1. Applying for Fellowships Workshop 18 April 2018 Faculty resources
Prof Jonathan Higgins

2. Awareness is key to effective career planning
2010
Awareness is key to effective career planning
PhD award

3. Career planning is essential at all stages

4. Outline of talk
1. Career Pathways Scheme/Framework Organisation Development (ex. SDU) 2. Fellowship Route in FMS

5. Career Pathways Scheme - FMS
3 routes
Fellowship
Research assistant/associate (includes team scientist/research support officer)
Alternative career
Research, not in HE
Not research, in HE
Not research, not in HE
Crucial to support all of these routes
More information on the OD website - Career Pathways Framework
and the Faculty intranet:

6. Career Pathways Scheme
Fellowship route
Academic position 3
months 9
months 2
years
Careers workshop
Career planning workshop
Induction
Career researcher
PDR
Alternative career outside academia

7. CPS activities - 1 Induction (3 months after taking up RA post)
Careers Awareness Workshop (9 months after taking up RA post)
Goal is to encourage new ECR to consider all the possibilities that are open to them now that they have a PhD, in terms of skills development (technical and generic) and potential careers
Careers Planning Workshop (2 years after taking up RA post)
Goal is for the participants to take a realistic view of their current position, likely trajectory and the steps they will need to take in order to achieve career success

8. CPS activities - 2
Follow up careers support on an individualised basis
Annual Performance and Development Review (PDR) – an essential component of the process
OD Open Programme
N.B. SDU has been renamed “Organisational Development”

10. FMS Fellowship Route: Strategic goal
Build a strong research base of early career researchers within the FMS that will go on to become the research leaders of the future Need to start planning early – ideally during PhD or soon after

11. How will we achieve this?
Recruit the best ECRs into the Faculty
Mentor and support our best ECRs
Increase the numbers of externally funded fellows in the FMS
Ensure the best possible fellowship applications are submitted
Fund small number of highest calibre researchers to assist them in preparation of fellowship applications
Track fellowship applications and outcomes

12. Newcastle University Research Fellowships (NURFs) and Faculty Fellowships (FFs)
Goal is to develop the academic research leaders of the future
Support ECR development into independent research careers
Increase our numbers of external fellowships and personal investigator awards (at all levels)

13. How do they work? Flexible scheme for all early career stages
Internal and external applicants encouraged
2 main entry points corresponding to major external fellowship schemes
Awareness of different types of research carried out in the faculty
Takes account of career breaks
Flexible working possible
Typically one round of recruitment each year (Spring)

14. University and FMS Research Fellowship Schemes
Senior academic positions
Career progression
Most likely award time
Potential award time
Indicative running time
Open ended academic contract
Senior Fellowship/NIRG/project grants
EXTERNAL SCHEMES
Career development Fellowship/NIRG
Junior Fellowship
PhD
Flexible Faculty Fellowships from 0 mo to 5 yr
5 year fixed-term NURF*
NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY AND FMS FELLOWSHIP SCHEMES 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 11 10 12
Y3 PhD
*The 5 year fixed term NURF is the equivalent in status to a career development fellowship/new investigator research grant award and is subject to a progress review in year 3.
April 2018

15. External Fellowship Schemes
Most likely award time
Duration of Award
3 years
5 years
BBSRC
David Phillips/ECR Fellowships
Anniversary Future Leader Fellowship
3 (+1) years
5 (+5) years
Snr Research Fellowship
BHF
Int Basic Sci Res Fell
4 (+1) years
Immediate Postdoc Basic Science Research Fellowship
6 years
CRUK
Snr Non-Clinical Fell
Career Development Fellowship
Kay Kendall
3 years
Jnr Research Fellowship
4 years
Int Res Fellowship
2 years
International Incoming/Intra-European
3 years
International Outgoing
Marie Curie
5 years
3+ years
New Investigator Research Grant (NIRG)
MRC
Snr Non-Clinical Fell
7 years
Career Dev Awards
3 years
David Sainsbury Fellowship
NC3Rs
5 years
University Research Fellowship
Royal Society
4 years
5 (+3) years
5+ years
Wellcome Trust
Senior Research Fellowship
Sir Henry Dale Fellowship
Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellowship 1 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 12 11

16. What Fellowship schemes offer in FMS
Tailored financial support - can include salary, consumables, equipment, studentships (depending on level of experience and award type)
Advice and support for applications
High quality mentorship
Clear expectations about what is expected and how achieve an open-ended contract

17. How many so far? Faculty Fellowships: Phase 1 (2009-2013): 12
Phase 2 ( ): 20 (including 6 current)
Phase 3: second call, deadline late May 2018
IRES/NURF Fellowships:
2014-current: 24
Total cost approx £10M
Is an ongoing process

18. How have they done?
Several Faculty Fellowships have already led to external fellowships and/or academic positions
Retained NU in academic position (R) 4
Retained NU as NURF
Retained NU on external fellowship 2
Retained NU on junior external fellowship 4
Left NU for academic position (T or R) 3
Left NU for industry position 1
Retained NU as RA
Left NU for RA position
Current FF

19. Grant writing support
Specialised advice from expert in biomedical science funding (Dr Gwen Averley – Research Funding Development Manager)
Tailored advice from experienced researcher(s) with experience in your funder of interest
Review of application from experienced researchers outside your own team
Pre-interview practice

20. Mentorship
All fellows and other early career researchers who are planning to submit external applications given a mentor
Objective advice about career planning
Advice about CV and readiness for fellowships
Review of fellowship applications
Pre-interview practice
Post-result assessment
Continues after fellowship awarded

21. Application process and time scale for external fellowships
RA approaches and talks with PI (advisor) about interest in fellowship and possible project
Referral to Institute ECR representative – discussion about suitability, readiness and possible schemes
RA works on CV – primarily publications
Contacts Gwen Averley for advice and guidance about specific schemes 5m
RA starts to work on application with support from advisor and mentor
RA Notifies the faculty for tracking 4m
Iterations of application with local peer review and mentor review (may include DoI)
Mentor allocated – meeting arranged 3m
Contacts Institute Research Support Officer re. costings 2m
Contacts DoI re. commitment as sponsor
Signed off by Dean/Deputy Dean of Research
-1m
Checks by RSO and JRO
- 7d
Signed off and submitted by DoI
-2d
Notify of outcome
Mock interviews organised by advisor and mentor
Debrief with advisor and mentor
Pass feedback from application and interview back to ECR working group (via

22. Who should you speak to? Have an ECR working group in the faculty
Members from each institute
ICM – Sophie Hambleton, John Mathers
IGM – Helen Arthur, David Elliott
ICaMB – Kevin Waldron, Paula Salgado, Josana Rodriguez
NICR – Jane Endicott, Craig Robson, Lisa Russell
ION –Melissa Bateson, Lucy Asher
IHS – Fiona Matthews, Amy O’Donnell
DS – John Taylor
First port of call for discussions about fellowships

23. Take home messages Career planning is essential at all stages
Many opportunities within the FMS
Fellowship schemes to support our best researchers into independent academic positions
Institute led advice on planning fellowships

24. QUESTIONS?