Fellowships

We welcome enquiries from fellowship applicants at any career stage, or academics wishing to transfer their existing fellowship to Leeds. You should discuss your application with an academic sponsor or Head of School at the earliest opportunity.

What we offer 

You will have access to a range of support, facilities and opportunities, including:  

• help identifying funding opportunities
• specialist research facilities and infrastructure
• access to industry through our Nexus innovation hub
• application support via workshops and one-to-one training
• help shaping your research ideas and support for proposal development
• rigorous pre-application peer review
• CV development
• coaching and interview preparation
• a great city to live and work in with excellent transport links

Fellowship schemes currently available

For each scheme you should contact your proposed host School via the faculty listings. For schemes with an internal process you should email the R&I development team via R-IDevelopment@leeds.ac.uk. Inform us that you intend to submit, once you have secured the support of a host School, so we can advise of you of timescales and requirements. For EU fellowships and grants please email the EU funding team via EUFunding@leeds.ac.uk.

Fellowship schemes currently available include:  

• UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Future Leaders Fellowships: This cross-UKRI scheme supports early career researchers and innovators with outstanding potential. Round seven has now closed, and we are waiting for UKRI to confirm plans for round eight.
• Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) Independent Research Fellowships (IRF): Designed to develop scientific leadership among the most promising early-career environmental scientists. Our internal process begins in April for submission to NERC in October.
• Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC) Fellowships: This scheme provides greater support to the aspiring and current individuals who are delivering the highest quality research to meet UK and global priorities. Our internal processes start three times a year, in January, April and September.
• Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowships: Provide support for early career post-doctoral researchers and encourage them to become future research leaders in engineering. Our internal process begins in June each year for submission in early September.
• Royal Society University Research Fellowships (URF): For scientists who are in the early stages of their research career and have the potential to become leaders in their field. Our process starts in May each year for submission to the Royal Society in autumn.
• British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowships: To enable outstanding early career researchers to pursue an independent research project, towards the completion of a significant piece of publishable research in the humanities or social sciences.
• Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) New Investigator Awards: Aimed at people wanting to become an independent researcher through managing their first major research project.  Applicants can submit an Expression of Interest to us at any time. If accepted, you’ll be supported to develop a full application.
• Medical Research Council (MRC) Career Development Awards: Support talented post-doctoral researchers to lead their own research plans and establish their own research team to make the transition from post-doctoral researcher to independent investigator. 
• MRC Clinical Research Training Fellowships: Support clinicians, including (but not limited to) medics, surgeons, dentists, clinical psychologists, public health specialty trainees, allied health professionals, nurses, midwives and veterinarians, to undertake a PhD or other higher research degree. 
• MRC Clinician Scientist Fellowships: Develop talented medically and other clinically qualified professionals who have a higher research degree to lead their own research plans and establish their own team to become an independent investigator. 
• Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions Individual Fellowships: A great option if you are a researcher looking to give your career a boost by working abroad.
• European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grants: For talented early-career scientists who have already produced excellent supervised work, and are ready to work independently and show potential to be a research leader.
• ERC Consolidator Grants: For scientists who want to consolidate their independence by establishing a research team.
• ERC Advanced Grants: For established, leading principal investigators who want long-term funding to pursue a ground-breaking, high-risk project.
• Leverhulme Early Career Fellowships: For early career researchers, with a research record but who have not yet held a full-time permanent academic post, to undertake a significant piece of publishable work. Please note: there is no institutional level process for this scheme, if you are interested in applying for a Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship you should contact your proposed host school only, via the faculty listings.
• NIHR Fellowship Programme: Supports individuals on their trajectory to becoming future leaders in NIHR research. Four fellowships have been designed to support individuals at various points of their development in becoming leading researchers, from initial pre-doctoral training to senior post-doctoral research. These are Pre-Doctoral Fellowship, Doctoral Fellowship, Advanced Fellowship and a Development and Skills Enhancement Award. 
• HEE-NIHR Integrated clinical academic programme (for non-medics): Provides research training awards for health and social care professionals, excluding doctors and dentists, who wish to develop careers that combine research and research leadership with continued practice and professional development. The awards available are Pre-Doctoral Clinical Academic Fellowship, Clinical Doctoral Research Fellowship and Clinical and Senior Clinical Lectureships.
• NIHR Research Professorship: The flagship award for the NIHR, which aims to fund research leaders of the future. Our internal process begins in April each year.
• Wellcome Trust Early Career Awards: Provide funding for early-career researchers from any discipline who are ready to develop their research identity and deliver shifts in understanding that could improve human life, health and wellbeing. By the end of the award, candidates will be ready to lead their own independent research programme.
• Wellcome Trust Career Development Awards: Provide funding for researchers from any discipline who have the potential to be international research leaders. The awards support candidates to develop their research capabilities, drive innovative programmes of work, and deliver significant shifts in understanding that could improve human life, health and wellbeing.

Some fellowship schemes place restrictions on how many applications can be submitted by a single institution. Please make sure that you discuss your proposal with your potential host school.

Institutionally coordinated opportunities

For details of institutionally coordinated Fellowship opportunities, visit the University’s  Research and Innovation Service website.