The Ecology, Evolution, and Ecophysiology Research Clusters within the School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen (Scotland) are pleased to offer an Early Career Recruitment Bursary. We are specifically looking to attract talented early career researchers (ECRs) to enable travel for development of competitive fellowship applications. The University of Aberdeen, founded in 1495, is among the top 1% of oldest Universities worldwide, boasting excellence in environmental research and a location rich in cultural heritage and natural beauty.
What we are offering: We are offering bursaries to facilitate travel of ECRs to Aberdeen for a period of 1-3 weeks, to facilitate co-development of competitive fellowship proposals in collaboration with our existing researchers. We will support return travel and subsistence costs and invite applicants to submit a fully costed budget.
Application due date: 15 March 2026 for priority consideration; consideration will continue on a rolling basis afterwards.
Eligibility: You must be eligible for a target fellowship opportunity that you have identified and plan to pursue in Aberdeen. Potential fellowship opportunities include but are not limited to: NERC IRF, Royal Society URF, MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships, among numerous other potential funders to be discussed with potential hosts (see below). You must furthermore be eligible to travel to the UK and to arrange any required visas prior to your visit. We can provide guidance on accommodation options and costs in Aberdeen.
Application process: Prior to submitting an application, you should reach out to at least one member of staff within the Ecology and Evolution or Ecophysiology Research Cluster (full list of eligible hosts can be found: here and here) to establish a potential collaboration idea. You must then submit (1) your fellowship idea in writing (approximately 1 page), (2) an indicative budget for travel and subsistence, and (3) a copy of your CV, as email attachments in word or pdf format to the cluster chair, Prof Lesley Lancaster (lesleylancaster@abdn.ac.uk) on or before the deadline, using the subject heading “Cluster Bursary” when you submit.
Outcomes: We envisage supporting 2-4 bursaries this financial year subject to the availability of funding and the extent of interest. Outcomes will be communicated by the last week in March, and the planned travel must take place before June 30, 2026. Applications for later visits or which are received after the deadline will continue to be considered on a rolling basis, as future budgeting allows.
Informal inquiries can be directed to any eligible host (please follow links above) or to lesleylancaster@abdn.ac.uk.
