Glossary

Definitions of funding-related terms.

Candidate: The individual (fellow or student) applying for fellowship/studentship support.

Coapplicant: A researcher who will have intellectual input into, and part ownership of, the research if the application is successful; he/she is expected to be actively involved in the project.

Collaborator: An individual named in the body of the application who will supply technical advice or reagents but will not be involved in the day-to-day execution of the project.

Joint-principal applicant: The status of this individual is given when there are two or more lead applicants who are based at different institutions. The administration and funds for the project are shared between the institutions. Individually, each of the joint-principal applicants fulfils the criteria of the principal applicant above.

Mentor: An individual who provides independent support and advice to enable the candidate to realise their full potential and help establish their career. A mentor is expected to have a strong track record in research (not necessarily in the same scientific area as the candidate) and be a senior figure normally outside the host laboratory. They may also provide guidance during the application process.

Principal applicant: The lead researcher who has the main intellectual input into, and ownership of, the research if the application is successful; he/she is expected to be actively involved in the project. This is the individual with whom the Wellcome Trust will correspond about the application. The principal applicant on a project or programme grant is normally considered by the Trust to be the 'holder' of the grant. This means that if a principal applicant is in receipt of his/her own salary on the grant, and he/she takes up a post in another institution, he/she may retain principal applicant status if still eligible to do so. If a coapplicant whose salary is funded on the grant takes up a position at another institution, the responsibility for the grant would remain with the principal applicant and the grant could only be transferred to the coapplicant in his/her new location if all parties concerned (including the Trust) agreed to such a move.

Research sponsor: An individual who provides relevant scientific guidance and can guarantee space and resources. A research sponsor is expected to have a strong track record in research and training. They may also provide guidance during the application process. In some cases the research sponsor should also provide appropriate mentorship to the individual.

Sponsor: An individual who is able to guarantee that space and resources will be made available for the project (if, for applications from university-funded researchers, the principal applicant does not hold an established position). A sponsor should be able to reassure the Wellcome Trust that the principal applicant will be welcomed into the host department. The sponsor must hold an established post or a Wellcome Trust Principal/Senior Research Fellowship and have tenure beyond the duration of the grant.

Supervisor: The person who will have day-to-day interaction with the candidate (student) and is immediately responsible for the direction of research. It will be the duty of the supervisor to meet the training needs of the candidate. In the case of candidates who are to be registered for a higher degree, the supervisor(s) will usually be the person(s) recognised by the host university as the higher degree supervisor, and in many cases the supervisor will also be the sponsor. A supervisor will not be eligible to be a sponsor if he or she is unable to give the necessary guarantees listed above. In some cases, this will be because the supervisor does not have an established post or guaranteed tenure in his or her post for the duration of the proposed fellowship. In such cases, the sponsor must be able to guarantee continued supervision of the fellow should the supervisor leave or otherwise be unable to act. The sponsor must either take over the supervision directly or undertake to find another supervisor who is suitable to take over the training of the fellowship applicant (and who is willing to do so).