Unlock Your Future in Clinical Research by Applying for a Pre-Application Award
The NIHR Biomedical Research Centre: Oxford (BRC) is making funds available to support the career development of healthcare professionals with little or no dedicated research time or research experience. We are keen to support clinicians (e.g. nurses, midwives, allied health professionals, pharmacists, psychologists, clinical scientists and resident doctors) who are at an early to mid-stage in their research journey and are employed by the OUH and/or Oxford University. If you leave your role before the end date of the award, there is no guarantee that the award funding will be transferred to your new organisation.
Programme Overview
The purpose of this award is to have funded time to develop a competitive application for a fellowship award or a research grant which will develop you and enhance your research career alongside your clinical duties. You will be expected to submit a research fellowship or research grant application within six months of the award being completed.
Funds available
This pre-application opportunity would give you an opportunity to do any of the following:
· develop a research idea into a research proposal.
· have some protected time to prepare your planned application for a career development award or a research grant?
· conduct a research project that has already been designed and has approval.
· design and conduct a service improvement, audit or service evaluation project.
· conduct analysis of existing data and write a paper for publication in a peer review journal.
· conduct a literature review and write up for publication in a peer review journal.
· use data from practice and devise an implementation plan with results.
Funding will be provided to cover salary costs for up to six months part-time, 0.25FTE. The award will take place between April and September 2027. It is expected that you will continue in your clinical role during the award.
You can also apply for training and development costs. All costs that you include should be directly related to the purpose of the award. You can apply for up to a maximum of £5000 training and development costs in addition to salary costs of 0.25FTE for 6 months.
You will get support in writing your application from your Divisional Research Lead or an academic supervisor/mentor on your training pathway and research journey. If you are unsure who this is, please contact Dr Clair Merriman [email protected]
Your application should:
· provide a clear outline of what you will do during the award period and describe how this will strengthen your ability to submit a competitive funding application and advance your research career.
· provide a concise overview of your research area of interest.
· outline the supervisory and mentoring support that you will have in place
You must have support from your line manager for you to be released from 0.25FTE time in your working week.
Submit Narrative CV by Friday 20th November:
You are required to submit a narrative CV as part of your application. Please send this via email to Ade Lagoke, Academic Career Development Manager: [email protected] by close of business on Friday 20th November.
What is a narrative CV?
A narrative CV allows you to highlight the contributions, skills, and achievements most relevant to your application, providing greater context than a traditional CV. It should demonstrate your ability to successfully deliver the proposed work and reflect a broad range of relevant and transferable experience. Some guidance information can be found here: Exploring the use of narrative CVs in the NIHR:… | Documents | NIHR Open Research
You need to use the following sections, your application and interview will be assessed against the criteria listed below:
· Section 1: Contributions to the generation of new ideas, tools, methodologies, or knowledge
Describe your research experience, key outputs (such as publications, data, or conference presentations), and your specific personal contribution and impact.
· Section 2: Contributions to the development of others and maintenance of effective working relationships
Highlight leadership, line management, mentoring, supervision, teaching delivery, and collaborative teamwork.
· Section 3: Contributions to the wider research community
Detail peer review, committee work, multi-agency initiatives, contributions to positive research culture, and scientific dissemination.
· Section 4: Contributions to broader society
Explain public engagement, patient and service user involvement (PPIE), policy contributions, or engagement with industry and community organizations.
· Section 5: Your suitability for this award
Formatting Rules
· Length: Maximum of 3 pages (single-sided A4 equivalent).
· Typography: Arial font size12.
· Layout: Do not alter mandatory section headings, boxes, or minimum margins (usually 2cm).
Apply here:
Ready to take the next step in your research journey?
Apply for the Pre-application Programme today and begin your path to becoming a clinical academic leader
Apply here: NIHR Oxford BRC Pre-application Award 2027
Applications close at 2300hrs on Monday 23 November 2026. Interviews will be held in December.
Applicants will be asked to describe their research career plans and how they will use this award to further their research career.
For more information, contact Ade Lagoke, Academic Career Development Manager: [email protected]