__NOTOC__ The Royal Society University Research Fellowship (URF) is a research fellowship awarded to outstanding early career scientists in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

who are judged by the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

to have the potential to become leaders in their field."University Research Fellowship"
Royal Society The research fellowship funds all areas of research in

natural science Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

including

life sciences This list of life sciences comprises the branches of science that involve the scientific study of life – such as microorganisms, plants, and animals including human beings. This science is one of the two major branches of natural science, th ...

physical science Physical science is a branch of natural science that studies non-living systems, in contrast to life science. It in turn has many branches, each referred to as a "physical science", together called the "physical sciences". Definition Phys ...

s and

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

, but excluding

clinical medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practice ...

. The URF scheme provides the opportunity for fellows to build an independent career in

scientific research The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientific m ...

. Fellows are expected to be strong candidates for permanent faculty posts and

academic tenure Tenure is a category of academic appointment existing in some countries. A tenured post is an indefinite academic appointment that can be terminated only for cause or under extraordinary circumstances, such as financial exigency or program disco ...

in universities at the end of their fellowships. , the fellowship funds up to 80% of basic salary costs for the awardee, with the other 20% usually provided by the University hosting the fellow. Fellowships are awarded annually. In 2016, there were 25 universities across the UK and Ireland hosting 44 newly appointed University Research Fellowships. In 2015, the success rate of applications was 8%.

Notable fellows

, examples of current and former Fellows include: * Frances Ashcroft (1985–1990), Oxford * Terri Attwood, University College London (1993-1999)

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The university owns and operates majo ...

1999-2002 * Jean Beggs * Sarah-Jayne Blakemore (2007–2013),

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

Richard Borcherds Richard Ewen Borcherds (; born 29 November 1959) is a British mathematician currently working in quantum field theory. He is known for his work in lattices, group theory, and infinite-dimensional algebras, for which he was awarded the Fields Me ...

* Sarah Bridle (2008–2012), University of Manchester * Brian Cox (2005–2013), University of Manchester * Gideon Davies (1996–2005),

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for post-nominals) is a collegiate research university, located in the city of York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thirty departments and centres, co ...

* Athene Donald (1983),

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

* Rafal E. Dunin-Borkowski (2000-2007),

* David Jones (1995–1999),

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

Andrew P. Mackenzie Andrew Peter Mackenzie (born 1964) is a director of Physics of Quantum Materials at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids in Dresden, Germany and Professor of Condensed Matter Physics at the University of St Andrews, Scotla ...

(1993–2001)

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

* Zita Martins (2014–2017),

Imperial College London Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...

* Shahn Majid (1993-2003), * John Pethica * Tanya Monro (2000-2005), for research at the

University of Southampton , mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour , type = Public research university , established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...

* Tom Sanders (2016-2019),

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

Suzie Sheehy Suzanne Lyn Sheehy is an Australian accelerator physicist who runs research groups at the universities of Oxford and Melbourne, where she is developing new particle accelerators for applications in medicine. Early life and education Sheehy ...

(2017 - ) for research at the University of Oxford *

Nigel Scrutton Nigel Shaun Scrutton (born 2 April 1964) is a British biochemist and biotechnology innovator known for his work on enzyme catalysis, biophysics and synthetic biology. He is Director of the UK Future Biomanufacturing Research Hub, Director of the ...

(1991-1999) for research at

and

University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_lab ...

* Beth Shapiro (2006-2007),

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

* Stephen Warren, * David J. Wales (1991-1998), University of Cambridge One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from the royalsociety.org website where: * Kathy Willis *

Tara Shears Tara Georgina Shears (born 1969) is a Professor of Physics at the University of Liverpool. Early life Shears was born in Salisbury in Wiltshire. She remained in Wiltshire, living in Wootton Rivers and attending the co-educational comprehensive ...

(2000-2008)

References

{{authority control Fellowships Innovation in the United Kingdom Research and development in the United Kingdom Royal Society Universities in the United Kingdom