitive basis, and author(s) will be notified by September 2012.

RBS EnterprisingU competition open to students and graduates

The RBS EnterprisingU competition has launched, with £40,000 worth of prizes!

The competition, created by Find Invest Grow and sponsored by RBS Group and LinkedIn, offers a unique online platform for students to “road-test” their business ideas, while building the framework for a professional business plan at the same time.

It is open to students and graduates of the past 5 years:  they don’t have to be economics grads with business experience – anyone can enter. The platform enables students to explore the viability of their business idea, by asking the right questions and building the appropriate framework.

Investors will be reviewing and judging entrants to decide on the 20 semi-finalists who will be selected to attend the training workshops.  The 10 finalists will be pitching their business ideas to a room full of investors,  with the chance of winning prizes of £25,000, £10,000, and £5,000.

The competition is now open, at: http://www.rbsenterprisingu.com

Encourage your students / recent graduates to apply!

The deadline for completed entrants is midnight on the 15th June 2012.

The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) Titular Fellowships – 2012

The call for applications for the ACU Titular Fellowships is now open.

The ACU Titular Fellowships provide opportunities for staff from member universities and employees working in industry, commerce or public service in a Commonwealth country to spend periods of time in other member universities or relevant institutions outside their own country. Preference will be given to workers in the following priority subject areas: agriculture, forestry and food sciences, biotechnology, development strategies, earth and marine sciences, engineering, health and related social sciences, information technology, management for change, professional education and training, social and cultural development and university development and management.

A summary of the awards is as follows:

Swansea University Fulton Fellowship

Tenable at Swansea University. Awarded for any of the priority subjects listed above.

Country of Tenure: United Kingdom

 

The Worshipful Company of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales Fellowship

At least one Fellowship open either to professionally qualified accountants or to established members of university faculties or related fields. Tenable at a Commonwealth university which either provides courses approved by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, or provides courses in, or closely allied to, business education. Section A of the nomination form may be completed either by the head of the candidate’s firm/company, or by the Executive Head of the proposed host university.

Country of Tenure: Any Commonwealth country other than home country

 

Wighton Titular Fellowship in Engineering

Open to full-time staff, academic or technical, of engineering departments in any of the developing country universities in membership of the ACU. Intended especially for the enhancement of laboratory teaching capacity.

Country of Tenure: Any Commonwealth country other than home country

 

The University of Manitoba Fellowship

Tenable at the University of Manitoba. Awarded for any of the priority subject areas listed above.

Country of Tenure: Canada

 

The George Weston Limited, Canada, Fellowship

Awarded in agriculture, forestry, and food science/ food technology.

Country of Tenure: Any Commonwealth country other than home country

 

The University of Oxford Fellowship

Tenable at the University of Oxford. Awarded in any of the priority subject areas listed above.

Country of Tenure: United Kingdom

 

The Jacky McAleer Memorial Fellowship

In memory of Jacky McAleer, a former member of staff of the ACU, and in recognition of her long and outstanding service to the ACU. Awarded in the field of information technology, with priority given to the computerisation of record systems or computer-assisted learning.

Country of Tenure: Any Commonwealth country other than home country

 

The Gordon and Jean Southam Fellowship

Open to nominees of any of the Canadian universities in membership of the ACU. Awarded for any of the priority subject areas listed above.

Country of Tenure: Any Commonwealth country other than home country

 

Applications will be considered ONLY if the applicant is approved by the Executive Head (Vice-Chancellor, President or Rector) of a university in ACU membership. The ACU will also consider applications approved by the chief executive officer of a Commonwealth inter-university organisation. Fellowships will be tenable for up to a maximum of six months.

The closing date for applications is 1st June 2012

For further information and details of how to apply, please visit the webpage at http://www.acu.ac.uk/member_services/fellowships_mobility/acu_titular_fellowships or email acuawards@acu.ac.uk

If you are interested in applying then you should discuss your interest with Matthew Bennett, Tim McIntyre-Bhatty or John Vinney in the first instance.

BBSRC – Raising awareness of commercialisation in postgraduate and postdoctoral scientists

 Closing Date for Applications: 25th May 2012

 This is  an exciting opportunity available to postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers* within the plant, microbial and environmental science disciplines, or those with an interest in these fields.

 Building on last year’s success, Syngenta, the world’s largest agribusiness company, are again hosting a Plant, Microbial and Environmental sciences workshop, at their world-class Jealott’s Hill research facility as part of the wider Biotechnology YES programme.

 We are particularly keen to attract teams from the plant, microbial and environmental sciences to this high profile workshop that will provide a unique opportunity for the participants to spend time at a world-class research facility, with the chance to have a look around and meet world-leading scientists. The workshop will have an emphasis on challenges such as:

  •  food security and production in a sustainable environment and using lower levels of inputs such as water, phosphorus and nitrogen;
  •  the effects of climate change on food production;
  •  the effects of global biodiversity collapse on ecosystem services;
  •  the production of liquid fuels without impacting on the environment, more effective strategies to control organisms such as crop pests, pathogenic bacteria and disease;
  •  making technology and marketing concepts to integrate crop protection with seeds more attractive to growers.

YES is an innovative competition aimed at raising awareness of the commercialisation of bioscience research. It is co-organised by the Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the University of Nottingham Institute for Enterprise & Innovation (UNIEI). As part of the wider national YES programme, we are also currently encouraging applications from teams of bioscientists who wish to enter the 2012 Biotechnology YES and Environment YES competitions.

Entrants form imaginary companies and bid for funding to commercialise their ideas. Through 3-day workshops taking place across the UK this autumn, participants receive training from entrepreneurs, patent lawyers and industry representatives in the business skills necessary to recognise, protect and harness the commercial potential of scientific research outputs.

The culmination of the competition is the preparation and presentation, by each team, of a hypothetical business plan for a new start-up company.  The competition is therefore fully in line with the government’s objective of encouraging economic and social impact and the competition is endorsed by a number of bio-based industries through their sponsorship.  In addition, the winning team of the national Biotechnology YES competition will receive a prize of £1000 and an invitation to the Rice Business Plan Competition in the United States.

Since its launch seventeen years ago, Biotechnology YES has provided entrepreneurial business training for over 3000 researchers from across the UK. In 2010, an independent review of the scheme highlighted that many former participants found YES to be influential in developing their careers, with several starting their own companies and many more becoming business professionals within the bioscience sector. (Review of Biotechnology YES).

 The closing date for entries into this year’s competition is 25 May 2012.

 More information may be found at the website: www.biotechnologyYES.co.uk or those interested in participating may wish to contact Tracey Hassall-Jones (tracey@biotechnologyyes.co.uk). 

 

AHRC seeks applications in Environmental Change and Sustainability

Applications for up to £1.5m (full economic cost) are invited under a highlight notice in AHRC’s standard and early career research grants routes. The highlight notice addresses the ‘Environmental Change and Sustainability’ area within the Care for the Future theme and is open until 30th October 2012.

Aims and Scope of the Highlight Notice

The aim of the highlight notice is to encourage collaborative arts and humanities-led research which explores the potential of a temporally inflected lens to provide new insights on the challenges of environmental change and sustainability.

For the purposes of the highlight notice, ‘environmental change’ is defined broadly and includes climate change, environmental hazards, agriculture and food security, water, landscape and natural resources. The issues may be at any environmental scale and be focused geographically anywhere in the globe. ‘Sustainability’ is also defined broadly but with particular reference to inter-generational relationships, and the broader ways in which the past, the present and the future inter-relate, in respect to issues of environmental change. There is no limit to how far back in time (or how far forward in the future) the temporal horizon may reach, but proposals must demonstrate a significant temporal dimension which extends beyond contemporary or near contemporary themes.

More information on the call can be found on the AHRC website and in the call document.

Call for proposals – Places and Local Labour Markets

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has issued a call for proposals for a research project which aims to explore the relationship between living in particular places, poverty outcomes and ethnicity by gaining a more in-depth understanding of why it is the case that:

  • Some areas produce better outcomes for ethnic minority groups in general; 
  • Some areas produce poor outcomes for ethnic minority groups in general;
  • Some ethnic minority groups (and groups within them) have different outcomes in different places.

The research will unpick variations in the structure of opportunities within local labour markets, examine the role of local social networks and take a range of other factors into account, including: how local services are organised, the changing economic context, the migration history of different groups, local political structures and issues around housing and mobility.

There is up to £100,000 available for the project, which will last for 8 months.  The proposed start date is May 2012. 

 The submission deadline is 11 April 2012.

Planning on submitting a proposal?  Then you need to contact beth.hurrell@jrf.org.uk by 15 March 2012

Looking for more information?

Do you have a smart idea for using technology at BU?

If you’re looking for rapid project funding, pitch your idea on a new JISC website and receive feedback from your peers.

The JISC Elevator is a new beta platform for people to pitch ideas for projects up to £10,000 using video and short descriptions.

Once an idea has been submitted to the site, people working and studying in UK higher and further education will be able to vote if they like the idea.

When an idea receives the target number of votes then JISC will decide whether or not to fund the idea.

Andrew McGregor, who is managing the JISC Elevator, said: “JISC’s remit is to fund cutting edge innovation – so we hope that by creating a different platform for bidding we’ll be able to capture the brainwaves of many more people in colleges and universities, perhaps people who haven’t previously bid for JISC funds.  The voting mechanisms on the Elevator will also allow us to respond directly to what’s important for people in further and higher education.”

The JISC Elevator is open to all kinds of ideas, with suggestions including:

  • Innovate with e-books
  • Start a student led project
  • Open a can of worms – propose a technical project that starts a big conversation in your institution
  • Use gaming principles to improve research or teaching processes
  • Apply work previously funded by JISC to your own situation
  • Create online services to help students make decisions about university
  • Develop cloud solutions to account for and monitor cloud security

For details on what kinds of idea JISC are looking for please see the submission criteria.

Successful projects will be notified in April and expected to complete by the end of July 2012.

Visit the JISC Elevator

Find out about our other funding opportunities

Give your feedback on the JISC Elevator