Funding

NIHR Bursary for Academic Trainees (NIHR BAT)

Bursary Overview:

This bursary supports current NIHR-funded Academic Clinical Fellows (ACFs) and Clinical Lecturers (CLs) in attending conferences, workshops, research visits, and short courses related to their academic clinical training. It covers costs such as travel, registration, and hotels (excluding those rated 4 stars or above) but does not cover food, catering, or journal/publication fees. Applicants are required to choose the most cost-effective travel options, and air travel should be booked in advance, with economy class being the standard for most cases. All expenses must comply with Imperial College London’s expense policy, and where possible, applicants should share costs with others. This bursary is operated on a reimbursement basis and is paid directly into the trainee's bank account via the Imperial College expense department through the submission of receipts.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Current IAT Imperial NIHR ACFs and CLs are eligible to apply.
• £1,000 is available per person, per financial year (guide yearly spend).
• ACFs can apply for a maximum of £3,000 over the duration of their post.
• CLs can apply for a maximum of £4,000 over the duration of their post.
• Applicants are advised to plan ahead and apply early for the bursary to ensure maximum benefit from the funding. This funding is not available to trainees/researchers beyond the end of their ACF/CL post and CATO reserves the right to refuse bursary applications made 3 months or less prior to the end of the post, as there is little chance of fully spending or utilising the funds in a meaningful way.

Application Process:

To apply for the bursary, trainees must provide a proof of purchase in the form of a receipt; unpaid invoices, statements, or booking confirmations are not acceptable. All applicants must follow Imperial College London’s expense policy. If you need to check your available funding balance, please contact the CATO Team, cato@imperial.ac.uk.

ACF

• Complete the ACF NIHR BAT bursary form
• Upload copy of receipts preferably in PDF or JPEG formats, showing proof that you have purchased your conference registration fees, flights etc.
• Upload a completed Expenses Claim Form. A copy of the Expense Claim Form (E1) for non-employees (Excel) can be accessed and downloaded from the Imperial College Finance website. If you are on Imperial College Payroll, please submit the bursary application as usual and contact CATO for further instructions.
• The submitted application will then be reviewed and processed. You will receive a notification email once the bursary application is approved and sent for reimbursement.

CL

• Complete the CLs NIHR BAT bursary form
• Upload copies of receipts, preferably in good quality PDF or JPEG formats, as proof of payment for your conference registration fees, flights, etc.
• The submitted application will then be reviewed and processed.
• Once your bursary application is approved, you will receive a notification email from CATO, which will include the Cost Centre and Activity Code for your "MyExpenses" claim. Since CLs are employed by the University, you will be refunded via payroll and need to submit an expense claim using these codes to be reimbursed.

The NIHR Imperial BRC funding (research consumables)

Bursary Overview:

The NIHR Imperial BRC funding supports the purchase of non-animal experiments / research consumables during academic training posts. This bursary does not operate on a reimbursement basis. The funding amount maximums are as follows:

• £1,000 for Imperial Specialised Foundation Trainees
• £2,000 for NIHR Funded Academic Clinical Fellows in Integrated Academic Training Pathway
• £4,000 for NIHR Funded Clinical Lecturers in Integrated Academic Training Pathway

The funding is designated specifically for research consumables and is awarded prospectively (i.e., applications must be made before any expenses are incurred). Retrospective applications will not be approved. Once approved, funds are transferred into an 'N account' (research account), managed by the Imperial College Faculty of Medicine finance team, and consumables can be purchased through the Imperial College purchasing system using the provided N account details. Bursary recipients must acknowledge NIHR Imperial BRC infrastructure support in any relevant publications.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicants must be Imperial College Specialised Foundation Trainees (SFT), Academic Clinical Fellows (ACF), or Clinical Lecturers (CL) in NIHR-funded posts.
• The funding does not cover animal experiments, animal research consumables, course or conference fees, journal fees, or publication costs.
• For those working with large data sets (e.g., Public Health), it is advised to consult CATO to determine what qualifies as "consumables."
• Clinical Lecturers are also encouraged to apply for the Starter Grant from the Academy of Medical Sciences (AOMS), which offers up to £30,000 over 1-2 years for research consumables. Applicants for the BRC bursary will be asked if they have applied for this grant as part of the bursary application process.

Application Process:

To apply for BRC funding, complete the application form before incurring any expenses. Please provide detailed costs for each consumable/item in your application.

Important notes:

• Apply early in the financial year, as funds are limited.
• Contact your research supervisor to obtain your Departmental cost centre code  [This is a 4 or 5 character code starting with W]
• Bursary funding is not available beyond the end of your post or fellowship. Applications made within 3 months of your post’s end may be declined if there is insufficient time to utilise the funds.
• The application process typically takes about four weeks. During busy periods, this processing time may vary. Please bear in mind that incomplete forms will result in delays.
• If awarded the bursary, it is imperative that recipients acknowledge NIHR Imperial BRC infrastructure support in any relevant publications.

For advice on eligible consumables or to apply for funding, please email cato@imperial.ac.uk.

NIHR Research Training Programme Award (RTPA) - ACF only

Bursary Overview:

This funding is available to support the cost of attending Masters level courses /modules, and research or academic training-related workshops for current Imperial Academic Clinical Fellows (ACFs) at Imperial College London. The bursary is available to enhance research skills and operates on a reimbursement basis. Trainees are required to pay the course fee upfront, and the approved bursary will be reimbursed directly into the trainee's bank account through the Imperial College expenses Team upon submission of receipts.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Only current IAT Imperial NIHR ACFs are eligible to apply.
• This funding is not available to trainees/researchers beyond the end of their post/fellowship and CATO reserves the right to refuse bursary applications made 3 months or less prior to the end of the post, as there is little chance of fully spending or utilising the funds in a meaningful way.
• Current ACFs may apply for bursary funding retrospectively, provided that a course cost/fee falls within the last 12 months only.
• As of 1 August 2024, ACF can apply for up to £6,000 throughout their post. This maximum amount comprises £4,500 from NIHR and an additional £1,500 limited top-up amount from CATO. This CATO uplift introduced on 6 May 2022 is a local Imperial College initiative for an initial pilot period of 3 years. Applicants are strongly encouraged to plan ahead and apply asap to avoid disappointment since the CATO uplift top-up funding of £1,500 is limited and not guaranteed.
• The bursary is applicable for full MSc/Diploma courses or individual modules related to research training and is not intended for clinical training. Relevant subjects would include:

Note: PhD and MBA course fees are not eligible.

• The funding can cover course fees, UK travel/transport, and accommodation costs.
• Exclusions: Food /catering, 4-star (or higher) hotel costs, clinical specialty training courses

• Trainees claiming through these bursary funds will be expected to provide proof of completion of the funded course(s). Those who fail to complete the funded course may be asked to return the bursary funding.

Important notice: Courses related to your Clinical Specialty Training

CATO administers bursaries solely for Academic Clinical Training. For Clinical Specialty Training, trainees should apply for study leave funding through the budget provided by the Trust where they were employed prior to starting their research block. Applications should follow the guidelines of each individual Trust. Please contact the Postgraduate Medical Education team at your Trust for further details.

Application Process:

Decision in Principle (DiP):

• Before booking or paying for a course, you have the option to email the CATO Team cato@imperial.ac.uk with details of the course, how it supports their development, and the cost.

Reimbursement Process:

Once you are comfortable that you and the course you plan to attend meet the eligibility criteria and have successfully obtained a DiP approval from CATO you are can go ahead and apply for the bursary.

• Complete an online bursary application form and upload copy of receipts preferably in PDF or JPEG formats, showing proof that you have purchased a place on the course. If possible, include proof of course completion when requesting reimbursement.
• You can make a bursary application once you have a proof of purchase “receipt”, unpaid invoice statements are not acceptable.
• Upload a completed Expenses Claim Form into the bursary application form. A copy of the Expense Claim Form (E1) for non-employees excel) can be accessed and downloaded from the Imperial College Finance website. If you are on Imperial College Payroll, please submit the bursary application without the expense form and contact CATO Team for further instructions.
• The submitted application will then be reviewed and processed. You will receive a notification email once the bursary application is approved and sent for reimbursement.
• Any bursary and funding forms that are not completed correctly will be subject to delays. Expect a processing time of approximately four weeks, though it may vary during busy periods.

Research Skills Short Courses Bursary

Bursary Overview:

This new bursary is open to Imperial College AHSC* clinical staff of all professions who are looking to develop research skills and careers. This scheme has been designed to support clinical staff to develop a specific academic/ personal skill which will help them to develop in their clinical academic career.

This bursary is not open to:

• NIHR and locally funded ACFs.
• Clinical academics employed by or undertaking a PhD at an Imperial College AHSC organisation.
• Clinical Consultants employed by Imperial College AHSC organisations.
• Clinical Research Practitioners.

Examples of types of research training this bursary will cover include:

• Methodological frameworks inc systematic reviews, questionnaires, online surveys
• Robust research methods
• Health economic evaluation
• Statistics
• Machine learning
• Bioinformatics
• Qualitative analysis
• Data analytics
• Ethics
• Public Involvement & Engagement / Patient Experience (but first see available training in the Imperial PERC)
• Core aspects of management and leadership relevant to research career

Other areas will also be considered - providing they fit with the aims of the bursary.

Applicants can claim up to £500 towards course fee costs. Bursaries are available on a first-come-first-served basis and applicants are advised to apply early to avoid disappointment.

Before starting your application, we strongly advise that you read and understand the eligibility criteria listed below, to ensure you are eligible for the bursary.

Please note this is a pilot bursary and only available for a limited time.

Details and Eligibility

This bursary is not open to:

• NIHR and locally funded ACFs.
• Clinical academics employed by or undertaking a PhD at an Imperial College AHSC organisation.
• Clinical Consultants employed by Imperial College AHSC organisations.
• Clinical Research Practitioners.

Eligibility for the bursary is limited to:

• Imperial College Specialised/Academic Foundation Trainees in the North West London Foundation School (during the course of their 2 year AFT/SFT post).
• NIHR-funded Imperial IAT Clinical Lecturers (CLs).
• Doctors in Training at ICHT, RMH and C&W linked Trusts.
• NMAHPPs (Nurses, Midwives, Allied Health Professions, Healthcare Scientists, Pharmacy staff & Psychologists) in ICHT, RMH and C&W linked Trusts at all levels below Consultant looking to develop research skills and careers.
• Clinical academics/researchers of all clinical professions below Consultant level undertaking research Fellowships across the AHSC if funding for such training is not available from their research funder.

Pre- and Post-Doctoral awardees who are in receipt of IHC/BRC Research Fellowships should use the top-up funding bursary as their first port of call. Only in very exceptional cases would they be eligible to apply for this bursary in addition. Any applicants who fall into this category (i.e. anyone who has used all of their £3000 top-up and requires extra funding for a course) should contact cato@imperial.ac.uk before applying.

Bursary Details:

• The bursary provides funding towards the cost of course fees which help to develop specific academic/personal skills required for clinical academic careers. This bursary is not for the development of clinical skills/training.
• The bursary operates on a reimbursement basis. Applicants book and purchase the course place themselves ‘up front’ and then once approved applicants are reimbursed directly into their bank account via the Imperial College expense department. This method is different to usual Trust purchasing mechanisms.
• The bursary will support course fee costs up to a maximum of £500 per applicant. If the course costs more than £500, the applicant is required to fund any remaining costs themselves.

Decision in Principle (DiP):

• Before booking and paying for a place on a course, applicants have the option to ask for a ‘decision in principle’ if they prefer to have confirmation of support before incurring any expenses.
• To obtain a decision in principle the applicant should email the CATO team with the details of what bursary they are applying for, what the course they want to attend is, how it will help them to develop a specific academic/personal skill needed to develop their clinical academic career path and how much the course costs.

Application process

Once you are comfortable that you and the course you plan to attend meet the eligibility criteria you are able to apply for the bursary.

• Applicants should complete an online bursary application form and upload scans of receipts showing proof that they have purchased a place on the course.
• Those not on the Imperial College London Payroll will need to upload a completed Expenses Claim Form. A copy of the claim form can be accessed and downloaded within the bursary application form.
• The submitted application will then be reviewed, along with your letter of support (details below) by the CATO Team. Your application will not be considered without a letter of support.
• Within the application form, you will be asked to state which of the Imperial College AHSC Clinical Research Training Framework competencies you will fulfill by attending this course. We therefore recommend downloading and reading this in advance of applying.

In addition to your application, you will need to provide a letter of support from a recognised clinical academic supervisor/mentor. All supporting letters should be emailed directly from your research supervisor/mentor to the CATO team - cato@imperial.ac.uk:

• If you are an applicant who is not currently undertaking a research fellowship, you will need to submit a letter of support written by a recognised clinical academic supervisor/mentor, evidencing your research commitment and outlining why these skills are needed. 

• If you are an applicant who is currently undertaking a research fellowship, you will need to submit a letter of support written by a recognised clinical academic supervisor/mentor, outlining the need for this training and that funding for this course is not available via the research funder. 

CATO Connect Grant

for AHSC clinical academic trainees/clinical researchers and Academic Training Leads/others supporting academic careers (Doctors and NMAHPPs)

About this bursary

We know that different groups (academic trainees, clinical researchers, clinical PhD students, programme leads etc) within the clinical academic/research community often have bright ideas about how we can do things better, or how to improve support for colleagues. The CATO Connect grant offers up to £1,000 to help implement new ideas which support clinical academic trainees, programmes, and research active healthcare professionals.  Connect grants are available to enhance academic training programmes and activities for trainees/researchers, support cohort building, promote engagement amongst potential clinical academics, and to support with wider recruitment activities into academic programmes and activities. Connect grants are also available to those with oversight for supporting and developing clinical academics within the Imperial College Academic Health Science Centre**, where no other funding is available.

What this fund could be used for:
Suggestions will be considered, providing the activity proposed positively supports the experience/career development for clinical academic trainees/researchers, or takes forward aims to enhance or develop clinical academic careers and programmes across the Imperial College AHSC. 

Through the Connect grant we are keen to enable the clinical academic research community to build an inclusive culture, enhance experiences, stimulate stronger connections, provide mutual support and boost clinical academic programmes across the AHSC.   Examples of Connect grant proposals might include:

• Networking/connection events for specific groups, e.g. venue/catering costs for an event bringing together Black, Asian & ethnic minority *NMAHPP clinical researchers, or a series of meetings bringing together all female Clinical Lecturers as a support network.

• Promotion events/activities to raise awareness of clinical academic opportunities at the Imperial College AHSC, e.g. publicity costs/venue charges for open day to showcase academic training and research opportunities in a clinical profession.

• Welcome/induction/cohort activities, e.g. venue charges for bringing together all ACFs/CLs in a particular specialty eg, all General Practice academic trainees.

• Development sessions/activities for a specific group or cohort, e.g. facilitation & venue charges for group networking sessions for Nurses or Occupational Therapists, or venue/catering charges for trainees in a clinical profession to do some peer group work around drafting fellowship applications.

 What this fund cannot be used for:

• This fund is not for research costs (including equipment, infrastructure, estates) for a specific individual or research area – it is to support clinical academic trainees, clinical researchers and programmes more widely, across any clinical healthcare profession.

• The funding is to support and benefit a group or cohort – not for lone individuals

• This fund is not for the development of clinical skills/training.

• This fund is also not for purely social activities – e.g; Christmas parties! Although cohort building and social activities can form part of the activity being supported.

This Connect grant scheme is available for a 2-year trial period in the first instance, from March 2023.  Funding will be available on a first-come, first-served basis, applicants are advised to apply early to avoid disappointment since funds are limited. Further details about the application process are provided below.

*NMAHPPs (Nurses, Midwives, Allied Health Professions, Healthcare Scientists, Pharmacy staff & Psychologists)

** Imperial College Academic Health Science Centre, AHSC:   Imperial College London, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, The Institute of Cancer Research, Chelsea & Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

Details and Eligibility

Bursary Details

• This one-off funding supports costs usually up to a maximum of £1000 per applicant/proposal/initiative during the trial period.

• The funding is to support a group or cohort – not to support lone individuals.

• Applicants, on behalf of their group, will propose the activity to be supported and organise activities themselves.

• Where applicable applicants will be expected to open the proposed activity up as wide as possible across the Imperial College AHSC partner organisations. In some circumstances it may be possible to use Connect grant funding to support wider pan-London activities, in these instances applicants should email cato@imperial.ac.uk for a decision in principle before filling out the Connect application form.

• The funding will usually operate through a recharge basis ie, once Connect funding has been approved applicants will be advised the Imperial College account code to charge the approved costs to. All charges/expenses will need to comply with Imperial College expenses policy and purchasing guidelines.  (Alternatives will be available for non-College based staff where it is not possible to use College finance processes.)

• Successful grant recipients must acknowledge this CATO funding in their promotions/communications for the project. Additionally, please keep records of the activities delivered and funding used. At the end of the award period, we ask that you provide a brief report describing the aim and impact of the funding received.

Eligibility

Eligibility for the Connect grant is restricted to the Imperial College AHSC groups below, where no other funding is available:

• Medical clinical academic trainees: SFT, ACF, CL

• Clinicians in other research fellowships – e.g, pre-doc awards, post-doc awards, intermediate fellowships - Medical and NMAHPP

• Established research active clinicians not in formal fellowships – Medical and NMAHPP

• Clinical PhD fellows – Medical and NMAHPP

CATO reserves the right to refuse any applications deemed to be ineligible, unsuitable or to fall outside the scope and spirit of the Connect grant. Those with oversight for supporting and developing clinical academics/researchers: eg Academic Training/Research Leads

Before looking to apply to the Connect grant all applicants/groups should consider and fully explore alternative options and must confirm that all available avenues have been fully exhausted.

Application process

• Applicants should complete an online bursary application form to apply for funding.

• The submitted application will then be reviewed by the CATO Team.

• If the CATO team approves the funding, details will then be shared with you about how to access the requested funds.

• Please await confirmation of funding before committing to any spend.

If you have any questions please contact the CATO team: CATO@imperial.ac.uk

NHSE Master’s in Genomic Medicine

This framework programme is designed to give healthcare professionals a comprehensive, multidisciplinary understanding of genomics and its applications in healthcare.

This flexible programme offers various qualification options, including individual CPPD (continued personal and professional development) modules, a postgraduate certificate or diploma, or a full Master’s degree.

NHS professionals can apply for course funding. Funding is currently available for standalone CPPD modules up to March 2025. For more information, please see the ‘Funding rules’ section of your chosen module(s).

You can learn more about the scheme, and details on how to apply, on the NHSE Genomics Medicine website.

Starter Grants for Clinical Lecturers  

Grants extend up to £30,000 to cover the cost of research consumables. The grants allow research-active Clinical Lecturers to gather data to strengthen their bids for longer-term fellowships and funding.

Starter Grants Timeline

The above diagram illustrates the application process for the two rounds of the Starter Grants award and provides rough dates for each stage. Please note that these dates are to serve as a guide only and can be subject to change. 

Further details are on the Academy of Medical Sciences starter grants for Clinical Lecturers webpage.

Charity Research Fellowships for Doctors and Healthcare Professionals:

The Imperial Health Charity and Imperial BRC Research Fellowship Programme provides ‘first-step funding’ for Doctors and Healthcare Professionals looking to begin their academic career. The key aim of the programme is to allow Health Professionals to undertake 12 months of research to develop their research skills and identify an important research question that will make an impact on patient care within the Trust, surrounding communities and the wider NHS. This will then allow successful candidates to springboard onto successful funding bids for further study.

The Pre-doctoral scheme is open to all Health Professionals (Doctors and Healthcare professionals e.g. Nurse, Midwife, AHP, Pharmacist, Clinical Psychologist). The Post-doctoral scheme is open to Non-Medical Healthcare Professionals only.

For the avoidance of doubt Non-Medical candidates include Nurses, Midwives, Allied Health Professionals, Pharmacists, Research Practitioners, Psychologists, and Healthcare Scientists. If you have queries regarding your eligibility please do not hesitate to enquire.

The Fellowship provides funding for an individual’s salary for 12 months and related research expenses. Funding has historically been capped at a maximum award of £65,000, however, this cap has now being raised to a maximum of £85,000 where necessary upon prior discussion with the Charity. Please note back-fill for your role or out of programme requests need to be arranged in order for you to undertake the fellowship.

The application process runs annually, opening in early October and closing in mid January.  Further information and the application dates for this year can be found on the Imperial charity website.

To support additional costs relating to research fellowships not explicitly covered by the charity/BRC grant, a top up fund has been made available for fellows who receive their award from 2020 onwards (not available to previous awardees). Funding is available for both Pre- and Post-Doctoral awardees, Doctors and NMAHPPs (Nurses, Midwives, Allied Health Professionals, Healthcare Scientists, Pharmacy Staff and Psychologists) in receipt of IHC/BRC Research Fellowships only.

Applicants must demonstrate that they have fully utilised/exhausted options with their Charity/BRC award before looking to apply for funds through the Top Up fund. The bursary is available for up to £3,000 per person, for the duration of the award. The Imperial Health Charity will be managing the requests for this fund, please contact the Charity for further information and to discuss (grants@imperialcharity.org.uk).

 Potential research-related expenses covered by the bursary include:

• Research consumables
• Research Training costs
• Open access publication costs
• Publication costs, journals etc..
• Library Fees

This Bursary scheme is for ICHT Doctors and NMAHPPs (Nurses, Midwives, Allied Health Professionals, Healthcare Scientists, Pharmacy Staff and Psychologists) on Imperial Health Charity/NIHR Imperial BRC funded research fellowships. Available to Imperial College Healthcare Trust staff undertaking IHC/BRC funded research fellowships, this bursary can provide funding for the purchase of software programmes/licences required to undertake research projects (i.e, SPSS, NVIVO and EndNote). 

This bursary scheme is administered by the CATO Team. Bursaries will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Applicants are advised to apply early to avoid disappointment since funds are limited.

Further details please visit the bursary and funding page for further information. For queries please contact cato@imperial.ac.uk.