The guidance notes for 2024/25 applications are now available under Supporting documents. These outline what we are looking for in this round.
The guidance notes for the completion of the interim progress report and final report are also available.
Eligibility criteria
- Applicants should hold a permanent academic position at a UK university at lecturer, senior lecturer, reader level (or equivalent).
- Applicants must be teaching an engineering discipline at undergraduate or postgraduate level.
- Applicants must be able to demonstrate a significant administrative workload, which prevents them from dedicating as much time to research as they would like, and that they therefore merit being relieved of their teaching and administrative duties.
- Awardees are required to devote all their working time to the Fellowship as this is a full-time award. Awards can be held on a part-time basis, please refer to the section on Part-time and flexible working below for more details.
- Any applications that are incomplete or do not adhere to the guidelines may be rejected.
- The proposed research project can be in any engineering discipline. Engineering is defined in its broadest sense, encompassing a wide range of diverse fields, including computer science and materials.
If you are unsure whether your project is in an engineering area, please contact Research Team.
Please note: Unlike in previous rounds of this scheme, successful awardees can spend a maximum of four hours per week on teaching and administrative duties if they so wish.
Diversity and inclusion
The Royal Academy of Engineering is committed to diversity and inclusion and welcomes applications from all underrepresented groups across engineering. It is the Academy's policy to ensure that no applicant is disadvantaged or receives less favourable treatment because of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.
Applicants will be asked to elaborate on what diversity and inclusion means to them, and what you and your team are doing to address it. You will consider your team, collaborators and universities, the implications on your research design and topic, and the overall contribution this will have on your success.
Access Mentoring support
The Academy aims to provide additional support to applicants from groups that are persistently underrepresented within UK engineering through the grant application process. This positive action will contribute to improving diversity in the talent pipeline and widening the diversity of applicants and awardees within the Academy’s research grant schemes.
To be eligible for Access Mentoring support, applicants must meet the eligibility criteria of the RAEng/Leverhulme Trust Research Fellowships scheme, and must be either:
- women
- Black people, including those with any mixed ethnicity with Black ethnic
background(s) - disabled people
The Academy accepts applicants’ self-declaration on the above identified underrepresented groups under the host institution’s guidance.
Access Mentoring is a resource limited opportunity. Applicants do not need to wait until the deadline to submit their application and can be matched with a mentor as soon as the application is approved. Early submission is encouraged.
For more information on Access Mentoring please see guidance.
Part-time and flexible working
The Academy wants to support applicants to achieve a balance between their personal and work demands, and is happy to discuss individual requirements and consider part time and other flexible working arrangements.
RAEng/Leverhulme Trust Research Fellowships can be held part time, but must be the only form
of employment. The request for a part-time RAEng/Leverhulme Trust Research Fellowship (at no
less than 60% of full-time equivalent) must be clearly stated within the application.