Wellcome Discovery Awards 2023

Scholarship Description:

Wellcome Discovery Awards 2023 is open for International Students . The scholarship allows PhD level program(s) in the field of Mental Health, Infectious Diseases, Climate Change, Humanities, Science Education taught at Wellcome Trust . The deadline of the scholarship is expired at 11 Apr 2023.

Wellcome Discovery Awards 2023 provides funding for established researchers and teams from any discipline who want to pursue bold and creative research ideas to deliver significant shifts in understanding that could improve human life, health and wellbeing.

Wellcome is a global charitable foundation established in 1936. Throug their work they support science to solve the urgent health issues facing everyone. They fund curiosity-driven research, and we’re taking on three of the biggest health challenges facing humanity – climate change, infectious disease and mental health. With a £38.2 billion investment portfolio, they give researchers the time and resources needed to make breakthroughs. Wellcome also works with policy makers, run advocacy campaigns, and form partnerships with other organisations to ensure everyone, everywhere benefits from advances in health science. 

Degree Level:

Wellcome Discovery Awards 2023 is available to undertake PhD level programs at Wellcome Trust.

Available Subjects:

Following subject are available to study under this scholarship program.

• Mental Health
• Infectious Diseases
• Climate Change
• Humanities
• Science Education

Scholarship Benefits:

A Wellcome Discovery Award provides funding for research expenses.

The award usually lasts for 8 years, but may be less for some disciplines, such as humanities and social science.

The award may be held on a part-time basis. We will extend the duration of the award to reflect this.

You should ask for a level and duration of funding that’s appropriate for your proposed research. You will need to justify these costs in your grant application.

The award includes:

continuing professional development and training

staff

materials and consumable

animals

equipment

access charges

overheads

travel and subsistence 

overseas allowance 

fieldwork expenses

inflation allowance 

open access charges

clinical research costs

public engagement and patient involvement costs 

contract research organistaion

The award does not include salary costs for the lead applicant.

We only provide a salary for coapplicants in certain circumstances 

Eligible Nationalities:

People from UK, UK, Republic of Ireland, Low- or middle-income countries (apart from India and mainland China) can apply for this scholarship. 

Eligibility Criteria:

You can apply for a Wellcome Discovery Award if you are a researcher who wants to pursue bold and creative research ideas. You must aim to make a major contribution to your research field by:

• generating significant shifts in understanding

and/or

• developing methodologies, conceptual frameworks, tools or techniques that could benefit health-related research.

You will be expected to actively promote a diverse, inclusive and supportive research environment within your team and across your organisation.

Your research can be in any discipline – including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), experimental medicine, humanities and social science, clinical/allied health sciences, and public health – as long as it has the potential to improve human life, health and wellbeing, and aligns with our funding remit.

The research can be in a single discipline or multidisciplinary.

An award can be held by an established researcher or a team of researchers led by an established researcher.

Lead applicant

Whether you are applying as the sole applicant or the lead applicant for a team, you must have:

• international standing as a research leader in your field
• experience of leading innovative and creative research
• a track record of managing and training others.

If you are the lead applicant for a team, you must also be able to demonstrate you can drive and lead a substantial collaborative research programme.

You must be able to contribute at least 20% of your research time to the programme.

You must be based at an eligible host organisation that can sign up to our grant conditions. It must be in one of the following:

• UK
• Republic of Ireland
• a low- or middle-income country (apart from India and mainland China).

It must be a not-for-profit organisation. It can be a:

• higher education institution
• research institute
• non-academic healthcare organisation
• charity or social enterprise.

At the point of application, you should have a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract, or the guarantee of one. The contract should not be conditional on receiving this award.

Your salary must be paid by your host organisation for the duration of the award. If you are based in a low- or middle-income country, you can ask for a contribution to your salary if you hold a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract that states that you have to get your salary from external grant funding.

If you have less than three years remaining on your contract at the point of application, you must have secured your next position at an eligible organisation and provide a letter of support from them.

Coapplicants

Coapplicants can be at any career stage and based anywhere in the world, apart from mainland China.

Each coapplicant must make a significant and essential contribution to the research proposal, for example designing the research, writing the application and/or managing the programme. They must be able to contribute at least 20% of their research time to the programme.

Coapplicants must be based at an eligible organisation that can sign up to our grant conditions.

The organisation can be a not-for-profit:

• higher education institution
• research institute
• non-academic healthcare organisation
• charity or social enterprise.

It can also be a commercial organisation.

Coapplicants can request their salary if they have a permanent, open ended or long-term rolling contract that states they have to get salary recovery from external grant funding, or they are employed by a charity, social enterprise or commercial organisation. The amount they request must be proportionate to the time they will spend on the grant. 

Coapplicants without a permanent, open ended or long-term rolling contract can only request salary if they:

• Will spend at least 80% of their time on this grant. They can request their full salary. Their post does not need to be underwritten and can be contingent on the application being successful.
• Will spend less than 80% of their time on the grant. They can request salary proportionate to the time they will spend on the grant. The host organisation must guarantee space and salary support if they cannot get it from other sources for the period of time they are working on the grant. Their post cannot be contingent on the application being successful.
• Are employed on the award as postgraduate research assistants. If they are to spend 100% of their time on the award their post does not need to be underwritten by the host organisation and can be contingent on the application being successful. 

Alternatively, coapplicants may get their salary through employment on another grant or from their employer.

Coapplicants can be based in the same or in different organisations, and come from any discipline, but the added value of the team approach must be clear.

Team size will depend on the proposed research. It will usually range from two to eight applicants, including the lead applicant.

We encourage lead applicants to put together diverse teams.

Who can't apply

You are not eligible to apply as a lead applicant on a Discovery Award if you are the lead applicant on two other Discovery Award applications and you are waiting for a decision.

You cannot apply if you intend to carry out activities that involve the transfer of grant funds into mainland China.

Application Procedure:

1. Before you apply

   Make sure you read everything on this page.

   You may also want to watch a recording of a webinar that took place on Monday 12 April 2021.

   Get some tips to help you write your grant application.

   You do not need to contact us before you write and submit your application.

2. Submit your application to your host organisation for approval

   Complete your application on Grant Tracker.

   View the Sample full application form for Wellcome Discovery Awards [PDF 1.43MB].

   Submit it to the 'authorised organisational approver' at your host organisation for approval. Make sure you leave enough time for the approver to review and submit your application before the deadline. The approver may ask you to make changes to your application.

   Get some guidance on using Grant Tracker.

3. Host organisation reviews your application and submits it to us

   Your application must be submitted by 17:00 (GMT/BST) on the deadline day.

4. Shortlisting

   We will check your eligibility for the scheme and that your application demonstrates how you will meet the aims of the scheme. If your application is ineligible or does not demonstrate how you will meet the aims of the scheme, we will withdraw your application and contact you to explain why.
   
   One of the following Discovery Advisory Groups will then review your application, depending on your area of research:

   • Molecular Mechanisms
   • Pathogen Biology and Disease Transmission
   • Cell Biology, Development and Physiology
   • Immune System in Health and Disease
   • Population and Public Health
   • Brain and Behavioural Sciences
   • Genetics and Genomics
   • Medical Humanities
   • Social Sciences
   • Data Sciences, Tools and Technology.

   If shortlisted, we will invite you for interview.

5. Written expert review

   We'll seek external written expert review on shortlisted applications. Only the proposed research will be reviewed.

   Reviewers will be chosen based on their expertise within the relevant research field and not on their level of seniority.

   Unattributed comments will be sent to you before your interview.

6. Interviews

   A committee will interview shortlisted candidates at the Wellcome offices in London. Accessibility requirements will be accommodated. Those who cannot attend in person can participate remotely.

   We will provide information on the structure of the interview, layout of the room, and interview committee membership.

   Shortly before the day of the interview, you will need to provide us with your presentation slides. You will be asked to give a presentation at the start of your interview.

   The focus of the interview will be on questions and answers. The committee will assess across a set of criteria rather than one specific aspect of the proposal.

7. Funding decision

   Final funding decisions will be made by the Discovery Research Decision Board.

   You will receive an email notification of the funding decision soon after the decision has been made.

8. Feedback

   Written feedback will be provided to all unsuccessful applicants at each decision point, including the reasons for a decision.

Disabled applicants

If you are disabled or have a long-term health condition, we can support you with the application process.