Veterinary Research Entry Fellowships

Purpose

This scheme provides one year's support for research-minded veterinarians to undertake a Master's degree by research.

What's included

Fellowships are for one year, and provide:

• a basic salary as determined by the veterinary school
• research expenses
• Master's course fees
• a travel allowance.

Eligibility

You must have completed a first degree in veterinary medicine or veterinary science (e.g. BMedVet, BMedSci, VetMB), with a good track record of academic achievement during the course of your studies. Experience in clinical practice and a demonstrated interest in a research career, such as an intercalated degree, involvement in project work and/or summer school attendance would be advantageous. Applications are also welcomed from candidates who have had a career break and now wish to acquire research experience, with a view to considering a career in veterinary research.

The awards are open to individuals with a relevant connection to the European Economic Area.

The proposed research should fall within the Wellcome Trust's normal funding remit.

Sponsorship and supervision

Fellowships must be held at one of the UK Veterinary Schools.

All candidates require an eligible sponsor and a supervisor in the host institution.

Sponsors must have a contract of employment with the host institution with tenure beyond the duration of the proposed fellowship. They must be in a position to guarantee space and facilities for the duration of any award.

You should give careful thought to your choice of supervisor. Appropriate individuals will possess strong track records in basic research and mentorship. Supervisors are expected to provide guidance during the application process, as well as mentorship throughout the fellowship. You are expected to liaise closely with your proposed supervisor when writing your proposal.

Application process

An application form [Word 1.64MB] should be completed and submitted by the published deadline. Guidance notes [Word 219KB] accompany the form.

• An electronic copy of the form (as a Word document) and each accompanying document should be emailed to vets@wellcome.ac.uk.
• One hard copy of the form (including signatures), should be sent to our postal address, marked for the attention of Veterinary Fellowships.

Please note that all Word documents will need to be sent in Word 2003 (or an earlier version).

Where applicants are unable to submit the application and all accompanying documents in electronic format, or the accumulative size of the documents exceeds 10MB, please contact vets@wellcome.ac.uk for advice on the submission procedures.

In some applications, there may be more than one sponsor and supervisor. In such cases, all relevant questions of the form should be duplicated as necessary.

If possible, please provide the name, full postal address and email/telephone number (if known) of scientific referees whom you feel would be suitable to comment on your application. These must not include colleagues from your institution or those with whom you have collaborated in the last five years, e.g. coapplicants or co-authors on grants or papers.

Please note that:

• we may or may not choose to approach some, or all, of the individuals you have selected
• under no circumstances, should you enter into correspondence with them about your application.

The application will be subject to our normal selection procedure and will be considered in competition with other applications.

Fellowships must be taken up within one year of award.

Applicants may not apply to more than one Wellcome Trust fellowship scheme at any one time.

Application advice

Reviewers typically assess:

• your aptitude and potential
• the scientific merit of the proposed project
• the suitability of the project as a research training vehicle
• the suitability of the supervisor and host environment.

You are encouraged to contact the Trust if you have any queries regarding a potential application, the scheme or career issues.

Sponsors and supervisors are advised to read all the scheme information provided here.

Deadlines

This is an annual competition.

The deadline for applications was 25 January 2010. Applicants who submitted an application by this deadline should expect a funding decision in July 2010.

Fellowships must be taken up within one year of award.

Current award holders

Lee Meakin, Royal Veterinary College
Can mechanical loading alleviate the deleterious effects glucocorticoids on bone strength?

Helen Provan, University of Edinburgh
Staphylococcus aureus-host interactions in experimental infection of poultry

Tony Sarma, University of Cambridge
Does cranial cruciate ligament rupture induce plastic changes in proprioceptive neurons?

Kristy Syer, University of Nottingham
Molecular and cellular investigation of the interaction between S. uberis and the bovine innate immune response

Contacts

Please direct enquiries to vets@wellcome.ac.uk.