Research Careers Committee
The Research Careers Committee has a broad remit spanning basic and translational cancer research and is responsible for a number of funding schemes to develop the careers of early to mid-career cancer researchers and clinical academic researchers.
For each of the funding schemes supported by this Committee, applications are encouraged from any area of CRUK’s funding remit, with the exception of drug discovery and clinical trials.
In 2021, the Research Careers Committee combined and replaced both our previous New Investigator Committee and Clinical Careers Committee.
Funding schemes
Pre-doctoral Research Bursaries provide short-term funding to allow clinicians and other health professionals to get involved in research projects early in their career.
Postdoctoral Research Bursaries for Clinical Trainees offer funding for clinical trainees to undertake a research project after completion of a PhD, during completion of their clinical specialty training.
Clinician Scientist Fellowship offers excellent individuals the opportunity to develop their clinical academic research career.
Advanced Clinician Scientist Fellowship supports excellent clinician scientists to establish independence and leadership in their field of academic research.
Career Development Fellowship offers support to outstanding early-career researchers to establish their first independent cancer research group.
Career Establishment Award offers support to new group leaders who have a fully-funded position to establish their cancer research career.
Senior Cancer Research Fellowship offers support to outstanding mid-career researchers to further develop their programme and become internationally recognised leaders in their field.
Clinical Trial Fellowship supports clinicians with an interest in clinical trials and who would benefit from further training within a Clinical Trial Unit (CTU) setting.
If you are a mid-career researcher or a clinician with a fully-funded position, you should consider the Career Establishment Award or Programme Foundation Award. Clinicians seeking to build their own research team should contact us before applying to discuss the best route for funding. If you have already established an independent research group and are now developing your leadership, you may be eligible for other career development opportunities.
How proposals are judged
The Research Careers Committee meets twice a year to assess applications to the schemes within its remit. Applications are judged on the basis of scientific excellence, research environment, the candidate’s track record and future potential, and relevance of the research to the wider aims of Cancer Research UK’s Research Strategy. See our Guide for Assessing Grant Applications.
Observing funding panels and committees
As part of our commitments to supporting the next generation of researchers and equality, diversity and inclusion in research, we're offering early- to mid-career researchers the opportunity to observe our panel and committee meetings across our funding remit. This scheme will include positive action to offer individuals from underrepresented groups priority places to overcome the underrepresentation that has been highlighted by our diversity data report.
Through this experience we hope you can:
- Understand how grant funding decisions are made to ensure we fund the best quality research
- Develop your own successful research proposals in the future
- Help develop your skills as peer reviewers
- Have the opportunity to give feedback to us to help improve our review processes
Chair of the Research Careers Committee
Kairbaan Hodivala-Dilke - Queen Mary, University of London
Vice Chair of the Research Careers Committee
Iain McNeish - Imperial College London
Members of the Research Careers Committee
Sam Behjati -Wellcome Sanger Institute
Jason Carroll - CRUK Cambridge Institute
Rob de Bruin - MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology/UCL
Farhat Din - University of Edinburgh
Jessica Downs - Institute of Cancer Research
Silvia Marino - Queen Mary, University of London
Klaus Okkenhaug - University of Cambridge
Ruth Plummer - Newcastle University
Katie Robb - University of Glasgow
Victoria Sanz-Moreno - Queen Mary, University of London
Jacqui Shaw - University of Leicester
Daniel Tennant - University of Birmingham
Ruth Travis - University of Oxford
Clare Turnbull - Institute of Cancer Research
Marcel van Herk - University of Manchester
Kwee Yong - University College London
Alison Howe* - Patient Representative and Assessor of supporting skills
Alice Choi # - Assessor of supporting skills
* Retired from a career in the pharmaceutical industry and strategic consultancy
# COO at McCann Health Medical Communications
Contact this comittee
Dr Victoria Walker
Research Grants Manager
Tel: +44 (0)20 3469 5580
More career development opportunities for researchers
We offer a range of fellowships, bursaries and other support to help outstanding scientists and clinicians develop their independent research careers.
Finding the right fellowship for you
Our competency framework for fellowships can guide you to consider which funding opportunity is right for you to support your transition to the next career level.
Successful applicant case studies
Read advice on applying for funding from some of our current grantees with a range of backgrounds and expertise.