Pre-application awards

ARC Wessex are offering up to four Pre-Application Support Fund awards are open and close at 11pm on 13th January 2025.

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The Pre-Application Support Fund is there to provide support to those who need it to enhance their chances of making a successful application to an NIHR career development scheme in the future.

The scheme is open to individuals who completed their PhD (or near completion) that meet the eligibility criteria for the scheme, We do particularly encourage applications from groups and professions under-represented within the NIHR Academy.

Under-represented groups and professions

Through the scheme we aim to make a positive impact on groups and professions identified as under-represented within the NIHR Academy. As a result, we particularly encourage applications from:

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• regulated healthcare professionals (nurses, midwives, allied health professionals, pharmacists and healthcare scientists)

• social work and public health professionals

• researchers in methodology

• applicants from ethnic minority backgrounds

• applicants who are disabled.

• applicants with caring responsibilities

• applicants who have had a career break

The award is aimed at releasing time for individuals to prepare a larger application for an NIHR career development scheme, or equivalent. Through providing additional funding, the Pre-Application Support Fund aims to enhance the opportunities available to those that otherwise would not have sufficient support to apply for NIHR postdoctoral career development funding including increased protected time to develop a competitive application (1-2 days over 12 months) and support bespoke training, collaborations, PPIEP development work and dissemination.

We held an open live Q&A session on 9th December - please click here to view the recording.

Notification of outcome expected late March 2025

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