Wellcome to Introduce Investigator Awards in Humanities

As some of you long term grant watchers will know, Wellcome introduced 'Investigator Awards' in biomedicine some time ago. These were intended to release excellent researchers from the treadmill of having to reapply for project funding. Instead, Wellcome would identify the 'brightest researchers with the best ideas' and give them enough money to keep them going for some time.

Well, now they're rolling out the Awards to the Medical History and Humanities. They plan a May 2011 launch of the Senior/New Investigator schemes in this area, with a Sept 2nd 2011 first round deadline. They're suggesting that there may not need to be a CV check in these disciplines because they anticipate fewer applications. The Awards must be historically-grounded, and driven by historical methodologies.

Elsewhere, they're hoping to (ahem) 'homogenise' the plethora of smaller grant schemes they have in this area, such as research expenses, travel grants, conferences, symposia etc.

So keep an eye on Wellcome's website, and let me (or, more likely, my colleague Lynne Bennett who deals with the Humanities Faculty) know if you're interested in these awards, and we'll update you when more information is available.

Wellcome Announces Details of its New Awards

Wellcome has given details of its new 'Investigator' Awards, that will replace its current project awards. There'll be two types: New Investigator and Senior Investigator. Both provide £100-£425k per year for up to seven years. For the New Investigator Award you need to have less than five years from appointment to your first academic position.
At the point of application, researchers will no longer be expected to provide a detailed methodological description of how their work will be carried out or a line-by-line budget. The application form will ask researchers to outline their research vision, their approach to answering their key research questions and the approximate costs needed.
They say that they do not intend to make a pre-determined number of Investigator Awards per year. If you're unsuccessful the first time, you can apply again, but only after one year (for new investigators) or two years (for senior investigators). Applicants do not need to be already in position at their host institution, but there does need to be a written guarantee by the host.
The first round of applications for Investigator Awards will open on 1 October 2010, with the first awards due to be made in May 2011.More detail, including FAQs, is available here.