Wellcome Trust Postdoctoral Schemes

Following their strategic review, the Wellcome Trust have two schemes which are open to postdoctoral applicants: their main postdoctoral scheme is the Wellcome Early-Career Awards scheme, but there is also the Wellcome Career Development Award scheme. More information about both can be found below.

They replace several previous schemes such as the Sir Henry Wellcome Fellowships, Research Fellowships in Humanities and Social Science (HSS), and the University Awards in HSS. As part of the Trust’s commitment to reach new disciplines and communities, these schemes are open to researchers in any discipline – including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), experimental medicine, humanities and social science, clinical/allied health sciences, and public health – as long as the research has the potential to improve human life, health and wellbeing. Wellcome has published a new funding remit statement that outlines this in more detail.

The University of Leeds runs internal selection and support processes for both Wellcome schemes (see below for more details).

Wellcome Early-Career Awards

These awards are for early career researchers wishing to develop their research identity and be ready to lead an independent programme by the end of the funding. These are suitable for postdocs with a PhD but generally no more than 3 years’ postdoctoral experience (part-time work, career breaks and other significant amounts of time spent outside research, for example clinical training, will be allowed for when applications are assessed).

These awards will typically last for 5 years, but for some disciplines, such as humanities and social science, this may be less. Awards can be held on a part-time basis and will be adjusted accordingly. The award provides the salary of the grant holder and up to £400k in research expenses.

This scheme has three rounds a year, though please note that the University deadlines for each round are significantly earlier than the official Wellcome deadlines, due to the University’s internal shortlisting and selection process.

The Trust encourage applicants to move away from their current research environment to gain experience in a new environment – this might involve a move of organisation, or a change of school / centre / institute within an existing organisation.

Read more about the Early Career Awards on the Wellcome Trust’s website.

School of Languages, Cultures and Societies (LCS) internal process: advice for applicants

Please note that the University operates an internal selection and support process for this scheme, and only selected candidates will be invited to submit an application through the School. 

The University runs information briefing sessions for potential candidates on various dates throughout the year: see the timeline below for the dates of the sessions. These sessions will provide applicants with a general overview of the application process, and will also provide some guidance on how to develop a strong EOI, and what the panel would like to see. It is recommended that all interested applicants attend one of these sessions; to sign up to attend, please click on the links in the timeline overview table below. 

Part one: the internal selection and shortlisting process

You must contact the LCS Research Team at lcsresearch@leeds.ac.uk in the first instance, so that we can ensure your application is supported by the Head of School and an appropriate research mentor before you begin to prepare your application in detail.

Once the School has confirmed that your application will be supported, you must then submit the following to R-IDevelopment@leeds.ac.uk before the relevant deadline:

1. Download the Expression of Interest (EOI) form and return to R-IDevelopment@leeds.ac.uk. The EOI requires the signature of the Head of School, and your prospective mentor, so you must ensure that it is completed in plenty of time before the deadline. The research team at lcsresearch@leeds.ac.uk should be your contact throughout this process. For more information on the deadlines for the EoI’s, please see the timeline below.
    
2.  A five minute recorded pitch covering three crucial aspects of your proposal:
   a.    A broad overview of what it is you wish to achieve with your project
   b.    In what ways you feel that your project is bold and innovative and right for the Wellcome’s ECA scheme
   c.    Why you are the right person for this project and why Leeds is the right place for you.
    

Timeline/scheme deadlines

An information session before the EOI deadline will provide applicants with a general overview of the application process. A guide to how to develop a strong EOI, and what the panel would like to see, will be discussed. It is recommended that all interested applicants attend this session. To register for a particular session, please click on the links to the sessions in the table above.

Part two: the peer review and submission process (for selected candidates only)

Following the internal sift you will be notified if your application will be supported by the University of Leeds. If successful, you will proceed to the next stage of the process, which will be to prepare a full application for submission to the Wellcome Trust. Support will be provided for applicants by the central University team, including guidance on how to write a competitive proposal and ensure applications are within remit.

Useful resources

The University has created some resources that may be of benefit when developing the expression of interest:

• Webpage: Sharepoint Wellcome ECA page – contains some additional useful links and a downloadable EOI form
• Video: Wellcome webinar - this covers Wellcome’s funding portfolio and what they are looking for from different schemes that will be useful when developing an application
• Sway: Wellcome Trust Fellowship applications – research contributions, culture, development and host support
• Video: How to write your expression of interest
• Video: Is it a fellowship or a standard grant?
• Video: Why you? Why Leeds?
• Sway: Writing a career development plan

Please note that these recordings have restricted permissions and are initially only available for applicants who have a University of Leeds login.

If you are an external applicant and you would like to access these resources then please email R-IDevelopment@leeds.ac.uk, explaining exactly which resource/s you would like to view, which postdoc scheme you are interested in applying to, and that you are a potential applicant through LCS. You will then be sent a link to view the resources in an alternative format.

Wellcome Career Development Awards

Although this is not technically a postdoctoral scheme, we have included some information here as it is a scheme which applicants can use to come and work here in the School. These awards are for researchers seeking to lead a substantial and innovative research programme and become international research leaders by the end of the funding.

They are suitable for tenured and non-tenured postdocs with 1-2 ‘substantial periods of research’ after initial training. Those applicants who have been appointed to their first permanent or open-ended long-term contract should have been appointed within the last 3 years unless they have had a research break, worked part-time, changed research field or were based in a low- or middle-income country where it is normal to be appointed early in your career. These awards place a strong emphasis on establishing a research career – e.g. setting up a group, gaining a permanent position.

A key requirement of these awards upon the host institution is that they guarantee either:

• To provide the award holder a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract by the end of the award, or

• Carry out a formal review process, no less than two years before the end of the award, to discuss the award holder’s future at the organisation, including the possibility of a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract.

School of Languages, Cultures and Societies (LCS) internal process: advice for applicants and how to apply

Please note that we operate a strict internal selection and support process for this scheme due to the significant commitment required on the part of the host organisation. Potential applicants to this scheme must also first make contact with the School (via LCSresearch@leeds.ac.uk) to seek permission to apply. If the School decides to support your application, further guidance on how to apply for the University's internal selection process will be issued then.

Timeline/scheme deadlines

There are usually three rounds a year under this scheme, closing in November, April and July. Further details can be found on the Wellcome Trust’s website. Please bear in mind that you must seek permission from the School before starting work on an application. Please ensure that you contact the School to request this at least three months before the Wellcome Trust’s deadline. 

Useful resources

The University has created some resources that may be of benefit when developing the expression of interest:

• Webpage: Sharepoint Wellcome CDA page – contains some additional useful links and a downloadable EOI form
• Video: Wellcome webinar - this covers Wellcome’s funding portfolio and what they are looking for from different schemes that will be useful when developing an application
• Sway: Wellcome Trust Fellowship applications – research contributions, culture, development and host support
• Video: How to write your expression of interest
• Video: Is it a fellowship or a standard grant?
• Video: Why you? Why Leeds?
• Sway: Writing a career development plan

Please note that these recordings have restricted permissions and are initially only available for applicants who have a University of Leeds login. If you are an external applicant and you would like to access these resources then please email R-IDevelopment@leeds.ac.uk, explaining exactly which resource/s you would like to view, which postdoc scheme you are interested in applying to, and that you are a potential applicant through LCS. You will then be sent a link to view the resources in an alternative format.