Managed External Calls

Leverhulme Centenary Doctoral Scholarships (internal deadline 19 November)

The Leverhulme Trust will open the next round of its Centenary Doctoral Scholarships programme on Monday 3 November 2025, offering up to £5 million to fund 30 interdisciplinary doctoral scholarships. The call will close in March 2026. Full details are available on the Leverhulme Trust website.

Internal Selection Process

Imperial may only submit one application as lead institution. Each department may nominate one proposal for internal shortlisting, submitted via the attached template to researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk by the Director of Postgraduate Studies or delegate.

Key Dates

• Wednesday 19 November 2025 – Internal submission deadline
• Monday 1 December 2025 – Review and selection by Research Advisory Group
• Post-1 December 2025 – Outcomes shared with departments
• December 2025 – March 2026 – Final proposal preparation and institutional approvals
• March 2026 – Leverhulme submission deadline

For queries, please contact Suzanne Husein or your Director of Postgraduate Studies (or delegate).

NERC - Artificial Intelligence for environmental science (internal deadline 3 November)

NERC has announced an AI-focused call:  Artificial intelligence for environmental science (closes 11 December).

The call aims to fund bold, ambitious projects that accelerate the development of leading-edge data science tools and AI to help deliver transformative solutions to the intractable environmental challenges of today and the future. This call is for phase one of a two-phased programme, which will support relatively small ‘pump-priming’ activities, with high levels of innovation, adventure, and risk. Awards are expected to be in the range of £200K-£400K for 18 months. Phase two support will be awarded to the most successful teams in phase one.

This call has a limit of four applications per institution as lead and therefore an internal demand management process is required.

Internal process

Individuals wishing to submit to this call must complete the internal NERC AI selection form (please refer to the NERC guidance regarding what to include in each section) and submit to researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk by midday Monday 3 November. This form is a reduced version of the NERC requirements.

There will be an internal panel that will meet on 11 November, with decisions communicated by the end of that week following Research Advisory Group ratification.

Any queries, please contact Dr Louise Sherlock

UKRI - Turing AI Pioneer Interdisciplinary Fellowships: Outline Applications (internal deadline 15 September)

UKRI have announced a call for Turing AI Pioneer Interdisciplinary Fellowships: outline applications: https://www.ukri.org/opportunity/turing-ai-pioneer-interdisciplinary-fellowships-outline-applications/

These fellowships are for established researchers from across UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) remit, without a background in core artificial intelligence (AI) research, who want to build domain relevant AI capability and develop advanced AI approaches to tackle a specific research challenge in their chosen field. Projects are for up to 3 years in duration and a total value up to £2,187,500.

Each organisation can submit up to four proposals and UKRI are to actively use an inclusive approach to selecting and maximising the diversity of the candidates they intend to support. UKRI expects that host organisations consider diversity broadly to include discipline, backgrounds, career paths, thought and approach as well as protected characteristics.

Internal process

Department are permitted to submit up to two applicants to the internal process, but departments are strongly encouraged to ensure that there is diversity across the two applicants that are submitted.

Please also note applicants with a background in core AI research, for example, a researcher from a core AI research discipline, or a researcher who has spent most of their career working on development of frontier AI models, are not eligible to apply for this opportunity.

Departments should submit the following for each of their two applicants:

• A completed Turing AI Fellowships Internal Form (docx)
• A one page document describing the vision and approach

Applications should be sent to researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk by 15 September 2025.

AXA Chair and Fellowship

For further detail contact researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk

There is one opportunity a year to put someone forward for an AXA Chair or Fellowship position (note Fellowship calls are for specific research areas). Imperial is only permitted to submit one candidate per call, and the process is managed centrally. More information about these opportunities can be found on the AXA Chair position webpage or the Fellowships webpage

AXA Chair

2025-26 call OPEN. Internal deadline midday 3 October 2025

The Chair scheme is primarily to attract an individual to Imperial. Departments together with the proposed applicant should complete an AXA Internal Expression of Interest form and send this, with a 3 page CV of the proposed applicant, to researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk by midday 3 October. Within the form, Departments should detail the strategic benefit to Imperial of pursuing an application. Applications must come from the Department, not the applicant. 

The Vice-Provost (Research and Enterprise) will review submissions based on the declared strategic benefit and fit to the scheme. The department of the chosen applicant will be informed of the next steps to continue the process. 

AXA Postdoctoral Fellowship

Spring 2025 call closed. 2026 call expected March/April 2026.

Interested candidates' Departments should initially approach researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk stating the individual that they wish to put forward/attract, how they meet the AXA chosen research area, why AXA is the best route to support them, and the strategic benefit to Imperial of pursuing an application. 

If the Vice-Provost (Research and Enterprise) is convinced AXA is an appropriate fit for the candidate, and Imperial has not met its application limit, the department will be informed of the next steps to continue the process.

NERC 'Pushing the Frontiers of Environmental Science Research' rounds (July and January closing dates)

For further detail contact researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk

In 2015, NERC introduced a Demand Management quota system, whereby institutions whose 6-round success rate for the former Standard Grants (response mode, including New Investigator grants) fell below 20% received a cap on the number of proposals they could submit for that financial year's rounds. For more information view the NERC Demand Management webpage.

Imperial has achieved a success rate above 20% over the grant rounds included the NERC calculations, and therefore will not have an institutional cap imposed for the July 2025 and January 2026 rounds. However, to increase the quality of proposals being submitted to avoid future restriction, an internal review group will continue to aid in the support of bids. Submission to the internal review group therefore remains mandatory.

For further details of how to submit your proposal to the internal NERC Proposals Review Group and the key dates for the next upcoming round, please visit our dedicated NERC Internal Demand Management page.

EPSRC Strategic Equipment Outlines

For further detail please contact Mark Bambury.

EPSRC have relaunched their strategic equipment call as a responsive mode opportunity for which the College is permitted to submit up to 6 applications in the period to 18 June 2026.

Funding is for either:

• purchase and set-up of infrastructure
• resources to support existing infrastructure

The full economic cost (FEC) of your infrastructure must be at least £400,000.

The resources to support existing equipment applications must have a maximum duration of two years.

Interested parties should complete the EPSRC Strategic Equipment Outlines Application Proforma (.docx).

The completed form should be submitted to researchoffice.fundingstrategy@imperial.ac.uk, outlines will be considered at the College’s Research Advisory Group (RAG).

Outlines will be considered three times across 2025/2026 as per the following timetable.

Applications should be submitted to EPSRC no more than four weeks after approval to submit by RAG.

Additional information can be found on the EPSRC Strategic Equipment process webpage

Below are the calls that have been pre-announced and are expected to need management. A process for these calls will be announced as soon as possible.