Information for external Early Career Fellowship applicants

Please find below details of the Early Career Fellowship schemes for which the Institute of Criminology can consider external applications.

This page is aimed at external applicants. If you are already a member of the Institute of Criminology please also refer to our Research Grants Intranet for more information.

The Institute of Criminology welcomes external applications to the Early Career research grant funding schemes listed below.

Please read the funder’s call webpages carefully to confirm your eligibility and what each scheme offers before contacting us about your application. At least 4 weeks’ notice must be given for all new applications, and completed copies of all application documents must be sent to the Institute Research Grant Administrator in time for the deadlines given for each scheme.

Note regarding mentors and sponsorship:

Please be aware that all external funding applications will require the support of a sponsor or mentor based at the Institute of Criminology who holds an academic employment contract lasting longer than the grant’s duration. The Institute of Criminology is not able to arrange the provision of a mentor for you or make recommendations as to who might be suitable.  If you do not already have an appropriate contact we would suggest that you refer to our Academic Staff pages to find someone whose work aligns with your research interests, and then introduce yourself with a link to the funding call, your CV and a sample of your work. Please bear in mind that our faculty are always very busy, and that you should be considerate of their time when contacting them.

Deadlines announced: Rolling

Start planning your application: After confirming mentor support

Internal deadline: March, June, November

Funder deadline: Rolling

Applications for ESRC New Investigator grants must receive initial approval from the School of the Humanities and Social Sciences before proceeding. Internal applications can be made via the Institute of Criminology at any time, but will be reviewed by the School Office at three points each year. 

If you are selected by the School to make an application to the ESRC then there will be no fixed deadline for submission but your full application must be submitted a minimum of 9 months before your project’s proposed start date. Internal review typically takes 2-3 months, so we would advise starting preparations a minimum of 12-14 months ahead of time to allow time for both this and the development of the full application.

After securing the support of a mentor please contact the Institute Research Grants Administrator for information on the next internal call deadline. The Research Grants Administrator will share a copy of the internal application form and provide guidance on how to budget your application ready for the internal competition. 

You will need to submit the following documents at the internal call deadline:

  • A completed SHSS ESRC New Investigator Grant application form (3 sections, total 1000 words, provided by the Research Grants Administrator after contact)
  • A letter of support signed by the Director of the Institute
  • A Worktribe budget report produced by the Research Grants Administrator

Be aware that these typically take at least 2-4 weeks to prepare depending on your application's content, and if they cannot be completed in time for the next internal deadline then you will be advised to wait for the following one.

The Institute Research Grants Administrator will provide you with further guidance after receiving notice of your intent to apply and confirmation of your mentor’s support.

Deadlines announced: July-August

Start planning your application: August-September

Internal deadline: Mid-October

Funder deadline: February

Applicants for Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowships are required to secure match-funding from their proposed host institutions before submitting their application to the Leverhulme Trust. At Cambridge match-funding is provided by the Isaac Newton Trust on a competitive basis.

The Institute of Criminology may nominate two candidates each year for match-funding, and we carry out selection of candidates in October. The Isaac Newton Trust confirm who they will fund in December.

After securing the support of a mentor as detailed above please submit the following draft application documents to the Grants Administrator for review by October:

  • An INT Internal Competition Coversheet
  • Your CV
  • List of publications
  • Two statements of research (a statement of current research, and a summary of the research you intend to undertake as an LECF at Cambridge)
  • Two references, with referees from different institutions

All documents should follow the guidelines of the INT and Leverhulme Trust.

Once our selection of candidates has been completed we will let you know if your application has been selected for nomination to the Isaac Newton Trust.

Applicants who are afterwards offered match-funding by the Isaac Newton Trust will be invited to make a full application to the Leverhulme Trust the following year. They will submit the same documents used for the internal competition but with one additional reference.

 

Deadlines announced: July

Start planning your application: July-August

Internal deadline: September

Funder deadline: October

This scheme has two stages operated by the British Academy – a brief outline stage and a more detailed full stage the following year.

The Institute of Criminology does not operate an internal competition for this call but will only support proposals that are of a high competitive standard. We request that prospective applicants provide at least six weeks’ notice of intent to apply, and submit applications to us at least four weeks before the British Academy’s outline deadline so that they can be reviewed.

After securing the support of a mentor as detailed above please submit the following draft application documents for us to review:

  • An Institute of Criminology Intention to Submit form (available on request)
  • An email confirming your proposed mentor’s support
  • A PDF draft of your application saved from the British Academy’s Flexigrant portal
  • A draft budget confirming how you will use the £6,000 research expenses

The British Academy describes the contents of their outline application form in their scheme guidance notes.

Applicants who are successful in the British Academy’s Outline competition will be invited to prepare a full application in mid-January which includes a detailed budget and more detailed explanations of their proposed work.

Fellowships must always start between 1st September of the year the award is made and 1st January the following year.

Deadlines announced: April

Start planning your application: April-August

Internal deadline: August

Funder deadline: September

The Institute of Criminology can support applications for the European Postdoctoral Fellowships strand of this scheme.

After securing the support of a mentor please contact the Institute Research Grants Administrator at least 4 weeks before the final deadline confirmed by the European Commission (10th August) to discuss preparation of your application and the process for obtaining Institutional approval to apply.  You will then need to submit the following documents at least 2 weeks before the final deadline (27th August):

  • An Institute of Criminology Intention to Submit form (available on request)
  • An email confirming your proposed mentor’s support
  • A PDF draft of your application saved from the EC Funding and Tenders portal

The Institute Research Grants Administrator will provide you with further guidance after receiving notice of your intent to apply and confirmation of your mentor’s support, including the blank Intention to Submit form and support for the preparation of your application’s section B2-5.