The Wellcome Trust has indicated that it is eager to invest more of its funding into Humanities and Social Sciences, to give researchers in these disciplines the opportunity to apply for large grants spanning long periods of time, in order to develop bold and creative research in these fields.
As a result, the Faculty Research team has devised the below process to support researchers to develop competitive applications to these calls.
The schemes
There are three awards that fall under the Wellcome Discovery Programme:
- Early Career Award - This scheme provides funding for early-career researchers from any discipline who are ready to develop their research identity.
- Career Development Award - This scheme provides funding for mid-career researchers from any discipline who have the potential to be international research leaders.
- Discovery Award - This scheme provides funding for established researchers and teams from any discipline.
All three awards are looking to support bold and creative research ideas that deliver significant shifts in understanding that could improve human life, health and wellbeing. Please see Wellcome’s funding remit here for eligibility information for these schemes.
Internal HSS Support Process
Given the competitive nature of this scheme, the HSS Faculty has put in place an internal support process for potential candidates.
Early Career Award
February 2025 round
| Date | Activity |
|---|---|
|
Monday 11 November 5pm 2024 |
Interested applicants to send a short Intention to Submit to hssrke@liverpool.ac.uk This is for administrative and planning purposes only (not assessed) and should include: Name and Department of applicant Brief summary of your project idea (no more than 100 words) |
|
Monday 25 November 5pm 2024 |
Candidates to send the latest draft of their Expression of Interest for peer review to the Faculty R&I Team (hssrke@liverpool.ac.uk) and cc in their School Research Team. This should be completed on pro-forma (template available on the Faculty website). Feedback can be expected by 12 December. |
| Thursday 9 January 2025 5pm |
Candidates to send the latest draft of their full application to both the Faculty R&I Team (hssrke@liverpool.ac.uk) and their School Research Team for individual peer review. Faculty will coordinate funder-specific peer review while Schools will coordinate discipline-specific peer review. Sponsors for award must also submit draft statements as part of full applications by this date. Feedback can be expected by Thursday 23 January. |
| Thursday 20 February 5pm 2025 | Applicants to submit full application (internal deadline) |
| Tuesday 25 February 5pm 2025 | Wellcome Trust deadline for submission (external) |
| April 2025 | Wellcome Trust Shortlisting |
| 15-17 July 2025 | Interviews Early Career Award |
Career Development and Discovery Awards
April 2025 rounds
| Date | Activity |
|---|---|
| Monday 2 December 2024 5pm |
Interested applicants to send a short Intention to Submit to hssrke@liverpool.ac.uk This is for administrative and planning purposes only (not assessed) and should include: Name and Department of applicant Brief summary of your project idea (no more than 100 words) |
|
Monday 16 December 2024 5pm |
Candidates to send the latest draft of their Expression of Interest for peer review to the Faculty R&I Team (hssrke@liverpool.ac.uk) and cc in their School Research Team. This should be completed on pro-forma (template available on the Faculty website). Feedback can be expected by 20 January (extended to accommodate University Christmas closure). |
| Monday 17 February 2025 5pm |
Candidates to send the latest draft of their full application to both the Faculty R&I Team (hssrke@liverpool.ac.uk) and their School Research Team for individual peer review. Faculty will coordinate funder-specific peer review while Schools will coordinate discipline-specific peer review. Sponsors for Career Development award must also submit draft statements as part of full applications by this date. Feedback can be expected by Monday 3 March. |
| Monday 31 March 2025 5pm | Career Development Award – Applicants to submit full application (internal deadline) |
| Thursday 3 April 2025 5pm | Wellcome Trust deadline for Career Development Award submission (external) |
| Thursday 3 April 2025 5pm | Discovery Award – Applicants to submit full application (internal deadline) |
|
Tuesday 8 April 2025 5pm |
Wellcome Trust deadline for Discovery Award submission (external) |
| June 2025 | Wellcome Trust shortlisting for Career Development and Discovery Awards (external) |
| 2-4 September 2025 | Wellcome Trust interviews for Career Development and Discovery Awards (external) |
Any queries?
If you have any questions regarding this process relating to your School or Department, please contact your School Research Team who will be able to further advise:
- School of the Arts – Please contact sotares@liverpool.ac.uk
- School of Histories, Languages and Cultures – Please contact hlcrsrch@liverpool.ac.uk
- School of Law and Social Justice – Please contact SLSJRI@liverpool.ac.uk
- Management School – Please contact ulmsfund@liverpool.ac.uk
If you have questions about this process at Faculty level please contact the Faculty Research & Impact Team at hssrke@liverpool.ac.uk.