Early Career Fellowships aim to provide the opportunity to undertake a significant piece of publishable research for those who are at a relatively early stage of their academic careers, but with a proven record of research.
Applicants must not have held an established academic post in a UK university or comparable UK institution. Applications are welcomed in any discipline, and approximately 100 Fellowships will be available in each year.
Fellowships can be held at universities or at other institutions of higher education in the UK. Awards are for three years and applicants must have submitted their thesis not more than four years prior to the application closing date.
For more information on the scheme, including further eligibility criteria (which prospective applicants should check carefully) see: https://www.leverhulme.ac.uk/funding/grant-schemes/early-career-fellowships
Procedure for applicants applying through Oxford
We are keen to encourage prospective Early Career Fellows from outside Oxford to explore the possibility of applying through the Humanities Division, as well as those currently based here. Initially, you should make contact with the person at Oxford who you would like to be your mentor and ask if they would be prepared to undertake this role. Once they have agreed, follow the steps to obtain approval from the relevant Faculty to make the application (see below).
The Leverhulme Trust requires the host university to fund 50% of the overall fellowship cost. The Oxford Humanities Division is able to fund two applicants per faculty per year through the generosity of the John Fell Fund. Each year, usually in November/December, faculties run an Expression of Interest stage to select these two candidates; please check their websites for further information regarding this process.
Faculty approval
Should you be interested in applying through Oxford for a Leverhulme ECF, please note that your expression of interest application will be assessed by the relevant Faculty in the first instance. The relevant internal deadlines and requirements for each of the Faculties in the Humanities will be listed here in the autumn.
(For Social Sciences, please contact the relevant departmental administrator: https://socsci.web.ox.ac.uk/research-support-in-departments).
Faculty Procedures for 2024 Competition Round - will appear here in October 2023.
