Restricted Call: Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowships 2026/27 (internal deadline: 20 April, 2026)

The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) will soon announce the Research Fellowships 2026/27.

The call is expected to open on 5 May, 2026 and more information will be available at that time.

The scheme’s objectives are to support the best early-career researchers in establishing their independence and international reputation, provide long-term support enabling the pursuit of an ambitious programme of engineering research and impact and develop ambassadors for the Academy and advocates for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) disciplines. Please note that RAEng have increased the award value to £800,000 per award, over 5 years at 80% FEC.

Research Fellowships are aimed at early-career researchers. Applicants must have a PhD, which was awarded (or the PhD has been unconditionally approved) no more than four and a half years (NB: not four years as previously) before the submission deadline which is expected to be 10 December 2026. Therefore, the final cut-off date for the award or unconditional approval of the applicant’s PhD is 25th December 2021. This period includes the applicant’s work experience in academia or/and in industry in the UK or/and worldwide. There are some exceptions for extenuating circumstances. For more information, please consult the eligibility guidance which applies to last round.

Unlike earlier rounds, we expect that again the 2026/27 round will only include the Research Fellowship scheme as the Engineering for Development Research Fellowship (EDRF) scheme has been removed. However, RAEng will continue to accept applications under the EDRF umbrella in the current round and they will be treated no differently to Research Fellowship applications.

For more information about this scheme, please see the funder’s call page, again noting the caveat that currently some of the information applies to the previous round (2025/26 round).

University Internal selection:

The standard application limit for each host institution is two applications, but the host institution can submit up to four applications as part of RAEng’s positive action initiative with the following conditions:

• If the submission is four applications, at least two of the four applications must be submitted by candidates from the identified underrepresented groups.
• If the submission is three applications, at least one of the three applications must be submitted by a candidate from the identified underrepresented groups.
• If the submission is one or two applications, the application or applications do not need to be submitted by candidates from the identified underrepresented groups.

RAEng has identified the following groups as underrepresented in UK engineering research:

• Women
• Black people, including those with any mixed ethnicity with Black ethnic background(s)
• Disabled people

Therefore, this call will be managed according to the University’s restricted calls policy.

As part of this process, departments are not capped on the number of submissions to the internal selection process. However, all candidates must be ranked by their department. Departments should organise their own ranking process and send their ranked nominations using the Microsoft Form by ​20 April 2026 (if asked to log-in, please use your CRSID/Raven details). Applications from the Department of Engineering should be submitted and ranked by Divisions.

You will need the following documents and information to complete the Form:

• The department’s ranked nominations, including:

• The applicant’s name, department (and Division, if in Engineering) and email address
• The PhD certificate date or date of unconditional approval
• Whether the applicant wishes to self-declare that they belong to an underrepresented group in UK engineering research. Yes/No (the funder has identified the following groups as underrepresented in UK engineering research: women; black people, including those with any mixed ethnicity with Black ethnic background(s); disabled people). Disclaimer: Please note that this question is only included in this form as it is required by the funder in order to determine our allowed number of submissions.
• Please provide information about departmental ranking, including details of how the department adopted a proactive approach in encouraging researchers from underrepresented groups to apply
• Project summary (800 words) for each applicant, addressing the following points in line with the assessment criteria:
  • Goals and Objectives: Please state the goals and objectives for your research project. You should include details on how novel, realistic, and ambitious the project is as well as its timeliness (i.e. why it is important and why it should be conducted now) and how you will embed diversity and inclusion in your research, collaborations and team development.
  • Beneficiaries and Impact: Identify the main beneficiary groups and describe how they could benefit from your research outcomes. You should outline credible routes through which outcomes could be used, adopted or translated beyond academia, and describe how you will communicate your work and engage with audiences outside the academic community.
• Applicant’s brief CV (max. 3 pages).
  • Applicants are asked not to include personal information in the CV (e.g., gender, date of birth, nationality).
  • The CV should include a list of publications that are most significant/relevant to the proposal. DORA principles should be considered when presenting research outputs.
• A support letter from the Head of the Department for each applicant (for Engineering, Head of Division), confirming their support for the project and agreement to host the grant.

Internal Assessment Criteria: 

Please note that the assessment of internal applications will focus on the following core funder criteria:

• Candidate: the quality of the applicant’s research track record; the potential of the applicant to become a future leader in their chosen field and the potential to act as an ambassador and advocate for engineering research.
• Research Quality and Vision: the quality of the applicant’s research vision and their potential to establish an independent research career in their chosen field; the quality of the proposed research programme including timeliness, novelty, vision, and ambition that are achievable within the five-year research timeline; consideration of diversity and inclusion in research and team development.
• Beneficiaries and Impact: extent to which beneficiaries will benefit from the proposed research and the potential to translate research outcomes into societal and economic impact.

Key dates provided by funder (see the attached document for more information; internal Cambridge deadlines in red):

• Expression of interest stage opens: 5 May 2026
• Internal Cambridge deadline: 20 April 2026
• Expression of interest stage closes: 25 June 2026 
• Access mentoring (for invited applications only): 12 October-26 November 2026
• Submission invited application stage period opens: 26 October 2026
• Submission invited application stage period deadline: 10 December 2026

If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk.

Posted on 12/03/2026