We ask all potential applicants to make contact with the relevant school or department before submitting an expression of interest for several reasons.

These fellowships are linked to a permanent academic position and therefore it is important that you confirm that your research can be appropriately supported by the discipline at Nottingham and that the research you wish to undertake fits strategically with the priorities and plans of the school or faculty.

This scheme is aimed at early career researchers, and candidates do not normally have more than eight year’s postdoctoral experience. However, there are no eligibility rules based on years of post-doctoral experience as this doesn’t allow for variations of career paths across disciplines.  Candidates will be assessed on their quality, potential and track record, relative to their career stage.

Yes, you must have been awarded your PhD prior to the closing date for registering interest in the scheme – 6 October 2023.

No – you must have been awarded your PhD to apply.

You need to: 

1. identify your host school or faculty from the list provided 

2. contact the identified school contact to discuss your research proposal 

3. check whether the school/faculty has strategic areas where they particularly welcome applications 

4. follow the link contained in the contact details section to apply online 

5. complete the short form and ensure you upload your CV and research proposal

The form consists of a short application and submission of your CV and a brief research proposal of no more than three pages. 

The cut-off date for registering interest is Friday 6 October 2023.

Yes – submit your CV as part of the online application, alongside a short research proposal.  Please ensure that your CV includes your employment history, any gaps in employment history, and a list of publications.

No, please do not include publication metrics. The University of Nottingham is a proud signatory of the San Francisco Declaration of Research Assessment (DORA). This means we aim to nurture the highest quality research, recognising and valuing the intrinsic merit of research over and above its publication channel, journal metrics, or publisher. If you include publication metrics these will not be used in any assessment.

Ensure you include the title of your proposed research, the nature of your proposed research and its aims, fit with school strategic priority areas and the wider university research strategy and any planned outputs from the project. Please also include a section on your long term career aspirations and why you believe your career will benefit from the award of a Nottingham Research or Anne McLaren Fellowship. 

Your proposal should be no more than three pages and should be uploaded as part of your application form.

The package includes three years’ salary on salary scale R&T 5, depending on experience (approx. £43,155 to £54,421), up to £75,000 additional research costs, up to £15,000 taxable childcare costs, and up to £1,500 removal expenses. 

The fellowship is linked to a permanent academic post subject to performance against a high-quality threshold, and the continued right to work in the UK. All fellows will participate in a mentoring scheme and have the opportunity to participate in a career development programme.

Yes, we strongly encourage applicants to source external funding to support their application.  This would need to be looked at on a case-by-case basis, to ensure it is within the terms and conditions of the second funder.  If you would like to discuss your circumstances further, please email fellowships@nottingham.ac.uk

Yes. Some applications are at the faculty-level (arts and engineering), and some schools have identified strategic areas that they particularly welcome applications to. Please discuss your research proposal with the school or faculty contact to ensure your strategic fit.

Clinical academics are encouraged to apply to the Anne McLaren Fellowships or the Nottingham Research Fellowships and there is recognition that for this staff group there are very specific challenges, namely that career progression is linked to professional accreditation as a consultant and the co-funding of any post with the NHS Trust. 

The School of Medicine plans to support successful clinical fellows strongly at the conclusion of their fellowship, but it is not necessarily able to guarantee a permanent position following the fellowship.

The focus of the Nottingham Research Fellowships and Anne McLaren Fellowships is research. Teaching is not obligatory as part of the Fellowship programmes, but most fellows opt to undertake some teaching as part of their experience to support their integration into the School.

Opting to teach also helps fellows to gain further experience of teaching prior to gaining a permanent academic position at Nottingham. However, when teaching is undertaken no fellow should have a total teaching commitment of more than six hours per week during term-time. This threshold is in line with the expectations of most RCUK fellowship programmes.

No. We want research to be the primary focus of fellowships, but you will have an opportunity to complete a PGCHE either during your fellowship or in the first year of your permanent academic post.

For successful candidates who require a visa to work in the UK, the University of Nottingham will act as sponsor for a Tier two visa application. In order to move onto a permanent academic contract, successful candidates will also require the right to work in the UK. 

The University of Nottingham is very supportive of inter-campus mobility where it adds value to the research of the fellow. However, there are disciplines in which the opportunities are more limited. Applicants are encouraged to find out about such opportunities in dialogue with their host school when preparing an expression of interest submission. For more information about our campuses in Malaysia and China, please see:

• nottingham.edu.my
• nottingham.edu.cn/en

Very. Like all fellowship schemes, Nottingham receives a large number of high-quality applications for our schemes each year. The success rate in the 2021-22 recruitment round was 3.4%. This is why we strongly recommend that applicants communicate with the host school in advance of submitting your application.

The review of applications follows a competitive process. They are individually reviewed at both school and faculty-level with the best candidates identified against the following criteria:

1. Fit to school or faculty research priorities and strategic areas as advertised
2. Research output quality and quantity appropriate for career stage
3. Quality of the research proposal

Each faculty identifies the best applications and those candidates are then invited to submit a full application. 

The scheme is a four-stage process, part of which is managed by schools or departments, so it is difficult to provide a straightforward success rate on our schemes. Overall the success rate for 2021-22 was 3.4%.

Those who are unsuccessful at the:

• registration of interest stage will receive brief feedback from the school to which they have applied
• full application stage will receive feedback from the shortlisting panel
• interview stage will receive feedback from the interview panel

Please see the timeline for recruitment. Those who are unsuccessful at any of the four stages of application will be notified as soon as possible after decisions have been taken.

In theory you can submit two different proposals, but it is not recommended because it may show a lack of focus in your research. A better approach is to focus on one key proposal.

Candidates are not normally expected to have a permanent position, as they may be considered to have achieved the aims of the scheme already. However, we do take into account diverse career paths and will assess eligibility on a case by case basis.

Please contact fellowships@nottingham.ac.uk to discuss your situation if you are unsure.

The schemes offer identical packages of support and candidates for both schemes are assessed as part of the same process. At the offer stage candidates will be allocated as an Anne McLaren or Nottingham Research Fellow.

Yes, the schemes are open to internal and external candidates, including those based outside the UK.

Yes, it is possible to submit a cross disciplinary proposal, but you would need to have a base in one department, and because the fellowship is linked to a permanent academic post (subject to performance and the right to work in the UK) then you need to have commitment from one department to support you in a permanent position post fellowship.

The best approach is to have discussions with the key contacts in the schools where you think your research best fits, and through these discussions work out which would be the most appropriate host school.  

At this stage, you do not need a Head of School supporting statement – this is something we ask for at the full application stage. However, you must discuss your research proposal with the named school contact and this will be a gateway criteria on the expression of interest form.

Yes, if you are invited to interview, and within the bounds of the university interview expenses policy. If you are an overseas candidate selected for interview, we would require you to come to the UK for interview. However, we are able to provide travel, subsistence and accommodation expenses, within reason. These are normally restricted to approx. £600 for a flight, and one night of accommodation, but for long haul flights we can offer more on a case by case basis.

The full application asks for additional details on your proposed research, including a work plan, justification of resources, and the proposed outputs from your research.

You will also need to provide information on the potential impact on your research and a personal statement. Alongside this we require a supporting statement from the Head of School, and will ask you to suggest up to three external reviewers to peer review your proposal. These are separate to personal referees.

Yes.

No, there are no gender based eligibility criteria for this fellowship.