Deadline: 4th October 2024
The aim of the Research Development Fellowship Programme is to provide opportunities for
talented health researchers based in Africa, so that they can lead research that is responsive to its African settings and can contribute to reducing the burden of disease. It aims to develop emerging African scientists through developing their skills, experience, confidence and research outputs.
Fellowships offer awardees the opportunity to develop their own research ideas, research skills and capabilities, to grow their research relationships through collaboration and mentorship, and to work towards a substantial research funding proposal.
The Fellowship enables researchers to undertake a combination of research training and
professional development activities that contribute to the researcher journey. It comprises on the job training (including a small research project), networking and visits, developing
collaborations, attending specialist training and an international conference.
Benefits
- Applicants can ask for a maximum of:
• £25,000 for a Fellowship with a 3-month placement
• £37,000 for a Fellowship with a 6-month placement
• £47,000 for a Fellowship with a 9-month placement - Mentorship support
- Seed Funds – The Seed Fund is an award of up to £50,000 over 12 months. to give Fellows the opportunity to develop pilot data for a larger grant proposal, refine their research questions and develop, adapt or validate innovative methods and data collection
Eligibility
- The RDF scheme focuses on Early-Career health Researchers (ECR) from Africa who plan to develop their research career in Africa and have the potential to become research leaders.
- Applicants must demonstrate that they have chosen to focus their career on human health research and are progressing on the pathway to become, but are not fully established as, independent researchers, with the potential to lead research that is original and innovative. This can be demonstrated through their employment, training, research experience and outputs.
- Nationality and residency
- Applicants must be a national of a country in Africa.
- Applicants need not be resident in Africa at the time of applying, provided that the application is officially supported by an African institution that meets the eligibility criteria for an Employing Organisation which confirms that the applicant is employed locally.
- Employment
- Applications must be working at least 30% Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) in an active research role; and EITHER
- have guaranteed employment with a legally established research organisation or a university in Africa for the duration of the Fellowship, or,
- have guarantee of employment at a centre of research excellence outside Africa, and an honorary contract with a legally established research organisation or university in Africa for the duration of the Fellowship. They must spend at least 70% of their time based in Africa (this must be confirmed in the support letter from the institution in Africa).
- Academic qualifications
- Individuals with the following qualifications may apply:
- Clinicians and non-clinicians with a PhD qualification or equivalent postgraduate degree (DPh/DPhil/MD) in a health-related subject from a recognised institution of higher education or,
- Clinicians with a specialist clinical qualification. Must have an MBBS or equivalent and a specialist clinical qualification. Examples of specialist clinical qualifications are FRCP, FWACP or equivalent or,
- Clinicians with a Masters degree. Must have an MBBS or equivalent and the Masters must have contained a research component. They would expect a plan to gain a PhD or equivalent doctorate (although not funded as part of the AREF Fellowship).
- Individuals with the following qualifications may apply:
For more information and application.