Fellowship eligibility
NERC Fellowships are open to any nationality.
The NERC Fellowship levels correspond to different stages in a typical research career, and there are no fixed age limits for the scheme. Full consideration will be given to applicants returning to science following a career break or where the candidate has come late to a research career.
For the 2006 scheme onwards, applications for extensions to current NERC fellowships will no longer be considered. A Postdoctoral Fellow could apply for an Advanced Fellowship.
Applicants should not have a permanent academic position (or the equivalent in institutions other than universities). NERC staff in Bands 5 and 6 only can apply for a fellowship and if successful, would have to resign from their position in order to take up the fellowship.
Applications are especially welcome from candidates who are not yet established within the higher education system or who are intending to use the Fellowship as a means of re-establishing themselves in the United Kingdom following a period overseas.
All applicants must hold or expect to hold a PhD/DPhil, or be able to demonstrate equivalent and substantial research experience.
Applications for Postdoctoral Research Fellowships will be accepted from PhD students, but awards may not start until NERC has received written confirmation of the outcome of the applicant's PhD viva. Candidates should be expecting to submit their thesis before the date of the interviews (early May). Some post-PhD experience is an advantage when seeking a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, and typically candidates will have one to five years of postdoctoral experience. However, NERC is committed to supporting the best candidates and it is usual for some successful candidates to be awarded their PhD after having submitted their fellowship application.
Candidates for Advanced Fellowships must have had at least two years research experience at postdoctoral level, not necessarily in the UK, at the time of application. They must also have proved their ability as independent research workers and show potential as team leaders.
A similar proposal should not have been submitted as a grant application (either concurrently or previously) to NERC or another organisation. Further information on eligibility of the project can be found in section F of the handbook.