Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships 2024: (Deadline 12 September, 2024)

Awardees are expected to:

• Establish or enhance a world leading engineering research group
• Deliver ‘use-inspired’ research that meets the needs of their industrial sponsors
• Disseminate the outcomes of their research for appropriate academic use
• Become a self-sustaining research group by the end of the award (by securing substantial external grant income).

The Royal Academy of Engineering is committed to diversity and inclusion and welcomes applications from all under-represented groups across engineering. It is the Academy’s policy to ensure that no applicant is disadvantaged or receives less favourable treatment because of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. We would like to support you to achieve a balance between your personal and work demands. We are happy to discuss individual requirements and consider part time and other flexible working arrangements.

About Royal Academy of Engineering

Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships

Aim and Benefits of Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships

The scheme provides funding for five years. Each application is capped at a maximum contribution from the Academy of £225,000 over the five-year period. 

In addition to the direct financial support, the scheme benefits include:

• Mentoring support from an Academy Fellow to offer independent expert advice and guidance on research related matters throughout the duration of the award
• Training, events and additional funding opportunities
• Reduction of teaching and administrative duties to enable the awardees to focus on delivering use-inspired research, that creates impact for their industrial sponsors
• Networking opportunities with other awardees and Academy Fellows.

Requirements for Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships Qualification

• Awards must be held at a UK higher education institution/university.
• The applicant must have an academic position or an unconditional offer of such a position. The host institution’s letter of support must make clear that they have offered a position to the applicant stating the starting date.
• Awards made in this round must start between 1 March and 30 April 2025.
• Research Chairs are professorial appointments, so applicants should already be a professor or equivalent.
• Senior Research Fellowships are senior academic appointments, so applicants should already be at reader or lecturer level or equivalent.
• Applicants should be able to demonstrate an outstanding research profile including a proven track record in securing external grant income and developing collaborations.
• Applications are welcome from any engineering discipline. Engineering is defined in its broadest sense, encompassing a wide range of diverse fields. If you are unsure whether your collaborative research project falls within the Academy’s engineering remit area, please contact [email protected].
• The duration of an award is five years. This applies to both full and part-time awards. The industrial sponsor must commit to fund the entire five-year period. Applications for shorter time periods will not be accepted.
• The industrial sponsor must have a significant base in the UK. No more than a maximum of two industrial sponsors per application is allowed.
• In special circumstances, the industrial sponsor may be another funding body such as a charity or government department. In such cases, the funding body is subject to the same terms and conditions as an industrial sponsor and must also demonstrate suitable pathways to exploit research outcomes and impact.
• The industrial sponsor must make a (cash or in-kind) contribution towards the fellowship that is proportionate to the size of the organisation. It must cover the research project over the five-year period.  This can include both cash and in-kind support. The amount of funding the industrial sponsor is willing to contribute is an important assessment criterion, being an indicator of the level of commitment to the post and the level of ambition for the group to be created.
• Applicants must have already identified an appropriate collaborative research project and secured the support of an industrial sponsor prior to submitting an application.
• The proposed research programme should naturally align with the interests of the industrial sponsor and its ‘use-inspired research’ should be underpinned by world-class basic research. The collaborative research proposal must be of mutual benefit to both industrial sponsor and host institution. Please note the proposal should not be a consultancy work.
• The Research Chairs / Senior Research Fellowship cannot be jointly hosted by more than one higher education institution/university.

Interview date, Process and Venue for Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships

The award opens for applications twice a year, with deadlines in March and September. The current application round closes at 4:00pm on Thursday 12 September 2024.

The Academy aims to provide additional support to applicants from groups that are persistently underrepresented within UK engineering through the grant application process.

For more information on Access Mentoring please see the guidance. Applications for Access Mentoring support close at 4.00pm on Thursday 22 August 2024

Start date of award: All awards made in this round must start between 1 March 2025 – 30 April 2025. In general awards start six months after applications close.

Key dates:

• Applications open: June 2024
• Applications for Access Mentoring support deadline (optional support ): 22 August 2024
• Application deadline: 12 September 2024
• Stage 1 – expert review. Applicants are informed of outcomes: November 2024
• Stage 2 – interview (online): 2 and 6 December 2024
• Interviewed applicants are informed of the stage 2 outcomes: by early January 2025
• Awards start: 1 March 2025 – 30 April 2025

Application Deadline

12 September, 2024

How to Apply

Interested and qualified? Go to Royal Academy of Engineering on raeng.org.uk to applyAll applications must be submitted by the applicant themselves via the Academy’s online Grant Management System (GMS) available at https://grants.raeng.org.uk

All applicants must first register with the online system and provide some basic login details to create a profile.

For more details, visit OFFICIAL LINK