Deadline: March 14, 2024.

Funded by the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), over the last 35 years, the Academy’s Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships scheme has successfully supported over 200 academic appointments and enhanced internationally renowned centres of excellence.

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).

Open in tandem with our usual Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships call, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory(DSTL) which is part of the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD), also invites proposals for a Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowship to undertake research that will advance the fundamental theory of information fusion in decentralized sensor networks.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

1. Awards must be held at a UK higher education institution/university.
2. The applicant must have a permanent 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 permanent position to the applicant stating the starting date. The permanent position must start before the award.
3. Awards made in this round must start between 2 September and 31 October 2024.
4. Research Chairs are professorial appointments, so applicants should already be a professor or equivalent.
5. Senior Research Fellowships are senior academic appointments, so applicants should already be at reader or lecturer level or equivalent.
6. Applicants should be able to demonstrate an outstanding research profile including a proven track record in securing external grant income and developing collaborations.
7. 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 research@raeng.org.uk. 
8. 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.
9. The industrial sponsor must have a significant base in the UK. No more than a maximum of two industrial sponsors per application is allowed.
10. 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.
11. 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.
12. Applicants must have already identified an appropriate collaborative research project and secured the support of an industrial sponsor prior to submitting an application.
13. 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.
14. The Research Chairs / Senior Research Fellowship cannot be jointly hosted by more than one higher education institution/university.

BENEFITS

The DSIT 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. The DSTL scheme capped at a maximum contribution from the Academy of £475,000 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.

Apply through the OFFICIAL LINK