Career Development Fellowships 2026

Open: 19 February 2025

Deadline: 16:00 on Wednesday 21 May 2025

Funding decision: March 2026 

Maximum duration: Five years 

Contact: Julie Marsden at awards@versusarthritis.org 

What do career development fellowships provide?

Our enhanced career development fellowship aims to attract and retain talented medical, veterinary, nurse and allied health professional or science graduates committed to a research career in any discipline relevant to arthritis and related musculoskeletal diseases and provide them with the opportunity to develop an independent research career and progress towards higher-level appointments.

Who can apply for career development fellowships?

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria to apply for the Career Development Fellowship:

  • have a PhD (or equivalent)  
  • not hold an established (tenured) academic post 
  • Be based and associated with an established sponsor in a UK university, hospital, or research institute  
  • be able to demonstrate that their skills and experience match those of the transition to independence career stage by:  
  • showing productivity across past appointments through a track record of challenging, original, and productive research in their area, as well as an upward trajectory   
  • demonstrate clear plans to establish their own research niche  
  • be able to describe how a fellowship will help the applicant move to the next level in their career through a change in their current role  
  • be able to demonstrate a commitment from their host institution towards supporting their future trajectory. 

Some of the types of commitment that we will accept are the following:

  • A financial contribution towards the fellow’s salary costs, equipment, expenses or animal costs 
  • Provide an additional member of staff or PhD studentship 
  • A commitment that the fellow will move into a tenure track post either during or at the conclusion of the fellowship. 

Projects must demonstrate a clear relevance to the aims of Versus Arthritis. Our Research Strategy can be found here

What can you apply for?

The scheme will offer up to 5 years full-time funding. Costs for a PhD student, research technician or research assistant may also be requested depending on the funding model requested. The overall costs must not exceed £750,000.

The Fellowship can be held on a part-time basis. 

Salaries 

For basic science graduates, veterinary, nurse and allied health professionals up to 100% of the applicant’s salary costs can be requested according to experience on the appropriate scientific or clinical salary scale, including London weighting if relevant. However, we will only allow for up to 20% of the fellow’s time to be spent on non-research activities such as teaching or clinical activities.

For medically or surgically qualified individuals that are practicing medicine, two models of funding are available:

  • 60% of the applicant’s salary costs can be requested according to experience on the appropriate clinical salary scale, including London weighting if relevant. The applicant would only be expected to work on the fellowship at 0.6FTE.   
  • up to 100% of the applicant’s salary costs can be requested according to experience on the appropriate clinical salary scale, including London weighting if relevant. However, the costs for a PhD student or research technician or assistant cannot be requested and we will only allow for up to 20% of the fellow’s time to spent on non-research activities such as teaching or clinical activities. 

PhD studentships up to 4 years in duration and the following costs can be requested:

  • UK Tuition fees  
  • Tax-free incremental stipend at Versus Arthritis rates  
  • Running costs of £10,000 per year for the first 3 years and £7,500 in year 4 

Expenses 

You are permitted to apply for reasonable research expenses directly related to your proposal, including:

  • Consumables small pieces of equipment (up to £30,000 in value) 
  • purchase and maintenance of laboratory animals (see below) 
  • travel to a collaborating institution. 

How to apply

All applications must be submitted through our grants management system, Grant Tracker. 

The fellowship application is a one-stage process, a full application should be submitted by the deadline. 

As part of the application you will be asked to complete a short scientific summary which will be used by the fellowship funding panel for the purposes of triage. 

If you are applying for a fellowship with a PhD studentship rather than a research technician or assistant, you will need to provide details of an independent PhD project proposal and training plan which complements the fellowship project. Information on completing the PhD student section can be found within the online application form. 

How career development fellowships are awarded

There are four stages to the assessment process:

  • Triage: Only the scientific summary, applicant CV and lay summary of each application are assessed by the fellowship funding panel. Applicants will be informed at an early stage if their proposal has been triaged and all other applications will undergo full peer review. 
  • Peer review: the applications of those successful at triage are sent for lay review and external peer review by experts in the field of the proposal. 
  • Shortlisting: all sections of the applications including the peer reviews are assessed by the fellowship funding panel. Shortlisted applicants are invited to attend interview. 
  • Interview: the fellowship awarding panel interview the shortlisted applicants and make recommendations for funding. 

Successful applicants to this scheme requiring a visa are eligible to apply for a Global Talent visa under the fast-track process of endorsement. 

The deadline for submission of applications is 16:00 – this deadline relates to the time Versus Arthritis receives the application NOT to the time you press submit. When you press submit an automated email will be sent firstly to your finance officer for approval and once they have approved the application a second email will be sent to your Head of Department. It is only upon your Head of Department’s approval that the application is finally submitted to Versus Arthritis 

1.Our career development fellowship guidance document 

2.Our applying for a fellowship webpages which includes details on costing your Fellowship and our flexible working policy