Royal Society University Research Fellowships (URF)
The Royal Society United Kingdom · open to applicants worldwide
Eight-year fellowships for outstanding early-career scientists in the UK to build an independent research group, covering salary contribution, staff, equipment and research costs.
Free to start · no account needed
Get your personal statement, tailored résumé and notes for your referees for this programme, drafted from your own documents in about two minutes.
You look at it first. Nothing is submitted without your tap.
About
What it offers: Up to £1,907,400 over eight years.
Also: funds for postdocs, PhD students and technicians; relocation/visa costs.
Who can apply: 3-8 years of research experience since the PhD (excluding breaks); must not already lead a group or hold a permanent/tenure-track post.
Annual. The 2027 round closed Sept 9, 2026; the 2028 round is expected to open in July 2027 and close by end of September 2027.
How to apply: through flexi grant (you need an account there).
What to prepare: proposal, cv, references.
From the official page (checked 2026-10-21): “Fellowships are for eight years.”
Who can apply
- Open to researchers
- 3-8 years of research experience since the PhD (excluding breaks); must not already lead a group or hold a permanent/tenure-track post.
What you will need
- Research proposalUpload yours, or let Onward Scout draft one from your profile for you to edit.
- Academic CVUpload yours, or let Onward Scout draft one from your profile for you to edit.
- Recommendation letters (drafts for your referees)Upload yours, or let Onward Scout draft one from your profile for you to edit.
How to apply
Applications go through the official page (flexi grant), which needs an account in your name.
How Onward Scout helps
This one is submitted on the organiser's own site, behind your login. Onward Scout prepares every answer and file in the form's order with one-tap copy, so submitting takes minutes; you mark it submitted when you're done.
Every answer is drafted from your own documents and cites where each fact came from; anything we can’t source is flagged for you, never invented.
Let Onward Scout prepare this application
Get your personal statement, tailored résumé and notes for your referees for this programme, drafted from your own documents in about two minutes. Free to start, no account needed: you look at the draft first, and nothing goes to The Royal Society without your tap.
Nothing is submitted without your tap. Logins, CAPTCHAs, payments and interviews stay with you.