Pre-announcement: MRC New Investigator Research Grant: Applicant-Led

About this grant

Apply for funding to take the next step towards becoming an independent researcher. Your research must be in the remit of the Medical Research Council.

Eligibility requirements

All of the following criteria must be met:

• Must have the skills and experience to 'transition to independence'
• Must have the support of an eligible host research organisation

What the funding covers

• Support for early career researchers transitioning to independence
• Research within MRC remit

How to apply

1. 1Register organisation on UKRI Funding Service (not Je-S)
2. 2Only lead research organisation can submit application
3. 3Check NHS organisation availability early if applicable
4. 4Choose correct grant type: research, new investigator, or partnership
5. 5Select Start application
6. 6Confirm you are project lead
7. 7Sign in or create Funding Service account
8. 8If organisation missing, contact support and allow 10 days for setup
9. 9Create organisation Administration Account if needed
10. 10Answer application questions in text boxes
11. 11Save and return or draft offline and paste later
12. 12Upload documents only where requested
13. 13Review application in read-only mode
14. 14Send to research office for checks
15. 15Research office submits to UKRI
16. 16Ensure hosting and financial eligibility compliance
17. 17Images allowed only for essential visual information
18. 18Each image needs caption or legend
19. 19One image per line
20. 20Images under 5MB in approved formats only
21. 21No text paragraphs or tables in images
22. 22Use references within question word count
23. 23Hyperlinks only for references, not extending application
24. 24Applications must be self-contained
25. 25Generative AI use permitted with caution
26. 26No fixed deadline, applications accepted continuously
27. 27Ignore notional Funding Service closing dates
28. 28Applications cannot be edited after submission
29. 29Rejected or withdrawn applications require new submission
30. 30Sensitive/confidential information sent by email separately
31. 31No institutional matched funding beyond standard 20% FEC
32. 32Direct and in-kind partner contributions encouraged
33. 33Outcomes may be published
34. 34Successful awards may publish personal information on Gateway to Research
35. 35Summary (550 words)
36. 36Provide context
37. 37Describe challenge and impact
38. 38State aims and objectives
39. 39Describe applications and benefits
40. 40Core Team
41. 41List team members with approved roles
42. 42Only one project lead allowed
43. 43Justify team composition
44. 44Keywords (up to five)
45. 45Applicant Fit to Funding Opportunity (250 words)
46. 46Explain eligibility
47. 47Show independence criteria met
48. 48Justify leadership of project
49. 49Vision (550 words)
50. 50State goals
51. 51Demonstrate importance and novelty
52. 52Explain timeliness
53. 53Describe benefits and beneficiaries
54. 54Approach (3300 words)
55. 55Describe methodology
56. 56Address feasibility and risks
57. 57Build on previous work
58. 58Show impact pathway
59. 59Describe environment and facilities
60. 60Include milestones and timeline
61. 61Address diversity and inclusion
62. 62Address sex balance in studies where relevant
63. 63Justify public partnerships if applicable
64. 64Reproducibility and Statistical Design (500 words)
65. 65Sample sizes
66. 66Statistical analyses
67. 67Models used
68. 68Bias mitigation
69. 69Diversity in design
70. 70Data Management and Sharing (1500 words)
71. 71Provide data management plan
72. 72Follow MRC data sharing policy
73. 73Career Development (250 words)
74. 74Show career development benefit
75. 75Support independence
76. 76Plans for future grants and team leadership
77. 77Applicant and Team Capability to Deliver (2000 words)
78. 78Use R4RI format
79. 79Show expertise and leadership
80. 80Include broader contributions
81. 81Research Organisation Support (1000 words)
82. 82Provide institutional support statement
83. 83Describe mentoring, resources and future support
84. 84Project Partners
85. 85Add partner contributions
86. 86Upload support letters
87. 87Project Partners Letters of Support
88. 88Single PDF upload
89. 89Two A4 pages max per partner
90. 90Industry Collaboration Framework (1500 words)
91. 91Complete if industry partners involved
92. 92Address IP, collaboration terms, conflicts
93. 93Trusted Research and Innovation (100 words)
94. 94Address dual use, NSI relevance, export control
95. 95International Collaboration (100 words)
96. 96List countries and collaborators
97. 97Facilities (250 words)
98. 98List required facilities and agreements
99. 99Ethics and Responsible Research and Innovation (500 words)
100. 100Address ethics issues and mitigation
101. 101Genetic and Biological Risk (700 words)
102. 102Describe risks, approvals and mitigation
103. 103Research Involving Animals
104. 104Complete animal template if applicable
105. 105Conducting Research with Animals Overseas (700 words)
106. 106Confirm welfare standards
107. 107Upload checklists if required
108. 108Research Involving Human Participation (700 words)
109. 109Approvals
110. 110Participant justification
111. 111Procedures and impacts
112. 112Research Involving Human Tissues or Samples (700 words)
113. 113Approvals
114. 114Justify use and source
115. 115Resources and Cost Justification (1000 words)
116. 116Justify major resources and costs
117. 117Include staff, equipment, travel, facilities, data, animal costs
118. 118Clinical Research Using NHS Resources (250 words)
119. 119Complete SoECAT if applicable
120. 120Related Applications (500 words)
121. 121Explain links to previous or parallel applications
122. 122Address resubmissions or duplicate submissions

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