Interdisciplinary Leadership Programme  Guidance for Applicants

•  All applications received by the deadline will be assessed for eligibility by the programme organiser.
• All eligible applications will be assessed and scored using the three assessment criteria (research and leadership experience, motivation and career development, and openness to interdisciplinarity) using the scoring system detailed below.
• Horizons Institute and University of Bradford will convene a panel to represent a range of expertise.
• The panel will be given 1 calendar month to assess the applications and will meet to discuss the applications, review scores and recommend applications for a place on the programme.
• The panel meeting will be observed by an impartial observer to ensure consistency and transparency. 
• Once all the applications have been assessed against criteria and a decision reached on who should be put forward for the programme, the programme organisers reserve the right to stratify the selected participants to ensure there is a fair spread of disciplines while prioritising equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• Applicants will be notified of the outcome of their application within 1 week of the panel meeting.

Application closing date: 12am, Tuesday 13 May 2025
Assessment review phase: Wednesday 14 May – Thursday 12 June 2025
Assessment panel: Tuesday 17 June 2025
Applicants notified of the outcome: Friday 20 June 2025

We are looking for applicants to articulate the following: 

• Their potential to lead interdisciplinary research in the future and why this programme is important in the context of their research and innovation field.
• Their relevant experience, in the following areas that the programme can build on:
  • Leadership experience.
  • Collaboration outside of their discipline, or examples of how and where this might emerge in the future.
  • The professional development of others within or outside of their discipline, formally or informally.
  • An established research portfolio (single discipline, transdisciplinary, or interdisciplinary). 
  • A commitment to upholding the highest standards of research integrity, as well as equity, diversity, and inclusion. 

We are looking for applicants to articulate the following: 

• How the programme adds value to the applicant’s research.
• How the programme will support the applicant to develop interdisciplinary leadership skills and competencies.
• How the programme supports the applicant’s career development and their vision for their career with interdisciplinarity at the heart of it. 

We are looking for applicants to provide examples which demonstrate an openness and curiosity to:

• Develop new skills and competencies.
• Co-create research with others from outside of their disciplines.
• Establish new collaborations and learn from other disciplines.
• Explore existing research questions in new ways or generate new research questions through the integration of disciplines. 

The applicant is suitable for the programme. They provide significant evidence and justification as to why they should participate in the programme in line with the assessment criterion: 

• The applicant provides strong and relevant examples of how the programme will add value to their research and will support their career development as an interdisciplinary leader.
• The applicant provides strong and relevant examples of research and academic leadership, of collaborations, and how they have supported the professional development of others.
• The applicant outlines a vision for their career and research that demonstrates an openness and curiosity to develop new skills, collaborations, to co-design and learn from other disciplines and to innovate through the integration of disciplines.
• The applicant provides strong and relevant examples of where they have implemented inclusive practices in their research and wider work and/or an awareness of how they might do this as an interdisciplinary leader. 

The application meets some of the assessment criterion and requires further discussion. The applicant provides some evidence and justification as to why they should participate in the programme. 

• The applicant provides some relevant examples of how the programme will add value to their research and will support their career development, but there is limited evidence of the applicant’s intention to pursue interdisciplinary leadership.
• The applicant provides some relevant examples of research and academic leadership, of collaborations, and how they have supported the professional development of others.
• The applicant outlines a vision for their career and research that demonstrates an openness and curiosity to develop new skills and collaborations, but there is limited evidence of an openness to co-design research with other disciplines and innovate through the integration of disciplines.
• The applicant provides some relevant examples of where they have implemented inclusive practices in their research or wider work, but there is limited evidence of an awareness of how they might do this as an interdisciplinary leader. 

The applicant is not suitable for the programme. The application does not meet the assessment criterion for the programme. The applicant provides inconsistent and limited evidence or justification for their in inclusion in the programme.

• The applicant provides no relevant examples of how the programme will add value to their research and will support their career development as an interdisciplinary leader.
• The applicant provides no relevant examples of research and academic leadership, of collaborations, and how they have supported the professional development of others. It is likely the applicant is too early stage in their career for the programme to be suitable.
• The applicant outlines a vague vision for their career and limited evidence of an openness and curiosity to develop new skills and collaborations, to co-design research with other disciplines and innovate through the integration of disciplines.
• The applicant provides no relevant examples of where they have implemented inclusive practices in their research or wider work or an awareness of how they might do this as an interdisciplinary leader.