RD Lawrence Fellowship

Description of the RD Lawrence fellowship

The RD Lawrence Fellowship was established by Diabetes UK in 1976 in recognition of the life and work of the late Dr RD Lawrence, co-founder of Diabetes UK.

It is a career development fellowship that enables postdoctoral researchers to establish their independence in diabetes research.

Financial support

Support may be requested for up to five years.

Salaries

Salary for the applicant may be requested.

The salary for a technician or postgraduate research assistant may also be requested. This must be justified fully in the proposal.

Materials and consumables

Requests for materials and consumables should not exceed £15,000 per annum.

Eligibility

Applicants must be in the early stage of their research career with between three and six years' postdoctoral experience from the date of examination for their doctoral degree (PhD viva). Allowance will be given to applicants whose career has been subject to a late start or interruption for family or personal reasons.

Applicants are expected to have proven research experience and plan to maintain a long-term interest in diabetes.

All applicants must have identified a sponsor before applying. Diabetes UK cannot identify sponsors for potential applicants and will not accept applications from applicants without a potential sponsor.

RD Lawrence

RD Lawrence

Deadline

The RD Lawrence Fellowship is advertised in the scientific/medical press in April of each year and has an annual deadline of 31 October.

How to apply

Applicants should, in the first instance, submit a CV with publication list and details of their potential sponsor prior to submission of a full application. The Diabetes UK Research department will review this and, if appropriate, will provide an application form for the applicant to complete and submit before the deadline.

Administrative processes

Peer review

Applications will be sent out for peer review to researchers who have not published or worked in the same institution as any of the applicants for at least five years. Please consider this when suggesting reviewers for the application.

Shortlisting and interview

Application will be sent to a specialist Panel, made up of a subset of the Research Committee, to make recommendations for shortlisting based on the criteria listed below.

Candidates will be informed via email whether they have been shortlisted and shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend an interview with the relevant Panel.

Interviews will take place in March. Applicants will be notified as to the success of their application by email and letter shortly after interview.

Assessment criteria

Applications are assessed on the following criteria:

  • Quality of the proposal and its relevance to people with diabetes.
  • Track record of applicant.
  • Applicant’s leadership potential.
  • Quality of research environment and support.

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