Nurture research talent

People are the key to Imperial’s success. We attract the best talent and offer opportunities and support to our community at all levels of academic pursuit.

We develop and support researchers at every level. The College’s Learning and Teaching Strategy aims to engage all undergraduates in active research experience as part of their degree. The Graduate School, the Postdoc and Fellows Development Centre, and the support our research community in their professional development, alongside the research and funding support provided at both faculty and College level.

We believe our diversity of thought and culture contributes to our ability to solve complex challenges. Equality of opportunity is absolutely essential to achieve excellence. We want to remove barriers, eliminate discrimination and make sure everyone has the opportunity to develop their potential to the full. Our Equality, diversity and inclusion Centre and Strategy provide support to promote those values throughout the College.

The College was a founder member of the Athena SWAN Charter in 2005, which aims to encourage and recognise commitment to advancing the careers of women in higher education and research. We hold an institutional silver level award and are working towards achieving gold level awards at departmental and institutional level.

We greatly value our talented researchers, and recognise that they are fundamental to our ability to develop and deliver world class research.

Funding opportunities

The College provides opportunities and funding to researchers at the start of their career and at critical moments in their professional development:

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Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme (UROP)

Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme (UROP) gives undergraduates the opportunity to experience the academic research environment and be supervised by a member of Imperial academic staff during their placement. Since 1980, UROP has furthered the ambitions of over 7,000 students through the management of research experiences within Imperial.

President’s PhD Scholarships

The President's PhD Scholarships scheme provides up to 50 outstanding research students with full tuition fee funding and living cost stipends for PhD study.

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Imperial College Research Fellowships Scheme

Imperial College Research Fellowships allow outstanding early-career scientists to focus on research and establish their scientific independence. The scheme helps researchers to consolidate their standing in the scientific community and make the leap from post doc to permanent lecturer.

Elsie Widdowson Fellowships

The recognises the necessity of a research-only role for academics returning from maternity, adoption and/or shared parental leave. The Award provides central funding for 50 per cent of salary costs for up to 12 months, enabling the academic to concentrate fully on research.