Secondment Fellowships are for humanities and social science researchers who we already fund. Researchers spend three to six months working at non-academic organisations to develop their skills.
The way we fund research is changing to support our new strategy. A simplified set of funding schemes will be open for applications in summer 2021.
This scheme will close to applicants during 2021. See 'key dates' on this page for the final application deadline.
A fully-funded extension to a fellowship, PhD or research assistant position
3 to 6 months
This scheme will close in 2021.
This is the final round
16 April 2021, 17:00 BST
June 2021
You can apply for a Secondment Fellowship if you're a researcher in humanities and social science who we already fund.
Either you must hold one of the following awards:
or you must be a PhD student or postdoctoral researcher funded by one of the following:
If successful, you'll undertake a project during your secondment. This will depend on your research interests and the needs of your host organisation. You should discuss your project idea with your proposed secondment host organisation. Your work at the organisation should not be an extension of the research we're already funding.
You can either propose to work at:
or
POST is Parliament’s in-house source of scientific advice. Its key services are:
A three- or six-month secondment at POST helps researchers to develop their knowledge of policy work and raise the profile of their research in Parliament.
Researchers get the opportunity to:
You can read POST briefing notes written by Wellcome-funded fellows on the Parliament website:
For more information, contact:
or
The Science Museum Group's collection forms a record of scientific, technological and medical achievements from across the globe. Its museums in London, Manchester, Bradford, York and Shildon attract over 5 million visitors a year.
Secondments are usually six months. Researchers gain an insight into the Group’s collections, public displays, and events.
Possible secondment projects include:
To discuss potential projects, please email research@sciencemuseum.ac.uk.
Find out more on the Science Museum Group website.
The mission of the OECD is to promote policies that will improve the wellbeing of people around the world. The OECD works with governments to understand what drives economic, social and environmental change.
In 2018, the Household Statistics and Progress Measurement Division will work on a number of projects, including:
A researcher on a six-month secondment in the division will contribute to developing a research and statistical agenda on a relevant project.
You can read reports on wellbeing and its measurement on the OECD website.
For more information, email Fabrice.Murtin@oecd.org
Your secondment organisation must agree to pay for office and project costs.
The secondment organisation does not have to administer or pay for:
If your host secondment organisation isn’t one of our three existing partners, they must provide you with a letter to upload to your online application form, explaining:
A Secondment Fellowship is usually for three to six months, depending on the host organisation.
It’s a fully-funded extension to a fellowship, PhD or research assistant position.
We want to encourage you to apply wherever you are based. If you don’t live within reasonable daily travelling distance of your chosen host organisation, we’ll fund your extra travel, accommodation, childcare and other relevant costs.
If you’re currently working part time, it may be possible to do your secondment part time too.
We don't fund office and project costs during the secondment.
You must submit your application through the Wellcome Trust Grant Tracker (WTGT).
Start your applicationDiscuss your interest in working at the host organisation on the phone or by email.
Complete the application form on Grant Tracker. Submit it to the 'authorised organisational approver' at your current university for approval. Make sure you leave enough time for the approver to review and submit your application before the deadline. The approver may ask you to make changes to your application.
View the Sample full application form for Secondment Fellowships [PDF 180KB]
Your application must be submitted by 17:00 BST on the deadline day.
Wellcome and the relevant secondment host organisation will assess your application. This process may involve an interview. We will let people know the decision by July.
If successful, you'll agree a start date with your secondment host organisation and your current supervisor.
If you want to arrange your own secondment with a different partner organisation, this will involve more work on your part – we won't be able to do this for you. You should:
You then need to submit your application online (see step 2 above). We'll review your application and let you know if you're successful. If you're arranging your own secondment, there are no interviews involving Wellcome staff.
If you are disabled or have a chronic health condition, we can support you with the application process.
What you need to know if you're a grant applicant or grantholder.
We don't accept late applications.
This is the final round
16 April 2021, 17:00 BST
June 2021
Log in to our online grants system (Grant Tracker). You can save your application and return to it any time.
Contact our information officers if you have a question about funding.
If you have a question about the scope and content of your project, contact:
POST: Dr Peter Border at borderp@parliament.uk, +44 (0)20 7219 2876, or Sarah Bunn at bunnsk@parliament.uk, +44 (0)20 7219 1860.
Science Museum: research@sciencemuseum.ac.uk
OECD: Lara Fleischer at lara.fleischer@oecd.org