Royal Society Wolfson Fellowships

1. Overview

The Royal Society Wolfson Fellowships will provide long-term support to UK Universities and research
institutions in making strategic research appointments. Host organisations may apply in conjunction with
the researcher for flexible funding of up to: a) £250,000 over five years, to contribute to a package of
support aimed at attracting to the UK outstanding scientists and their teams, or b) £150,000 over five
years, to contribute to a package of support aimed at retaining within the UK outstanding scientists and
their teams. Funding may be included for salary enhancement, research expenses and equipment as
detailed below.

The aims of the programme are to:

 Strengthen research in the UK’s best University departments and Research Institutions in
fields considered to be strategically important by the institution.
 Enable UK Universities and Research Institutions to attract to the UK outstanding
researchers from overseas in strategic areas.
 Help maintain the strength of the best research departments in UK Universities and
Research Institutions by ensuring that they can retain their most talented scientists in
strategic areas.
 Provide flexible funding to excellent research leaders including established scientists whose
career is on a steep upward trajectory, to conduct high-quality research.

The programme will provide funding in all fields of the natural sciences. The Vice-Chancellor, Institute
Director or their representative (Pro-Vice Chancellor of Research or Departmental Head) will be
required to state why the proposed field of research is a strategic priority for the institution or
department, demonstrating commitments the institution has made to highlight the strategic importance
of the field, as well as what impact the nominated candidate will have on the science and the
department and the potential benefit to the UK science base. As such, the Society would expect one
retention application per department per round and instances where more than one application is
submitted by the same department, a clear case including prioritisation of the nominations must be
provided. Retention of the candidate in the UK, if appropriate may form part of that case. The
application should also outline the process undertaken to select the candidate nominated by the
institution. The institution will also be required to make a commitment concerning what other support
(direct or in-kind) it will provide.

Whilst the grant is made to the institution, the researcher must have full discretion in use of the funds to
support their research.

Recruitment
By recruitment we mean recruitment of a researcher from overseas to hold the grant in the UK
institution who will contribute to the scientific strategy of the host institution. Those recruited from
overseas are expected to hold (the equivalent of) a full-time post at a UK institution. The grant cannot
be used for researchers wishing to move between UK institutions. There is no limit on the number of
recruitment applications a host organisation may submit.

Royal Society Wolfson Fellows requiring a visa to work in the UK are eligible to apply for a Research
and Innovation Talent Visa (i.e. Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visa) under the accelerated process of
endorsement. Other visa routes are available. In line with the highly prestigious nature of the award, the
Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa route is designed for people who are internationally recognised as
research and innovation leaders and enables the holder to be both adaptable and flexible during their
research in the UK. Holders of these Exceptional Talent visas can apply for settlement after three years.
Further details can be found on the Royal Society’s website www.royalsociety.org/about-us/competent-
body

TC/12/18
Retention
By retention, we mean retention in the UK and within the same institution. Applications, which seek to
enable a candidate to move from one UK institution to another, will not be eligible. Those retained are
expected to hold (the equivalent of) a full-time post at the host UK institution.

Retention cases will vary in their nature from cases where the candidate has a pending offer from an
overseas institution that requires urgent action (see Fast-Track below) through to pre-emptive action to
strengthen support for an outstanding strategically important member of the department to reduce the
likelihood of them leaving in future. The strategic case will be particularly important when considering
retention applications.

Fast-track application route for ‘emergency’ recruitment and retention cases

We recognise that there can be urgent time-sensitive recruitment or retention cases where a rapid
decision is required outside a current round. We therefore have a ‘Fast Track’ process available for
such applications, which can normally be resolved within 5-6 weeks. Please contact the Senior
Fellowships team ([email protected]) if you wish to discuss this option.

2. Eligibility Requirements

The Candidate: These grants are aimed at exceptional researchers at the peak of their career as
well as those established researchers whose career is on a steep upward trajectory. The
candidates must be nominated by the Vice Chancellor or Institute Director (or their representative)
from the proposed host institution (as outlined above). Nominated researchers must either currently
hold a permanent post (funded by the host institution and can include partial funding of salary from
an external grant) or have received a firm offer to take effect from the start of the appointment.

Nominated individuals must not have previously held a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit
award.

Please note that only one retention application per department per round is expected and instances
where more than one application is submitted by the same department, a clear strategic case
including prioritisation of the nominations must be provided in the Vice-Chancellor’s supporting letter.

Candidates from under-represented groups are particularly encouraged to apply.

Place of tenure: Appointments must be held (fully) at a UK university or not-for-profit research

institution. The grants are made to the nominating host organisation and therefore non-transferable. As
such if the RS Wolfson Fellow leaves the host organisation during the tenure of their fellowship award,
the grant will be withdrawn with no further funding provided.

Subjects covered: Research must be within the Royal Society’s remit of natural sciences, which includes
but is not limited to biological research, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and physics. For a full list,
please see https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-awards/grants/subject-groups/. The Royal Society
does not cover clinical medicine (such as patient orientated research and clinical trials), social sciences
or humanities, other than when working in partnership with organisations.

Clinical and patient orientated research is considered to be an interventional study on human participants
at the individual or group level, including but not limited to surgical or drug intervention. Eligible use of
human participants in research can include investigation where the experiments are conducted in vitro –
for example, the use of human tissue or other biological samples, chemistry techniques, mathematical
modelling or engineering, translational research and collaborative research with clinicians.

3. Grant

Length of tenure: The grant is for up to five years.

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Value and support provided

Overseas recruitment applications: Up to £250,000 can be requested.

Applications for researchers already in the host organisation: Up to £150,000 can be requested.

Funding can be used flexibly by the fellow and as part of their start-up package to support their research
programme and team and can cover:

 Salary Enhancement – The institution may include a salary enhancement for the researcher.
This will be limited to a maximum of 20% of the total salary. It is the responsibility of the host
university to pay the basic salary, including employer’s contribution for pension and National
Insurance for both the basic salary and if requested the Royal Society Wolfson Fellowship
award salary enhancement. For ‘retention’ cases it must be an enhancement and may not be
used to offset existing costs to the organisation or to cover a pre-agreed pay increase or
annual pay increase.
 Research expenses (100%)– Flexible research expenses including consumables, travel,
small pieces of equipment of up to £10K, access costs and undergraduate students.
 Research assistance – 80% of the full economic cost of a postdoctoral researcher/PDRA
(salary costs and associated indirect and directly allocated costs, including estate costs) and
can include contribution to technical support if appropriately justified.
 Equipment of >£10K - Any equipment costing more than £10,000 (inc. VAT) will require a
50% contribution from the host organisation (this can be financial or in-kind). Equipment
purchased under this scheme is for the use of the grant-holder. If the equipment is expected
to be used more widely in the organisation, the applicant should only request part of the total
cost. In the event that the Society meets only part of the cost of the equipment, the grant
holder should have priority access to the equipment during the award period. The Head of
Department must confirm priority access to this equipment within their statement of support.
Grant holders are not permitted to charge access costs for equipment purchased under this
scheme. Applicants should clarify the VAT position on purchases before seeking a grant. For
all equipment and services costing more than £25,000 (excluding VAT), professionally
qualified procurement staff must be consulted at the beginning of the procurement process
and must approve the order before it is placed with the supplier.
 4 year PhD studentship – The cost of PhD studentship may only be included if the host
organisation will commit to underwriting the remaining cost of the studentship and appropriate
alternative supervision for the student in the event that the RS Wolfson Fellow leaves the
institution.
 other – The funding is intended to be flexible so other appropriate and justified research
costs are also eligible.

All requests will need to be clearly justified in terms of the benefit to the researcher, their research goal
and fit to institutional long-term research strategy.

4. Application, review process, timings and assessment criteria

Nomination and application process: The Vice Chancellor or Institute Director (or their nominated
representative) will need to contact the Royal Society Grants Office by email
([email protected]), after which a weblink to a nomination form on the Royal Society’s
Grants and Awards management system (Flexi-Grant®) will be provided (see stage one below). The
Vice Chancellor or Institute Director must complete the nomination form through their own Flexi-Grant
account. After the Royal Society has considered the completed nomination form, the nominated
researcher (applicant) will be sent a web link inviting them to complete and submit a full application in
that current round on Flexi-Grant®.

There are normally three rounds per year.

Closing date of current round: 6 March 2019 (15:00 UK Time).

Applications received by this date will be considered at the Selection Panel meeting by the end of June
2019 and the outcome is likely to be announced by the end of July 2019.

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Please bear in mind that in order for an application to be considered by the Royal Society, the
application needs to be submitted (including completion of Head of Departments’ and two nominated
referees’ support statements and financial details) and approved by the host organisation by the
deadline.

Assessment criteria
Applications will be assessed against the following criteria:
 The research track record of the candidate (taking into consideration any career breaks).
Candidates should be exceptional researchers at the peak of their career or established
researchers whose career is on a steep upward trajectory
 The strength of the strategic case for the nomination and fit to the institution’s scientific
strategy
 The high quality and originality of the candidate’s proposed research vision and the
contribution that the researcher can make to the furtherance of UK research in their field as
well as potential benefit to the UK science base
 The quality and suitability of the host organisation including commitment to supporting the
researcher’s longer-term and broader career development.

Review process

Applications will be considered by the Royal Society Wolfson Fellowship Panel. The Panel will shortlist
applications for further review by at least two independent reviewers recommended by Panel, before
discussing at a final Panel meeting. It is expected that applicants will be notified of the final outcome by
the end of July 2019. Limited feedback may subsequently be available on request.

Please be assured that the Royal Society specifically requests anyone involved in reviewing applications
to consider them in confidence.

Contact Information
Enquires about this scheme can be made using the contact details below. Before contacting us, please
check whether your question is answered by these scheme notes. If not, please contact the Grants
Section Senior Fellowships team (tel: +44 (0) 20 7451 2263 or email:
[email protected]).

Please quote your application reference number in all correspondence to the Royal Society.

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The following scheme notes set out the application process of the Royal Society Wolfson
Fellowship scheme

Please read through the entire document before proceeding

Application Guidance Notes 5

Using Flexi-Grant® 5
Completing the application form 6
Nomination (Head of Department/Vice Chancellor) 6
Stage two (Applicant) 7
Summary 7
Eligibility Criteria 7
Applicant Personal Details 7
Applicant Career Summary 8
Research Proposal 8
Use of Animals in Research 10
Financial Details 10
Applicant Declaration 11
Head of Departmental Support 11
Nominated referees Support 12
Application Submission Process Flow Diagram 14

5. Application Guidance Notes

Using Flexi-Grant®
Applications can only be submitted online using the Royal Society’s Grants and Awards management
system (Flexi-Grant®) via https://grants.royalsociety.org. Further information about the Grants and
Awards Management system can be found via https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-
awards/grants/flexi-grant/. If you have not previously used Flexi-Grant®, please follow the registration
process from the Flexi-Grant®, homepage. Paper-based applications will not be accepted.

Before completing the online form, all applicants should check that they comply with the eligibility
requirements and ensure all necessary information is presented in the application. These requirements
are strictly adhered to and applications without all the necessary information, or evidence to show the
assessment criteria are met, will be rejected.

All applications must be approved by the UK Host Organisation and the applicant’s departmental
support must be completed before you can submit via Flexi-Grant®. Late applications will not be
accepted.

ORCID identifier
All applicants applying to the Royal Society will be required to submit an ORCID (Open Researcher and
Contributor ID) identifier before their application will be accepted for submission. ORCID maintains a
registry of unique researcher identifiers and a transparent method of linking research funding, research
publications, research data and any other research outputs to these unique identifiers. This is a mandatory
requirement at the application submission stage only. You can register for an ORCID identifier via
https://orcid.org/register.

Adding Participants
All applications must be commenced by the lead applicant. To invite a participant (i.e. Head of Department
(the nominator) and the 2 nominated referees) to your application, the participant will need to be registered
on Flexi-Grant®. You will need to ensure you have their registered email address to invite the participant
on the participant tab.

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Completing the application form
Note that questions with * are mandatory fields. Please read these guidance notes carefully as you
complete the form.

Nomination – to be completed by either the Vice Chancellor, Institute Director or

Head of Department of the UK host organisation.

The nominator must submit the nomination application through their own Flexi-Grant account.

If your nominee is invited to make a full submission, the Head of Department will need to complete the
support statement, including finances and upload the Vice Chancellor’s/Director’s Support Letter (PDF)
(mandatory requirements).

Head of Department Contact Details

Full Name including Please enter your full name and title
Title*
Current Position* Please state the title of your current position

Department* Enter details of your current department name (e.g. Department of

Astrophysics)
Host Organisation* Enter your current university’s name

Email Address* Please state your email address

Nominee Contact Details

Full Name including Please enter your nominee’s full name and title
Title*
Current Position* Please state the title of your nominee’s current position

Department* Enter details of your nominee’s current department name (e.g. Department of
Astrophysics)
Current Host Enter your nominee’s current host organisation’s name
Organisation*
Country* Enter your nominee’s current country of residence

Email Address* Please state your nominee’s email address

Case for support

Recruitment or Please specify whether this application is in support of recruitment (overseas)
Retention* or retention to your Host Organisation.

Please select from the drop down menu the current status of the individual
being put forward for a full application.
Statement of Please provide a confidential statement, commenting on the suitability of the
Support* nominated applicant and the merit of the proposed research project.
Please elaborate on the need for this award, indicating what difference it would
make for the nominated applicant regarding staying at your organisation.
Please expand on whether the offer has been made/accepted (for recruitment)
and whether specific approaches from overseas institutions have been made
to the nominated applicant (for retention).

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 Please state how the nominated applicant’s research falls within the strategy
of the department, detail commitments made by the organisation to evidence
the strategic importance of the research field and list any further actions taken
from the university/department in order to retain/recruit the nominated
applicant.
Also detail any other kinds of support that will provided to the nominated
candidate.
(500 words max.).
If your nominee is invited to make a full submission, you, as the Head of
Department will need to complete the support statement, including finances
and upload the Vice Chancellor Support Letter (PDF).
Head of Department Please confirm whether the applicant will be provided with adequate space
Support* and access to resources within your department.
Salary Please confirm that if salary enhancement is requested that this will be
Enhancement* maintained beyond the tenure of this award.

Stage two – to be completed by the nominated applicant

Summary
Summary Table The summary page of the application form provides instructions for submission
of your application for approval from the UK Host Organisation. In addition you
are provided with an overview for each section of your application form, the
approximate length of time it will take to complete each section, and the
number of participants required to participate in completion of your application
from. Participants can be invited from the participant ‘tab’ which can be located
just above the page summary header.

Note: you will only be able to submit your application for approval by the UK
Host Organisation once all sections of the form have been completed, which
includes the Heads of Department support statement (including financial
details and Vice Chancellor’s/Director’s supporting letter) and two nominated
references. Please invite them to your application at the beginning of your
application.

Eligibility Criteria
Eligibility Criteria* Confirm that you meet the eligibility criteria. Details of the eligibility criteria
can be found on page 2.

Applicant Personal Details

Title, Names, Review and complete your personal details accurately. Errors in this section
address, can cause difficulties in processing your application. The address must be of
organisation and the organisation at which you are based.
country*
Note: correspondence in connection with this application will be sent to the
applicant.
Email address* In the case of the lead applicant this field defaults to the account in which the
application has commenced, and is where all correspondence pertaining to the
application throughout the application process, and in the event of the
application being successful, will be sent.

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Applicant Career Summary
Title of Current State the title of your current position. (20 words max.).
position*
Current Employer* Enter the official organisation name of your current employer (for recruitment
cases, it should be the overseas host organisation).
Current Department * Enter details of your current department name (e.g. Department of
Astrophysics). (for recruitment cases, it should be the overseas department)
Contract Type* Please select from the dropdown menu the type of contract you currently hold.
Source of Salary* Please select from the dropdown menu the source of funding for your post
Current Position Please complete the date in dd/mm/yyyy format.
Start date* Recruitment cases: Please state your expected start date.
Please enter the date when your current position is expected to finish. If you
Current Position End
are on a permanent contract please enter 31 December 2050. Please complete
date*
the date in dd/mm/yyyy format.
Field of
Enter details of your field(s) of specialisation. (20 words max.).
Specialisation*
Select the subject group/area(s) that most closely reflects your area of
Subject Group*
research from the drop-down menu and tick box options.
Please select one or more subject areas that most closely reflects your area of
Subject Area*
research.
Please provide a personal statement about your qualifications, research career
to date and aspirations in the long term. Please ensure that it includes
Personal statement*
information about your achievements in making your research more accessible
to non-specialist audiences. (500 words max.).
Please list all your posts and the dates in reverse chronological order. The
depth of information you provide is up to you, but this will represent you under
Applicant Career assessment and so it is worth including as much good evidence for your
History* academic merit as possible.
Note: if you have an existing ORCID identifier, you can retrieve your career
history from your profile to complete this section of the application form.
List your key and/ or Provide details of authors, titles and references for up to ten of your best
relevant publications* publications in refereed journals, in reverse chronological order. You should
choose not only the best but also those most relevant to the application to
support your case.
Note: if you have an existing ORCID identifier, you can retrieve your key
publications from your profile to complete this section of the application form.
Applicant Research Please give brief details of current and any relevant previous research funding
Funding * and other income for research, indicating source and value (GBP,
approximately) in reverse chronological order.
Supporting Please upload any documents (PDF), that you feel may support this
Documents* application.

Please upload relevant documents that provide evidence to support the case
of recruitment or retention, such as employment offers, informal offers or
interview invitations from other organisations. Uploaded documents should be
in English. Please note that the Panel will consider these documents during
their assessment of your case for recruitment or retention, and you are
strongly advised to provide supporting evidence of employment offers or
informal offers.

Research Proposal

Project Title* Give the full title of your proposed project. (20 words max).

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Host Organisation* Please select the organisation where the award will be held from the drop
down list.
Host Department* Please provide the name of the proposed department at your host
organisation.
Start Date* Please complete the start date in dd/mm/yyyy format. The earliest date that
the award could commence is 1 September 2019.

Subject group and Select the subject group/area(s) that most closely defines the research area
Subject Area* of the research proposal from the drop-down menu and tick box options. This
will enable us to allocate the application to the most appropriate assessment
panel.
Lay Summary* Please provide a lay summary of your proposed project. This should be
understandable by a lay person. Explain why you have chosen to work in this
subject area and what it is about your proposed research that you find
particularly exciting, interesting or important. Please also explain the potential
impact or wider benefits to society of your research.

Please note, the Panel members place importance on this part of the
application.

(250 words max.)

Research Proposal* Please use this section to make your case for support. You should outline the
nature of your research, and explain the potential impact or wider benefits of
your research. Your statement should also provide justification for the award
and detail the difference securing this award would make to you and your long
term research vision.

Plain text only 2,000 words or PDF upload. If uploading a PDF file please
note it must be up to 4 sides of A4, portrait orientation. Please do not use a
text size smaller than Arial 10 and make sure the document is titled.
Your research proposal should provide a general description of the proposed
research to be carried out. This should include, but is not limited to, the
following:
 clear specification of the context and research objectives of the proposed
study.
 description of the methodology to be used and an indication of the
milestones and timescales.

Outline of Data Management and Data Sharing Plan*

The Society supports science as an open enterprise and is committed to ensuring that data outputs
from research supported by the Society are made publically available in a managed and responsible
manner, with as few restrictions as possible. Data outputs should be deposited in an appropriate,
recognised, publically available repository, so that others can verify and build upon the data, which is
of public interest.

The Society does not dictate a set format for data management and sharing plans. Where they are
required, applicants should structure their plan in a manner most appropriate to the proposed research.
The information submitted in plans should focus specifically on how the data outputs will be managed
and shared, detailing the repositories where data will be deposited. In considering your approach for
data management and sharing, applicants should consider the following:
 What data outputs will be generated by the research that are of value to the public?
 Where and when will you make the data available?
 How will others be able to access the data?
 If the data is of high public interest, how will it be made accessible not only for those in the
same or linked field, but also to a wider public audience?
 Specify whether any limits will be placed on the data to be shared, for example, for the purposes
of safeguarding commercial interests, personal information, safety or security of the data.

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  How will datasets be preserved to ensure they are of long-term benefit?
Outline of data If the proposed research will generate data that is of significant value to the
management and research community, then please provide details of your data management
data sharing plan* and sharing plan. (200 words max.)

Use of Animals in Research*

The Royal Society is committed to supporting the development of alternative methods to reduce
and/or replace the use of animals in research. Applicants proposing to use animals in their research
must ensure that the use of animals falls within the regulations stipulated in the Animals (Scientific
Procedures Act) 1986 and subsequent amendments. Additionally, applicants should continually be
aware of developments in best practice, and adopt the principles of the 3Rs when designing and
conducting experiments on animals.

As a funder of research, the Society takes its responsibilities towards the UK Animals (Scientific
Procedures Act) 1986 seriously, and requires applicants to consider the questions below when
preparing grant applications that include the use of animals.
Does your proposal Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. If you have selected ‘Yes’ it is mandatory to complete all of
involve the use of the relevant questions on the Use of Animals in Research page.
animals or animal
tissue?*
Experimental Design Assistant

The Royal Society recommends that applicants use the Experimental Design Assistant (EDA), which
is a free resource from the NC3Rs to support researchers in the planning of animal experiments. This
will help to facilitate robust study design and reliable and reproducible findings.

The EDA helps applicants build a machine-readable diagram representing their experimental plan,
following capture of their methodology, and allows the applicant to then generate a PDF report which
provides a transparent description of the experimental design in a standardised format, which can be
uploaded to the application form.

Please note: Applicants who choose to use the EDA, and subsequently uploads the EDA report to
the application form, are advised to enter see report or n/a into any question fields within this section
of the application form that have already been captured in the EDA report, to avoid any duplication.

Financial Details (Please note this is to be completed by either the Vice Chancellor/Director or
Head of Department of the UK host organisation)
Proposed Budget* Please provide a summary of your requested budget in the table provided.

Salary Top-up* For each year of the award, a maximum of 20% of the current annual salary
can be requested as an enhancement. It is the responsibility of the host
university to pay the basic salary, including employer’s contribution for
pension and National Insurance for both the basic salary and the Royal
Society Wolfson Fellowship award salary enhancement. Annual inflation and
annual pay increases should not be applied to the salary enhancement.
Research expenses* The maximum amount that can be requested is £250,000 for recruitment
cases, or £150,000 for retention cases, including the salary enhancement.
Postdoctoral Please provide the basic salary and oncosts, at 100% FEC.
Researcher (PDRA) If awarded, these costs will be paid at 80% FEC.
basic salary and
oncosts*

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PhD Stipend and PhD Please include the cost of the stipend (fixed value) of £14,777 per year.
Fees* Please include London weighting if necessary. University fees of up to £4,260
per year can also be requested.
The cost of a 4 year PhD studentship may only be included if the host
organisation will commit to underwriting the remaining cost of the studentship
and appropriate alternative supervision for the student in the event that the
RS Wolfson Research Fellow leaves the institution.
Consumables Funding for essential consumables may be requested and should be fully
(including fieldwork)* justified.
Other research Other expenses may include:
expenses*  access charges of external facilities
 animal and plant licence fees
 software licenses
Animal purchases* Funding for animal purchases may be requested but should be fully justified.

Animal maintenance* Funding for animal maintenance may be requested but should be fully
justified.
Travel (including Travel costs can be requested for you and your team and should be based
subsistence)* on the most suitable and economical form of travel. Costs for attendance at
conferences may be included, where attendance will be of direct benefit to
the research. Travel to collaborators and other individual research related
travel can requested as well as for attendance of Royal Society events.
Equipment* Funding may be requested for the purchase of specialised equipment of up
to £10K (including the cost of installation, spares or software procurement
and the annual cost of maintenance or relocation charges specifically related
to the newly purchased equipment). Funding may be requested for highly
specialised computer hardware.
Any equipment costing more than £10,000 will require additional justification
and a 50% contribution from the host organisation. Applicants should clarify
the VAT position on purchases before seeking a grant
PDRA Directly incurred These are costs that can be explicitly identifiable as arising from PDRA
costs* activities. The university must have an auditable record for these costs.
If awarded, these costs will be paid at 80% FEC.

PDRA Indirect costs* Non-specific university costs e.g. costs of administration, such as personnel,
finance, library and some departmental services, charged across all research
activities, based on estimates that are not included as Directly Allocated
costs.

Like estates costs, indirect costs will be calculated by your host organisation
and a single figure is required. Information about the derivation or justification
of indirect costs and estates costs is not required.

Please ensure that no indexation is added to these costs.

If awarded, these costs will be paid at 80% FEC.

Current Salary* Please enter details of your current basic salary, including currency. Please
also include details of any current salary enhancements.
Justification for Salary* Please provide justification for the amount requested.
Please justify here the need for a salary enhancement. (Maximum 20% of
offered salary at the prospective Host Organisation for recruitment cases, or
current salary at current Host Organisation for retention cases)
Justification of Please provide justification for the research expenses requested and indicate
research expenses* if the level requested will differ in later years of the award.
Please include a detailed justification of the Research Expenses requested
(including PDRA Salary, PhD Studentships, equipment etc)

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Applicant Declaration*
By completing this section you are declaring that the information you have provided in your application
is true and correct.

You are also signing to confirm the following:

 You have read the Terms and Conditions of Award under which Royal Society grants are
awarded and, if a grant offer is made, you agree to abide by them.
 You have access to the necessary facilities to enable you to deliver the research
proposed, and will continue to have access to the facilities for the duration of the project.
 You have agreed with your Head(s) of Department that you will be afforded sufficient
time and resources to deliver the research project as described in this application.

Applicant Head of Department Support*

Please provide a confidential statement, commenting on the suitability of the nominated applicant for
this fellowship, this should include:
a) fit to institutional research strategy, specifically why their field of research is a strategic priority for
your institution and/or department, and any commitments the organisation has already made to
highlight the strategic importance of the field,
b) what impact the nominated candidate will have on the science, the department and wider UK science
base
c) an outline of the support (in-kind or direct) that will be committed by the department to the candidate
should the application be successful and
d) list any further actions taken by the institution/department in order to retain/recruit the nominated
applicant.

Please also outline the selection process undertaken by your institution/department which led to the
candidate’s nomination, and how you ensure the gender diversity (and diversity more broadly) of your
organisation is reflected on the nominations your organisation puts forward. The Panel will take all of
this information into consideration during their assessment of the case for support.

You can upload any key documents (PDF) to support this application and will be useful for the Panel
to take into consideration, such as employment offers, informal offers or interview invitations offers that
have been accepted.

As part of your statement, you will required to upload the support letter from the Vice
Chancellor/Director (mandatory requirement).

Additionally, you will also be requested to complete ‘financial details’ section of the application
(mandatory requirement).

The applicant must invite the departmental head to participate in completion of the application form
before it can be submitted for approval. Please ensure that the Applicant uses the correct email address
when inviting the Head of Department. In the event that the “applicant” is the Head of Department,
statements will need to be supplied by the individual to whom the “applicant” reports i.e. a Dean or
Head of Faculty or the Principal.

Before inviting the Head of Department to participate in completion of the application form, the
Applicant is instructed to ensure that the Head of Department is willing and available to provide
a confirmation of support prior to the round closing date. Incomplete confirmations will mean
that an application cannot be submitted and will be deemed to be ineligible.

Please check which email address the Head of Department would like to use as they may already be
registered with a user account on Flexi-Grant®. It is important that the Applicant enters the correct
email addresses when inviting the Head of Department to support the application, as an email will be
sent automatically from Flexi-Grant® to the Head of Department with instructions for viewing the
application and providing their support. Any mistakes in the email addresses supplied will delay the
progress of the application.

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It is the responsibility of the applicant to:
 Inform the Head of Department of the deadline
 Liaise with the Head of Department to ensure that they have received their invitation with
instructions to participate in completion of the application, as no provision is made for non-
receipt of these automatic emails.
 Keep track of the progress of Head of Department completion status on the application
summary page. The Applicant can issue a reminder email to the Head of Department through
the participants tab on the application summary page.

If the instruction email from the Royal Society has not been received please:
a) double check the accuracy of the email address supplied on the application form
b) advise the intended recipient to check their spam filters/junk folders
c) contact the Royal Society with an alternative email address for the recipient

The Royal Society will not be held responsible for automated emails that are not received due to
address errors or spam filters.

Nominated referee Support*

Confidential references from two nominated personal referees are needed with any application
submitted to the Royal Society.

The Applicant must ensure that they use the correct email address when inviting the nominated referees
to provide letters of support.

Before inviting the nominated personal referee to participate in completion of the application
form, the Applicant is instructed to ensure that the nominated personal referee is willing and
available to provide the support letter before the round closing date. If the support letters have
not been received by the system before the deadline, the application cannot be submitted and
will be deemed to be ineligible.

Please check which email address the nominated referee would like to use as they may already be
registered with a user account on Flexi-Grant®. It is important that the correct email addresses are
entered when inviting the nominated referee to support the application, as an email will be sent
automatically from Flexi-Grant® to the nominated referee with instructions for viewing the application
and providing their support. Any mistakes in the email addresses supplied will delay the progress of
the application.

If the instruction email from the Royal Society has not been received please:
d) double check the accuracy of the email address supplied on the application form
e) advise the intended recipient to check their spam filters/junk folders
f) contact the Royal Society with an alternative email address for the recipient

The Royal Society will not be held responsible for automated emails that are not received due to
address errors or spam filters.

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Appendix 1: Application Submission Process Flow Diagram

ROUND OPENS
STAGE 1 (Nomination:
Vice- Chancellor, Director or Head of Department)

Head of Departments Nominate researchers via nomination

form online via Flexi-Grant®
Rejection

Applicant invited to submit a full application

STAGE 2 (Applicant)
Applicant fill in form online via Flexi-Grant®, inviting to the
application Head of Department and Nominated referees

 Head of Department modify their support statement,

uploads the Vice Chancellor Support letter and completes
financial details.
 Nominated referees complete their support statements via
Flexi-Grant®

Applicant Submits

UK Host Organisation’s approver submits

their approval via Flexi-Grant®

ROUND CLOSES
Non-
Final submission to the Royal Society
submissions:
by deadline 15:00 UK time,
Rejection
6 March 2019

Application is checked for eligibility

and provision of support from the Rejection
Head of Department

Application enters selection

Rejection
process

AWARDED
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